Background and Kingdom of Brazil During the
colonial period, formal institutions that offered medical training in Brazil were absent, and health services were often provided by individuals educated abroad — notably at the
University of Coimbra — as well as priests,
folk healers,
apothecaries, and barber-surgeons, the latter being practitioners who performed minor surgeries and interventions. With the
transfer of the Portuguese court to Rio de Janeiro, the Crown began implementing several modernising policies in the country, including the foundation of the
Escola de Anatomia, Medicina e Cirurgia, headquartered in a military hospital on Morro do Castelo. In 1813, a law by Manuel Luís Alvares de Carvalho restructured the institution, creating the
Academia Médico-Cirúrgica do Rio de Janeiro. which depicts Emperor Pedro I handing the physician and professor Vicente Navarro de Andrade, Baron of Inhomirim, then director of the Academia, the decree authorizing medical schools to confer certificates and diplomas.|272x272px An early register from around 1815 lists the Academia's students, among which were Portuguese nationals and individuals of African descent. Some of these students were licensed by the
Fisicatura-mor, a colonial body responsible for regularizing medical activity.
Empire In September 1826,
Pedro I, by imperial decree, authorised the Academia to issue certificates and diplomas legally. In October 1832, during the
regency period, a law declaring the Academia a Faculty was enacted. Around this time, the institution offered a French-modelled, three-axis course centered on
medicine,
pharmacy, and
obstetrics. The minimum age for applicants was 16, and they were required to demonstrate knowledge of languages, with
Latin being mandatory and
French or
English as an additional requirement, as well as proficiency in
Logic and
Philosophy, and to provide a document attesting to
good manners and behaviour. In 1854, the so-called Bom Retiro Reform, formulated by Luís Pedreira do Couto Ferraz, Viscount of Bom Retiro (
pt), and inspired by the French university system, renovated the curricula of medical schools, introducing new subjects, including
organic chemistry, and expanding teaching staffs. Though innovating, the reform attracted criticism for its inability to make practical classes available. in line with proposals by Vicente Figueira de Sabóia, appointed a commission to elaborate reforms to public education, including a project dedicated to medical schools. Drawing influences from the German university system, this project promoted a practical-oriented curriculum, expanding classes in laboratories, instituting practical examinations as mandatory for professional certification, creating non-degree courses, and advocating for the admission of women to higher education.
Republic By the turn of the century, the Faculty, following a trend in Brazilian higher education, was developing a stronger focus on scientific research. Around this time, many of its notable scientists emerged, such as
Carlos Chagas, who, in a lone endeavour, identified
Trypanosoma cruzi, described the vectors of the protozoan — known as
barbeiros —, documented the symptoms of
Chagas disease, mapped its epidemiological cycle, and proposed public health measures to combat it. In 1918, it was relocated to a purpose-built facility at Praia Vermelha, in the
southern zone of Rio de Janeiro, following a decades-long struggle for better conditions. On September 7, 1920, together with the
Faculty of Law and the
Polytechnic School, it became one of the founding-institutions of the
Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. As medical specialities progressed, the Faculty began eliminating general disciplines, namely, physics, organic, mineral and general chemistry, which were moved to secondary education, to establish specialised chairs, such as
urology. In the wake of the
Second World War, American influence over Brazilian education grew increasingly. The
Rockefeller Foundation had a major role in directing the Faculty's orientation towards professional research, funding the scholarship of several of its professors. During the
military dictatorship, several of the Faculty's students and professors were active oppositors of the regime, holding demonstrations and protests. A notable incident, known as the Massacre of Praia Vermelha, occurred in September 1966, following a mass protest organised by the
National Union of Students, which was suppressed by police officers, who drove the remaining protesters to the Faculty's facility, where they spent the night besieged. In the early hours of the 23rd, police invaded the building, violently expelling the students and leaving around 600 injured. In 1972, it was determined that the Faculty should be moved from its traditional campus in Praia Vermelha. The next year, it was relocated to Ilha do Fundão, in the Cidade Universitária neighbourhood. In March 1978, the University Hospital of Ilha do Fundão, the first owned and operated by the Faculty, was inaugurated in the presence of president
Ernesto Geisel. == Courses ==