The Palácio Monroe was a monumental hall in the

Centro Centro may refer to: Places Brazil *Centro, Santa Maria, a neighborhood in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro, Porto Alegre, a neighborhood of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro (Duque de Caxias), a neighborhood of Du ...

neighborhood in

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 ...

, Brazil. It was named in honor of U.S. president

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...

. It was originally built in the U.S. city of

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

to act as the Brazilian Pavilion during the 1904 World's Fair. Following the World's Fair, the building was dismantled and transported in cargo ships to Rio de Janeiro, where it was rebuilt in 1906. Its grand opening at the 3rd

Pan-American Conference The Conferences of American States, commonly referred to as the Pan-American Conferences, were meetings of the Pan-American Union, an international organization for Free trade agreement, cooperation on trade. James G. Blaine, a United States pol ...

was held on July 23, 1906. From 1914 to 1920, the palace was used as the home of the

Brazilian Congress The National Congress () is the legislative body of Brazil's federal government. Unlike the state legislative assemblies and municipal chambers, the Congress is bicameral, composed of the Federal Senate (the upper house) and the Chamber of D ...

. From 1925 to 1960 it was used as the home of the

Brazilian Senate The Federal Senate () is the upper house of the National Congress of Brazil. When created under the Imperial Constitution in 1824, it was based on the House of Lords of the British Parliament, but since the Proclamation of the Republic in ...

. In 1975, the architect and urban planner

Lúcio Costa Lúcio Marçal Ferreira Ribeiro Lima Costa (27 February 1902 – 13 June 1998) was a Brazilian architect and urban planner, best known for his plan for Brasília. Early life Costa was born in Toulon, France, the son of Brazilian parents. His ...

, who was the national chief of the

National Institute of Historic and Artistic Heritage The National Historic and Artistic Heritage Institute (, IPHAN) is a heritage register of the federal government of Brazil. It is responsible for the preservation of buildings, monuments, structures, objects and sites, as well as the register an ...

(''Instituto do Patrimônio Histórico e Artístico Nacional'' – IPHAN), created a public controversy by refusing to sign the landmarking act of Palácio Monroe. The building was slated for demolition because of the construction of the

Rio de Janeiro Metro The Rio de Janeiro Metro (, ), commonly referred to as just the ''Metrô'' () is a rapid transit network that serves the city of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Metrô was inaugurated on 5 March 1979, and consisted o ...

, but in the face of public and media outcry, the construction company shifted the line to preserve the building. This effort, however, was in vain, because on October 11, 1975, the Brazilian president

Ernesto Geisel Ernesto Beckmann Geisel (, ; 3 August 1907 – 12 September 1996) was a Brazilian Army officer and politician, who served as the 29th president of Brazil from 1974 to 1979, during the Brazilian military dictatorship. Born to German Lutheran ...

authorized the building's demolition and a developer razed the building in March 1976. The decision was contrary to the

State of Rio de Janeiro 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 ...

's decision declaring the building an Official Landmark in 1974. In 1979, the

Cinelândia Station Cinelândia Station () is a station on the Rio de Janeiro Metro that services the Praça Marechal Floriano (commonly known as Cinelândia) public square in the Centro neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In 1979, the Cinelândia station was ...

was opened as one of the first five stations of the then-new metro network, on the site of the demolished palace.

Gallery

File:Palácio Monroe (funeral de Joaquim Nabuco).jpg, Palácio Monroe in 1910, during the funeral procession of

Joaquim Nabuco Joaquim Aurélio Barreto Nabuco de Araújo (August 19, 1849 – January 17, 1910) was a Brazilian writer, statesman, and a leading voice in the abolitionist movement of his country. Early life and education Born in Brazil, Joaquim was the s ...

. File:Sight-seeing in South America (1912) (14595357060).jpg, Palácio Monroe in 1912. File:Palácio Monroe (cartão-postal).jpg, Palácio Monroe on a postcard. File:Palácio Monroe (15774001372).jpg, Interior of the Palácio Monroe, showing the Senate floor. File:Demolição Palácio Monroe.jpg, Demolition of the Palácio Monroe in 1976. File:Planta do 1° pavimento do Palácio Monroe, Rio de Janeiro.tif, Plan of the 1st floor of the Palácio Monroe drawn in 1924, preserved in the

National Archives of Brazil The National Archives of Brazil (, AN) were created in 1838 as the Imperial Public Archives. The Archives were renamed in 1911, and are located in Rio de Janeiro. The National Archives of Brazil is the Brazilian institution responsible for the ma ...

References

External links

Palácio Monroe – Por que foi demolido?
Demolished buildings and structures in Brazil Buildings and structures in Rio de Janeiro (city) Former seats of national legislatures World's fair architecture in Missouri World's fair architecture in South America 1904 establishments in Missouri 1904 disestablishments in Missouri 1906 establishments in Brazil 1976 disestablishments in Brazil History of Rio de Janeiro (city) {{Brazil-struct-stub