Personal life Afonso Celso was born in
Ouro Preto, then the capital of the province of
Minas Gerais, on 21 February 1836. He married on 6 January 1859 with Francisca de Paula Martins de Toledo (1839–1916), the daughter of Joaquim Floriano de Toledo – a Colonel of the National Guard and counselor – and his second wife, Ana Margarida da Graça Martins. From the marriage between the Viscount of Ouro Preto and Francisca de Paula was born the
immortal Count
Afonso Celso de Assis Figueiredo Júnior, who came to found the
Jornal do Brasil (he would not have founded but collaborated for more than 30 years in the newspaper). Francisca de Paula was the sister of Carlota Martins de Toledo, the wife of Jorge João Dodsworth, the second Baron of Javary. Dodsworth was the brother-in-law of the
Baron of Teffé and, therefore, uncle of
Nair de Teffé, who was the First Lady of Brazil as the wife of President
Hermes da Fonseca. His brother, Carlos Afonso de Assis Figueiredo, was
Minister of War and president of the province of Rio de Janeiro. The Viscount of Ouro Preto wrote a work of history about the first ten years of the Republic.
Career A member of the
Liberal Party, Afonso Celso was elected senator by the province of Minas Gerais and took office on 26 April 1879. He also held the positions of Secretary of Police, Inspector of the Provincial Treasury and procurator of the Treasury. Having been provincial deputy in two terms and general deputy for Minas Gerais four times. Still in the Empire, the viscount of Ouro Preto, a convinced monarchist, embraced the abolitionist cause. As senator, he created a tax of 20
réis on the price of tram tickets, which provoked great agitation in Rio de Janeiro, known as the "Revolta do Vintém", in January 1880. He published, among other works, the squadron and the parliamentary opposition and Advent of the military dictatorship. He was awarded the Viscount's nobiliarchic title with greatness on 13 June 1888 by
Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil, who was acting as regent. He was
Minister of the Navy and of the Treasury and member of the Council of State. It presided over the last Council of Ministers of the Empire. Assis Figueiredo was arrested on 15 November 1889 at Campo de Santana Headquarters, on the day of the
proclamation of the republic, with the whole ministry, and then exiled with the
Brazilian Imperial Family.
Later life He lived in exile until 1892, a year after the Emperor's death, when he was allowed to return and decided not to pursue a career in republican politics. At the beginning of the 20th century, after the proclamation of the republic, he was professor of Civil and Commercial Law at the Free School of Legal and Social Sciences of Rio de Janeiro. He was one of the most important politicians of the Second Reign of the
Empire of Brazil and great friend of Emperor Pedro II. Afonso Celdo died in
Petrópolis on 21 February 1912. ==References==