Rio de Janeiro turns 450

Four hundred and fifty years ago, Portuguese colonist Estácio de Sá landed on a beach between the Cara de Cão hill and the Sugar Loaf mountain, in what is now the Urca neighborhood. His main purpose was to expel the French who had settled in Guanabara Bay without the permission of the Portuguese Crown years before and to wage war against the native Tamoio people. There, Rio de Janeiro was first founded on March 1st, 1565.

As the Portuguese won the war in 1567, two years after the city was founded, Estácio's uncle, Governor-General Mem de Sá, decided to relocate the poorly established village from Urca to Morro do Castelo (Castle Hill), leaving only a fort and a few houses there. And so Rio was “founded” for the second time, for strategic reasons.

Little now remains from this period but accounts. Very few physical structures from the early years of settlement have survived the past four and a half centuries, and, from the 16th century buildings, almost none is left standing.

Geographer João Baptista Ferreira de Mello, State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), organizes history tours of Rio de Janeiro. He says most of the city's early buildings were made with rough materials and building techniques and eventually disappeared or were replaced by sturdier buildings. “The first churches, for example, started to be built in the 16th century, but they were made from rammed earth and straw,” he said.

Another reason why so few early historic buildings have survived was the destruction of Morro do Castelo, the original core of the refounded village. In 1922, Carlos Sampaio, then mayor of Rio de Janeiro, razed the hill that was home to such buildings as the Jesuit College and the St. Sebastian's Church, as part of a project to modernize the city in preparation to stage the world expo marking the 100 years of Brazil's independence.

“Morro do Castelo was also home to other buildings including small houses, and concentrated a poor urban population. So there was this discussion about demolishing the hill in order to modernize the city and create more open space. There was a lot of debate in Rio over whether they should preserve the old landmarks or revamp the city, and it gained wide press attention. Eventually the demolition advocates won,” explained Getúlio Vargas foundation (FGV) historian Marieta de Moraes Ferreira, the author of a book called Rio de Janeiro: uma cidade na história (“Rio de Janeiro, a City in History”).

Ladeira da Misericórdia (Mercy Slope), the only remnant of Morro do Castelo, is considered to be one of the city's first roads. It was reportedly built during the early settlement in the second half of the 16th century.

From the original core where the city was first founded in Urca, only the gate of the Forte de São João (Fort St. John) is left as evidence. The fort was a military base that started to be built in 1565, in the early days of Portuguese colonization, and has gone through successive additions, modifications, and reconstructions. According to the head of the heritage division, Colonel Thadeu Marques de Macedo, the structure, which is now listed as a national heritage building, dates back to the early 17th century.

Macedo explained that the fort had to be renovated and improved to keep up with its military purpose, so the original buildings have given way to sturdier structures. “The art of warfare has evolved and so have the fortresses,” he said.

In the past 450 years, however, Rio has been able to preserve the very landmark of its foundation: a white marble monument engraved with Portugal's coat of arms on one side, and a Christian cross on another. The piece, which used to be located in Urca and subsequently on Morro do Castelo, is now exhibited in a side area of the Capuchin Church in Tijuca, north Rio, with little prominence.

In the same church is the tomb of the city founder, Estácio de Sá. He died in 1567, from an arrow wound in his face.

Translated by Mayra Borges