old republic

Old Republic is the name given to the first phase of the Brazilian Republic, which extended from the Proclamation of the Republic on November 15, 1889 to the Revolution of 1930, led by Getúlio Vargas.

Traditionally, the Brazilian Republic is divided into:

• Old Republic (1889-1930)
• New Republic or Vargas Era (1930-1945)
• Contemporary Republic (1945 to present)

First Period of the Old Republic (1889-1894)

The first period of the Old Republic became known as the Republic of the Sword , due to the military status of the two first presidents of Brazil:Deodoro da Fonseca and Floriano Peixoto.

The day after the proclamation was made, a Provisional Government was organized in Brazil, headed by Deodoro da Fonseca, who would lead the country until a new Constitution was drawn up.

The first Republican Constitution was promulgated by the Constituent Congress on February 24, 1891.

The following day, the congress elected Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca (1889-1891) - the first president of Brazil and the vice president Floriano Peixoto.

The new government brought numerous differences between civilians and military. Against Deodoro, there was already strong opposition in Congress.

Thus, on November 3, Deodoro dissolved the Congress, which immediately organized a counter-coup. Deodoro resigned and handed over power to Vice President Floriano Peixoto.

Floriano Peixoto (1891-1894) took office supported by a strong military wing. The dissolution of Congress was suspended. The constitution required that new elections be called, which did not happen.

With this attitude, Deodoro had to face the revolts in the fortresses of Lage and Santa Cruz, the Federative Revolt and the Armada Revolt, which caused 10,000 deaths.

Floriano ruled by force, earning the nickname "Iron Marshal".

Second Period of the Old Republic (1894-1930)

The second period of the Old Republic became known as “Republic of Oligarchies ”, as it is dominated by the aristocracy of the farmers.

In the presidential succession, presidents from São Paulo and Minas alternated. During this period, only three elected presidents (Hermes da Fonseca, Epitácio Pessoa and Washington Luís) were not from the states of Minas Gerais and São Paulo.

Presidents of the Republic

Below are the presidents who were part of the Old Republic, after the Republic of the Sword, led by the military:Deodoro da Fonseca and Floriano Peixoto

Prudentes de Morais (1894-1898)

Prudente de Moraes was the first civilian president of the Republic. He took office in intense political turmoil. The “coronelismo”, political power that existed since the empire, had its apogee in the Old Republic.

The colonels, whose titles were reminiscent of the days of the National Guard, were political chiefs who influenced the highest decisions of the federal administration.

The most serious problem of the government of Prudente de Morais was the “War of Canudos” (1896 and 1897).

Salles Fields (1898-1902)

Campos Salles made an agreement with the agrarian oligarchies, known as the “Governors' Policy”, which consisted of an exchange of favors and, thus, only the candidates of status won the elections.

Rodrigues Alves (1902-1906)

Rodrigues Alves urbanized and sanitized Rio de Janeiro, faced the Vaccine Revolt, the Taubaté Convention and the Acre issue. Rodrigues Alves was reelected in 1918, but died before taking office.

Read Also :

• Vaccine Revolt
• Taubaté Agreement

Afonso Pena (1906-1909)

Afonso Pena made improvements to the rail network, connecting São Paulo and Mato Grosso, modified the Armed Forces, stimulated the development of the country's economy and encouraged immigration.

The president died before completing his term and was replaced by deputy Nilo Peçanha.

Nilo Peçanha (1909-1910)

Nilo Peçanha created the Indian Protection Service (SPI), replaced in 1967 by FUNAI.

Hermes da Fonseca (1910-1914)

Hermes da Fonseca had a government marked by social and political upheavals, such as the “Revolt of the Lash”, the “Revolt of the Marines”, the “Revolta do Juazeiro” and the “War of the Contestado”.

Venceslau Brás (1914-1918)

His term coincided with the period of the First World War, in which Brazil participated fighting Germany.

In his government, the “Brazilian Civil Code” was promulgated. At that time, the Spanish flu claimed victims in Brazil.

Epitacio Pessoa (1918-1922)

During the government of Epitácio Pessoa, works were carried out to combat the drought in the Northeast, reformed the Army and promoted the construction of railways.

At that time, dissatisfaction grew against the café au lait policy, as the election of candidates from São Paulo and Minas Gerais became known.

In 1922, the Copacabana Fort Revolt took place. Modernism exploded Brazil with the Modern Art Week.

Arthur Bernardes (1922-1926)

Arthur Bernardes ruled the entire period in a state of siege, to face political upheavals and uprisings of a tenentist character. The economic situation was critical, inflation and a drop in the value of exports.

During this period, under the command of Luís Carlos Prestes, the revolutionary troops – which intended to overthrow the oligarchies – traveled more than 20,000 km through the interior of the country.

Washington Louis (1926-1930)

President Washington Luís tried to boost the economy by building roads such as Rio-São Paulo and Rio-Petrópolis. He was deposed by the Revolution of 1930, ending the café au lait policy.

To learn more :

• First Republic
• Brazil Republic
• Proclamation of the Republic
• Revolution of 1930