Before colonization the Native people on this Continent
numbered approximately ten million. Native people, such as the Tupi Guarani, fished,
grew crops, hunted and gathered fruit from the forest. Around 1500 a sea captain from Portugal, Pedro Alvares Cabral arrived in this land of lush vegetation and rich soil. By the 1530s, colonists began to arrive in Brazil by shiploads. Jesuit missionaries also made the journey to Brazil to try to convert the Native people to Christianity. |
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The northeast of Brazil was thought to be an ideal
environment for sugar cane plantations and the Native people were soon forced into
slavery. When they fled or died because of the harsh treatment, slaves were brought
from Africa to replace them. Tt the beginning of the 18th century, Portuguese adventurers called bandeirantes explored the interior in search of slaves and gold. This led to the discovery of what was then the largest gold mine in the world. |
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In 1763 the colonial government moved from Salvador
to Rio de Janeiro, which became the capital. Dom Pedro, the son of Portugal's king,
declared Brazil independent in 1822 and became the emperor. In 1888 under the second
emperor, Dom Pedro II, slavery was abolished. This angered the rich landowners, and in
1889, they took power from him and declared Brazil a republic. Brazil's economy continued
to depend on the exploitation of workers in mining, cattle ranching, cotton and coffee
cultivation and the collection of latex for rubber. A dark period in Brazilian history began in 1964 when a military dictatorship was introduced. In 1982 with the Latin American debt crisis, inflation reached a peak of nearly 50% a month. Finance Minister Fernando Henrique Cardoso introduced a new currency, the Real and a plan to reduce inflation. In 1995 he won the presidential election. Brazil has entered a period of economic and political stability. |