Antônio da Silva Jardim (18 August 1860 — 1 July 1891) was a Brazilian lawyer and journalist. He was a

political activist A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some ...

in the

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was Kingdom of France, France in 1315, but it was later used ...

and republican movements, particularly in

Rio de Janeiro state Rio de Janeiro () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil. It has the second largest economy of Brazil, with the largest being that of the state of São Paulo. The state, which has 8.2% of the Brazilian population, is responsible for 9.2% of ...

Early life

He was born in Vila de Nossa Senhora da Lapa de Capivari, which later changed its name to commemorate him. He was the son of Gabriel da Silva Jardim and Felismina Leopoldina de Mendonça. His father was a humble teacher in Capivara. Antônio was sent to

Niterói Niterói () is a List of municipalities in Rio de Janeiro, municipality in the state of Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro, in the Southeast Region, Brazil, southeast region of Brazil. It lies across Guanabara Bay, facing the city of Rio de ...

to study, initially at the Colégio Silva Pontes. In 1874 he enrolled at the Colégio de São Bento, where he studied Portuguese, French, geography and Latin. He also helped found a student magazine which provided the starting point for his political life and his campaign for liberty. His family’s lack of financial resources eventually compelled him to move lodgings and enrol in the Jasper school. He worked to pay his way, and was eventually employed by the school where he studied. In 1878 he enrolled at the

Law School, University of São Paulo The Law School of the University of São Paulo (Portuguese: ''Faculdade de Direito da Universidade São Paulo'', or also ''Faculdade de Direito do Largo de São Francisco'') is an institution of higher education and research in the field of law l ...

. Soon he was taking part in the political world of the faculty, where republican and

ideas were widely held and shared, and editing the journal ''Tribuna Liberal''. He joined a number of secret societies, including the

Freemasonry Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

, and was involved in abolitionist direct action together with academic colleagues, including smuggling escaping slaves to places of safety outside the province. In 1881, he adopted the philosophical views of

Auguste Comte Isidore Auguste Marie François Xavier Comte (; ; 19 January 1798 – 5 September 1857) was a French philosopher, mathematician and writer who formulated the doctrine of positivism. He is often regarded as the first philosopher of science in the ...

and founded the first positivist centre in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

. Graduating in 1882, he began practising as a lawyer, taking up the cause of Brazil’s slaves. In 1883 he married Ana Margarida, daughter of Martim Francisco de Andrada, President of the Law School, owner of the ''Tribuna Liberal'', President of the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

and Finance Minister of the

Empire of Brazil The Empire of Brazil was a 19th-century state that broadly comprised the territories which form modern Brazil and Uruguay until the latter achieved independence in 1828. The empire's government was a Representative democracy, representative Par ...

. In 1884 his first son was born, but in 1885 he died, as did a second child, a daughter, shortly after her birth.

Political activism

In 1887 another son was born, on 14 July; as this was Bastille Day the boy was named Danton Condorcet. By this time he had thrown himself completely into the campaign for a

republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

, to the extent of giving up his place at the bar and dissolving his partnership with . On January 28, 1888 he held the first republican rally in the country. From then until the end of 1889, he dedicated himself to the republican campaign, traveling between

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

and

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

. His outspokenness earned him many enemies and on one occasion his life was threatened by the ultramonarchist Guarda Negra. For his activism he was both praised and acclaimed as well as persecuted and stoned. Since childhood his health had been fragile because of

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

- and his frantic life now weakened his health again, but he did not allow this to interfere with his constant political activity. However after the Proclamation of the Republic, the

Brazilian army The Brazilian Army (; EB) is the branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible, externally, for defending the country in eminently terrestrial operations and, internally, for guaranteeing law, order and the constitutional branches, subordina ...

, having secured power, largely left him to one side. Because of his radicalism, he was excluded from the Republican Party. After the establishment of the Republic, little by little, he was sidelined by the wider republican government. He stood for election to Congress in the

Federal District A federal district is a specific administrative division in one of various federations. These districts may be under the direct jurisdiction of a federation's national government, as in the case of federal territory (e.g., India, Malaysia), or the ...

but was defeated.

Death

He therefore decided to retire from politics and travel overseas to rest, clear his ideas and discovering new people and places. He went to Portugal, France, Holland, Belgium and England. At the age of thirty he visited

Pompeii Pompeii ( ; ) was a city in what is now the municipality of Pompei, near Naples, in the Campania region of Italy. Along with Herculaneum, Stabiae, and Villa Boscoreale, many surrounding villas, the city was buried under of volcanic ash and p ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and was interested in visiting

Vesuvius Mount Vesuvius ( ) is a Somma volcano, somma–stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of several volcanoes forming the Campanian volcanic arc. Vesuv ...

, despite being warned that it might erupt at any moment. He went up and was swallowed up by a vent which opened in the crater. It is not known for certain whether this was an accident.Resumo biográfico in: revista ''Nossa História'', ano 2, nº 13, novembro de 2004 As reported in the magazine ''A Pátria Mineira'' on 29 June 1891, the death of Silva Jardim was an accident, according to a guide and his friend Joaquim Carneiro de Mendonça. According to this account Silva Jardim was swallowed up by a vent while Carneiro de Mendonça was able to save himself with the help of the local guide, although he was injured. After his death his wife gave birth to their fourth child. Because of the hardship his family found itself in, the Chamber of Deputies voted to grant her a pension.

Legacy

The municipality of

Silva Jardim Silva Jardim () is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro. Its population was 21,352 (2022) and its area is 937 km². Conservation The municipality contains the Poço das Antas Biological Reserve, a strictly prot ...

in Rio de Janeiro took its name from the journalist. Another municipality to adopt a form of his name was Jardinópolis, in

, in 1896.

Works

*''O General Osório'' (1879) *''A Crítica de Escada Abaixo'' (1880) *''Memórias e Viagens'' (1891, published posthumously) *''Propaganda Republicana'' (1978, published posthumously)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Silva Jardim, Antonio 1860 births 1891 deaths Abolitionism in Brazil Liberalism in Brazil Republicans Deaths in volcanic eruptions