Brazil guide

Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of BrazilBrazil and return it to the status of colony. This resulted
(Portuguese: Brasil or República Federativa doin the small scale conflicts known as the Brazilian War
Brasil, listen (help·info)[1]), is the largest and mostof Independence. On 7 September 1822 Prince regent
populous country in South America; and the fifthDom Pedro I (later Pedro IV of Portugal) declared
largest in the world in both area and population.independence, establishing the independent Empire of
Spanning a vast area between central South AmericaBrazil. A treaty recognizing the Empire's independence
and the Atlantic Ocean, it is the easternmost countrywas signed on 29 August 1825 with Britain and
of the Americas and borders every other SouthPortugal. As the crown remained in the hands of the
American country except Ecuador and Chile (viz.House of Bragança, this was more the
Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia,severance of the Portuguese empire in two, than an
Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and the Frenchindependence movement as seen elsewhere in the
department of French Guiana).Americas.
Brazil was colonized by Portugal and it is the onlyThe Brazilian Empire was formally a democracy in the
Portuguese-speaking country in the Americas. It is aBritish style, although in practice, the
multiracial country with a population composed ofemperor-premier-parliament balance of power more
European, Amerindian, African and Asian elements,closely resembled the autocratic Austrian Empire.
more often mixed in the same individual thanSlavery was abolished in 1888, through the "Golden
separated into different communities. It has the largestLaw", created by Princess Isabel, and intensive
Roman Catholic population in the world.European immigration created the basis for
Before the first Portuguese explorers, led by Pedroindustrialization. Pedro I was succeeded by his son,
Álvares Cabral, arrived in 1500, Brazil is thought toPedro II — who in old age was caught by a
have been inhabited by semi-nomadic populations forpolitical dispute between the Army and the Cabinet, a
at least 10,000 years. Over the next three centuries, itcrisis arising from the Paraguay War. Pedro II was
was resettled by the Portuguese and exploited mainlydeposed from the throne on 15 November 1889, when
for brazil wood (Pau-Brasil), then sugarcanea federal republic (officially, the Republic of the United
(Cana-de-Açúcar), coffee beans and goldStates of Brazil) was established by Field Marshal
mining. The colony's manpower was initially composedDeodoro da Fonseca.
of enslaved peoples, firstly Amerindians and then, afterIn the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries,
1532, mainly Africans.Brazil attracted over 5 million European, Arab and
The only recorded transcontinental relocation of aJapanese immigrants. During this time Brazil became
royal family occurred in 1808 when the Portugueseindustrialized, further colonized, and its interior further
royal family, headed by Queen Maria I of Portugal andexplored and developed. Brazilian democracy was
her son and regent, the future Joao VI of Portugal, fledreplaced by dictatorships three times —
Napoleon's armies and relocated to Rio de Janeiro,1930–1934 and 1937–1945 under
along with the government and nobility. Although theyGetúlio Vargas, and 1964–1985, under a
returned in 1821, the interlude led to the opening ofsuccession of generals appointed by the military. Since
commercial ports to the United Kingdom — at1985, Brazil has been regarded as a presidential
the time isolated from most European ports bydemocracy, a status affirmed by a plebiscite in 1993
Napoleon — and to the elevation of Brazil towhich asked voters to indicate a preference for a
the status of a United Kingdom under the Portuguesepresidential or parliamentary system. Voters also
Crown. Upon Joao VI's departure, the remaining royaldecided not to restore the country's constitutional
government in Rio moved to dissolve the Kingdom ofmonarchy.