Brazil 1914 CE

What is happening in Brazil in 1914CE

The late nineteenth century was a period of strong economic expansion, as Brazil found itself drawn more and more into world markets and received massive investment from Europe and, later, the USA. The most notable aspect of this expansion was the rubber boom, centred on the city of Manaus, deep in the Amazon jungle. This boom came to an abrupt end with the smuggling of rubber plants to Malaysia and the consequent ending of Brazil’s monopoly in rubber cultivation.

The economic expansion led to the rise of a new middle class, which did not support the monarchical system of government of the emperor, Pedro II. Moreover, the abolition of slavery in 1888 was fiercely opposed by the plantation owners, and lost Pedro their support. He therefore abdicated the following year, 1889, leaving as a legacy a country that had a far higher level of economic and political stability then most South American states of the period.

Brazil became a federal republic in 1891, adopting a constitution modelled on that of the United States. Government is in the hands of politicians who represent a narrow group of rural landowners, who are nevertheless intent of modernizing the country.

Next map, Brazil in 1960