Cantagalo, Rio de Janeiro
Encyclopedia
Cantagalo (ˌkɜ̃taˈgalu) is a city located in the east-central area of Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil
. The population, according to the 2004 census, is 20,557. Its area is 749 km² and the elevation is 391m. The population density
is 25,4/km².
Colonization of Cantagalo began in 1755, when Portuguese
nobleman Manoel Henriques, Duke of Terso and a clandestine gold
miner left the state of Minas Gerais
in search of unexplored riches. Henriques and his group erected a settlement and began exploring the banks of local rivers. By 1784, the settlement had grown to accommodate approximately 200 houses. This growth caught the attention of the Portuguese rulers of Brazil, who had a monopoly
over gold exploration in the colony
. By order of Dom Luiz de Vasconcelos e Souza, viceroy of Brazil, several expeditions were sent to the woods around Cantagalo (then called Sertões de Macacu, after the river Macacu) in search of Henriques and his group. The municipality's current name (in Portuguese, the crowing of a rooster
), was inspired by the circumstances around his capture. A troop was about to return to their camp after a day of searching in vain around the woods, when a soldier heard the crowing of a rooster nearby and decided to further explore the area. One of Henriques' men was found in a clearing in the woods and, in exchange for his release, revealed the whereabouts of the rest of the group. Henriques was deported to Africa in dishonour. By 1786, the settlement's name had been officially changed from Sertões de Macacu to Cantagalo. In 1814, Cantagalo was officially recognized by Emperor Pedro I as a municipality and in October 1857, was officially elevated to the category of city.
With the end of the "gold fever", agriculture
became the main economic activity in Cantagalo, with maize
, coffee
, and sugarcane
plantations covering several acres of highly fertile land.
Nowadays, the city's economic activities still revolve around agriculture, with the exploration of granite
and calcareous rock for the cement
industry also playing a strong role. Some of the largest cement manufacturers in Brazil have facilities in Cantagalo.
Brazilian writer Euclides da Cunha
, was born in Cantagalo on January 15, 1886. One of the city's districts is named Euclidelândia, in his homage.
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. The population, according to the 2004 census, is 20,557. Its area is 749 km² and the elevation is 391m. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
is 25,4/km².
Colonization of Cantagalo began in 1755, when Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
nobleman Manoel Henriques, Duke of Terso and a clandestine gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
miner left the state of Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
in search of unexplored riches. Henriques and his group erected a settlement and began exploring the banks of local rivers. By 1784, the settlement had grown to accommodate approximately 200 houses. This growth caught the attention of the Portuguese rulers of Brazil, who had a monopoly
Monopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
over gold exploration in the colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
. By order of Dom Luiz de Vasconcelos e Souza, viceroy of Brazil, several expeditions were sent to the woods around Cantagalo (then called Sertões de Macacu, after the river Macacu) in search of Henriques and his group. The municipality's current name (in Portuguese, the crowing of a rooster
Rooster
A rooster, also known as a cockerel, cock or chanticleer, is a male chicken with the female being called a hen. Immature male chickens of less than a year's age are called cockerels...
), was inspired by the circumstances around his capture. A troop was about to return to their camp after a day of searching in vain around the woods, when a soldier heard the crowing of a rooster nearby and decided to further explore the area. One of Henriques' men was found in a clearing in the woods and, in exchange for his release, revealed the whereabouts of the rest of the group. Henriques was deported to Africa in dishonour. By 1786, the settlement's name had been officially changed from Sertões de Macacu to Cantagalo. In 1814, Cantagalo was officially recognized by Emperor Pedro I as a municipality and in October 1857, was officially elevated to the category of city.
With the end of the "gold fever", agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
became the main economic activity in Cantagalo, with maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
, coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
, and sugarcane
Sugarcane
Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
plantations covering several acres of highly fertile land.
Nowadays, the city's economic activities still revolve around agriculture, with the exploration of granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
and calcareous rock for the cement
Cement
In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...
industry also playing a strong role. Some of the largest cement manufacturers in Brazil have facilities in Cantagalo.
Brazilian writer Euclides da Cunha
Euclides da Cunha
Euclides da Cunha was a Brazilian writer, sociologist and engineer. His most important work is Os Sertões , a non-fictional account of the military expeditions promoted by the Brazilian government against the rebellious village of Canudos, known as the War of Canudos...
, was born in Cantagalo on January 15, 1886. One of the city's districts is named Euclidelândia, in his homage.