Amazonas and Pará Financed by rubber, the Belle Époque of the
Northern region began in 1871, mainly centred on the cities of
Belém (capital of the state of Pará) and
Manaus (capital of the state of Amazonas), known as the Paris of the Tropics or Paris n'America, and was a period marked by intensive modernization of both cities. Between 1890 and 1920, Belém and Manaus were among the most developed and prosperous cities in the world, with technologies that other areas of the country did not yet have, including boulevards, squares, parks, markets, health policies, public transportation and lighting. Both had electricity, running water, a sewage system, electric streetcars and avenues over landfilled marshes. In Belém, great architectural works appeared, such as the
São Brás Market, the
Francisco Bolonha Market, the
Ver-o-Peso Market, the
Antônio Lemos Palace, the
Cine Olympia (the oldest in Brazil in operation), the Grande Hotel, the
Bolonha Mansion and several residential palaces, built in large part by the intendant
Antônio Lemos. Another attraction in the city is the
Theatro da Paz, which was the meeting place for Belém's elite who, dressed in Parisian fashion, attended the inauguration to the sound of musical chords in a splendid, refined and lively atmosphere. Manaus was one of the first Brazilian cities to have electricity and water and sewage treatment services. The
Provincial Palace was built in 1875, the
Metropolitan Cathedral in 1877, the
Adolpho Lisboa Municipal Market in 1883, the
Church of Saint Sebastian in 1888 and the
Benjamin Constant Bridge in 1895, all designed by English engineers. In 1896, already equipped with electricity, Manaus inaugurated the luxurious
Amazon Theatre, designed by the elite of the city who wanted to bring Manaus culturally closer to the French capital (at the time, the city was nicknamed the
Paris of the Tropics). The
Palace of Justice was built in 1900, the
Manaus Customs House in 1909, the
Amazonas Public Library in 1910 and the
Rio Negro Palace in 1911, among others. At the time, it had around 50,000 inhabitants. The extraction of rubber, which accounted for 40% of Brazilian exports, gave Belém and Manaus an era of prosperity, making them among the richest cities in Brazil at the time. The currency used in rubber transactions, which circulated in Manaus and Belem during the Brazilian
Belle Époque, was the
pound sterling (currency of the
United Kingdom).
Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo in 1910|left In the
Southeast, the
Belle Époque reflects the golden age that coffee brought to the cities of
Rio de Janeiro and
São Paulo, establishing themselves as a national economic center. At the end of the 19th century, there were profound social changes in Rio de Janeiro's urban landscape. The arrival of immigrants in 1875 after the construction of the
Central do Brasil, of several homeless soldiers from the
Canudos War in 1897 and of former slaves from the
Paraíba Valley after the
abolition of slavery in 1888, increased the city's population from 266,000 to 730,000 between 1872 and 1904. As a result,
tenements and
favelas began to develop in the hills around the city center, leading to the creation of Rio de Janeiro's first favela, the
Morro da Providência, in 1897. According to the IBGE, Rio de Janeiro's population reached 1,157,873 in 1920. In 1908, the National
Exhibition of the 1st Centenary of the Opening of Brazil's Ports was held in
Urca, for which several temporary buildings were constructed. Most of these structures were demolished after the end of the exhibition, with the exception of the States Pavilion building, now occupied by the
Earth Sciences Museum. , inaugurated in 1904 and demolished in 1976 Another important element was the creation of middle-class areas in Rio, such as those in the
Greater Méier region, and wealthy neighborhoods, such as
Glória,
Catete,
Botafogo and
Copacabana, which were permanently occupied with the opening of the
Alaor Prata Tunnel. The
Sugarloaf Cable Car was also created during this period, in 1912. In 1897, José Roberto da Cunha Salles directed
Ancoradouro de Pescadores na Baía de Guanabara, considered to be the first film in the history of
Brazilian cinema. In 1909, the
Municipal Theater of Rio de Janeiro, one of the greatest symbols of the
Belle Époque in the city, was inaugurated. Later, the entire
Cinelândia complex, where the theater is located, was reconfigured with the installation of the
Monroe Palace and several cinemas (
Cine Odeon, Cineac Trianon, Parisiense, Império, Pathé, Capitólio, Rex, Rivoli, Vitória, Palácio, Metro Passeio, Plaza and Colonial). The new aesthetic also stimulated the remodeling of Rio's traditional leisure centers such as
Casa Cavé and
Confeitaria Colombo, still considered one of the ten most beautiful coffee houses in the world, as well as the flourishing of rhythms such as
choro and
samba. Sophisticated hotels such as the
Copacabana Palace Hotel, the
Glória Hotel and the Balneário Hotel (which later became better known for housing the famous
Urca Casino) were inaugurated for the
Independence Centenary International Exposition. On September 7, 1929, the
Joseph Gire Building, the first skyscraper in Brazil, was inaugurated. As a result of all these transformations, in 1928 the journalist and writer from
Maranhão,
Coelho Neto, described the city in short stories as "
A Cidade Maravilhosa" (
English: The Marvelous City), a nickname that inspired the carnival march of the same name, composed in 1934 by
Antônio André de Sá Filho. In
São Paulo, during the
First Brazilian Republic (1889–1930), the city industrialized and the population increased from around 70,000 in 1890 to 240,000 in 1900 and 580,000 in 1920. The peak of the coffee period is represented by the construction of the second
Luz Station (the current building) at the end of the 19th century and by the
Paulista Avenue in 1900, where many mansions were built. ,
Sampaio Moreira and
Altino Arantes buildings The
Anhangabaú Valley was landscaped and the area on its left bank was renamed
Centro Novo (English: New Center). At the beginning of the 20th century, the seat of the São Paulo government was moved from the
Pátio do Colégio to
Campos Elísios. In 1922, São Paulo hosted the Modern Art Week, a milestone in the history of art in Brazil. In 1929, the city got its first skyscraper, the
Martinelli Building. The changes made to the city by
Antônio da Silva Prado, the Baron of Duprat, and
Washington Luís, who governed from 1899 to 1919, contributed to the feeling of development in São Paulo; some scholars consider that the entire city was demolished and rebuilt during that period. São Paulo developed due to its privileged location at the center of the coffee complex and its proximity to the
Port of Santos. The intensive immigration to the city is mainly due to the cultural diversity of the place, greatly influenced by Italians and the mixture of different Brazilian regions. The city also has neighborhoods that are home to immigrant colonies, such as
Liberdade, which is the seat of the largest Japanese colony outside
Japan, and
Bixiga, a refuge of
Italian immigrants in the city. == Culture ==