Floriano Vieira Peixoto ( 30 April 1839 – 29 June 1895), born in Ipioca (today a district of the city of

Maceió Maceió (), formerly sometimes Anglicised as Maceio, is the capital and the largest city of the coastal state of Alagoas, Brazil. The name "Maceió" is an Indigenous term for a spring. Most maceiós flow to the sea, but some get trapped and form l ...

in the State of

Alagoas Alagoas (, ) is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil and is situated in the eastern part of the Northeast Region. It borders: Pernambuco (N and NW); Sergipe (S); Bahia (SW); and the Atlantic Ocean (E). Its capital is the city of Maceió. ...

), nicknamed the "Iron Marshal", was a Brazilian soldier and politician, a veteran of the

Paraguayan War The Paraguayan War, also known as the War of the Triple Alliance, was a South American war that lasted from 1864 to 1870. It was fought between Paraguay and the Triple Alliance of Argentina, the Empire of Brazil, and Uruguay. It was the deadlies ...

, and the second

president of Brazil The president of Brazil ( pt, Presidente do Brasil), officially the president of the Federative Republic of Brazil ( pt, Presidente da República Federativa do Brasil) or simply the ''President of the Republic'', is the head of state and head o ...

. He was the first

vice president of Brazil The Vice President of Brazil ( pt, Vice-Presidente do Brasil), officially the Vice President of the Federative Republic of Brazil (''Vice-Presidente da República Federativa do Brasil''), or simply the ''Vice President of the Republic'' (''Vice-P ...

to have succeeded the president mid-term.

Election

Monumento ao Marechal Floriano Peixoto - Alto

Peixoto was an army marshal when elected vice-president in February 1891. In November 1891, he rose to the presidency after the resignation of Marshal

Deodoro da Fonseca Manuel Deodoro da Fonseca (; 5 August 1827 – 23 August 1892) was a Brazilian politician and military officer who served as the first president of Brazil. He was born in Alagoas in a military family, followed a military career, and became a n ...

, the first president of Brazil. Peixoto came to the presidency in a difficult period of the new Brazilian Republic, which was in the midst of a general political and economic crisis made worse by the effects of the bursting of the

Encilhamento The Encilhamento was an economic bubble that boomed in the late 1880s and early 1890s in Brazil, bursting during the early years of the First Brazilian Republic (1889–1894) and leading to an institutional and a financial crisis. Two Financ ...

economic bubble. As Vice President, he had also served as the President of the Senate.

Presidency

His government was marked by several revolutions. Peixoto defeated a naval officers' rebellion against him in 1893–1894 and the

Federalist Revolution The Federalist Revolution ( Portuguese: ''Revolução Federalista'') was a civil war that took place in southern Brazil between 1893 and 1895, fought by the federalists, opponents of Rio Grande do Sul state president, Júlio de Castilhos, seeki ...

in the States of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, with use of strength during the same year - to maintain territorial integrity. His government was marked by an increased centralization of power and

nationalism Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...

, with the ''florianista'' cult of personality being the first phenomenon of a favorable political expression towards a republican politician in Brazil.

Legacy

He is often referred to as "the Consolidator of the Republic" or "The Iron Marshal." He left the presidency on 15 November 1894. In spite of his unpopularity, he was responsible for the consolidation of the

First Brazilian Republic The First Brazilian Republic, also referred to as the Old Republic ( pt, República Velha ), officially the Republic of the United States of Brazil, refers to the period of Brazilian history from 1889 to 1930. The Old Republic began with the de ...

. Desterro, the capital of the state of Santa Catarina, was renamed Florianópolis after its defeat by loyalist troops at the end of the Federalist Revolution.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Peixoto, Floriano 1839 births 1895 deaths People from Maceió Presidents of Brazil Vice presidents of Brazil Government ministers of Brazil Presidents of the Federal Senate (Brazil) Marshals of Brazil Brazilian Freemasons 19th-century Brazilian people Liberal Party (Brazil) politicians Candidates for President of Brazil Brazilian military personnel of the Paraguayan War Candidates for Vice President of Brazil