The Viceroyalty of Brazil refers, in narrow scope, to office of

viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

of the Portuguese colonial State of Brazil and, in broad scope, to the whole State of Brazil during the historic period when its governors had the title of "viceroy". The term "viceroyalty" however never officially designated the title of the colony, which continued to be designated "state". Until 1763, the title "Viceroy" was occasionally granted to some governors of Brazil who were members of the high nobility, with the remaining keeping the title "governor-general". From around 1763, the title "viceroy" became permanent, so being granted to all governors. The position of viceroy was abolished, when the Portuguese court transferred to Brazil in 1808, with the State of Brazil becoming directly administered by the Portuguese Government seated in Rio de Janeiro.

History

Since the 17th century, the title of "viceroy" was granted occasionally to some governors of the State of Brazil, who were members of the Portuguese high nobility, with the first being D. Jorge Mascarenhas, marquis of Montalvão, who assumed the office in 26 May, 1640. The remaining, kept the title of "governor-general". Around 1763, at the same time that the capital of the State of Brazil was transferred from Salvador to

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...

, the title "viceroy" became permanent and, since then, granted to all governors of the State. The driving force for the move was the then tiny village of

São Paulo dos Campos de Piratininga São Paulo dos Campos de Piratininga (''Saint Paul of the Fields of Piratininga'' in Portuguese) was the village that developed as São Paulo, Brazil in the region known as Campos de Piratininga. It was founded as a religious mission and a J ...

, and its capital was made

São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

as a result of the Emboabas' War against Portuguese recent arrivals and colonizers from

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest b ...

, and the consequent shift of economic power to the gold-producing

Minas dos Matos Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

: São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro was the port where the gold was sent to Portugal, and consequently the point of contact between metropolis and colony. In 1775, the remaining states of the

Portuguese America Portuguese America ( pt, América Portuguesa), sometimes called or Lusophone America in the English language, in contrast to Anglo-America, French America or Hispanic America, is the Portuguese-speaking community of people and their diaspora, no ...

(

Maranhão Maranhão () is a state in Brazil. Located in the country's Northeast Region, it has a population of about 7 million and an area of . Clockwise from north, it borders on the Atlantic Ocean for 2,243 km and the states of Piauí, Tocantins and ...

and Grão-Pará) were integrated in the State of Brazil, becoming under the authority of its viceroy, the capital maintained in Rio de Janeiro. In 1808, with the Transfer of the Portuguese Court to Brazil, the Prince Regent (future John VI of Portugal) assumed direct control of the government of the State of Brazil, suppressing the office of viceroy. In 1815, the status of the State of Brazil was raised, becoming the

Kingdom of Brazil The Kingdom of Brazil ( pt, Reino do Brasil) was a constituent kingdom of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves. Creation The legal entity of the Kingdom of Brazil was created by a law issued by Prince Regent John of Portu ...

, as one of the constituent kingdoms of the newly created

United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves The United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves was a pluricontinental monarchy formed by the elevation of the Portuguese colony named State of Brazil to the status of a kingdom and by the simultaneous union of that Kingdom of Brazil ...

Composition

Captaincies from merger of State of Maranhão

* Captaincy of Cabo Norte * Captaincy of Caeté * Captaincy of Cametá * Captaincy of Cumã *

Captaincy of Marajó A captaincy ( es, capitanía , pt, capitania , hr, kapetanija) is a historical administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires. It was instituted as a method of organization, directly associated with the home-rule ...

Captaincy of Maranhão A captaincy ( es, capitanía , pt, capitania , hr, kapetanija) is a historical administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires. It was instituted as a method of organization, directly associated with the home-rule a ...

* Captaincy of Pará *

Captaincy of Piauí A captaincy ( es, capitanía , pt, capitania , hr, kapetanija) is a historical administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires. It was instituted as a method of organization, directly associated with the home-rule a ...

1759 split from Maranhao *

Captaincy of São José do Rio Negro The Captaincies of Brazil ( pt, Capitanias do Brasil) were captaincies of the Portuguese Empire, administrative divisions and hereditary fiefs of Portugal in the colony of ''Terra de Santa Cruz'', later called Brazil, on the Atlantic coast of ...

Captaincy of Xingu A captaincy ( es, capitanía , pt, capitania , hr, kapetanija) is a historical administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires. It was instituted as a method of organization, directly associated with the home-rule ...

History

Composition

Captaincies from merger of State of Maranhão

See also