Nestled among the forested hills of the Serra dos Órgãos, in the valley of the Quitandinha and Piabanha rivers, Petrópolis is a popular summer holiday spot. Besides the climate and surroundings, the main attraction is the former Summer Palace of the second Brazilian Emperor, which is now a museum, specializing in Imperial history and memorabilia.
Petrópolis is home to the National Laboratory for Scientific Computing (LNCC), a research unit of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Brazilian Federal Government.
The town’s name ("city of Peter") honors Emperor Pedro II, the nation’s second monarch and son of Pedro I. The city was the summer residence of the Brazilian Emperors and aristocrats in the 19th century, and was the official capital of the state of Rio de Janeiro between 1894 and 1903.
The town’s origins can be traced to Bernardo Soares de Proença, who in 1720 opened an alternative route between Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais, across the Serra da Estrela. While traveling to Minas Gerais along this route, Emperor Pedro I found the region’s climate pleasant. Thus, in 1830 he bought a farm, and had his Summer Palace built there, but he never saw it finished, because he stepped down from the throne. Other Brazilian aristocrats eventually followed suit. Pedro’s Palace is nowadays the Imperial Museum, one of the main attractions of the ‘alpine city’ of Petrópolis, together with the Cathedral of Saint Peter of Alcântara, the Crystal Palace and the House of Santos-Dumont. The ‘Imperial City’ became in due time home for artists, intellectuals and celebrities, and by the twentieth century, one of the main tourist attractions in the country.
German farmers from the Rhineland were encouraged to immigrate and to settle on the Emperor’s outlying lands, to help give the Palace a charming urban setting. The settlement of Petrópolis was founded on March 16, 1843, being promoted to district in 1844 and finally city in 1857. The road connecting the city to Rio de Janeiro was opened in 1910 and paved in 1928. The urban design was carried out by Major-Engineer Julius Friedrich Koeler.
On a visit at the Philadelphia Exposition of 1876, Pedro II was impressed by Alexander Graham Bell’s new invention, the telephone, and had a line connecting his Summer Palace to his farm headquarters.
Even after the establishment of the Republic and the exile of the Imperial family in 1889, the city continued to play a significant role in Brazilian history. Curiously, it was a frequent choice as summer residence for presidents of the republic, who lodged at the Palace of Rio Negro. In 1903 the Palace of Rio Negro saw the signing of a peace treaty with Bolivia, which gave Brazil the Acre territory. On August 15, 1947, the Organization of American States opened there the Conference for the Maintenance of Peace and Security in the Continent, from which derived the Interamerican Treaty for Reciprocal Assistance.
A Catedral de Petrópolis, em estilo neogótico inspirado nas catedrais francesas, é também chamada de Igreja Matriz São Pedro de Alcântara; começou a ser construída em 1884 durante o reinado de D. Pedro II, com projeto do engenheiro e arquiteto Francisco Caminhoá.
The Cathedral of Petrópolis, in Gothic style inspired by the French cathedrals, is also called Church of St. Pedro de Alcântara, was begun in 1884 during the reign of D. Pedro II, the project engineer and architect was Francisco Caminhoá.
Catedral noturna (Cathedral night shot)
Interior da catedral, parte do jazigo imperial (Imperial mausoleum, inside cathedral)
Em 1939 Getúlio Vargas inaugurou o O mausoléu imperial, uma capela localizada à direita da entrada, é um dos grandes atrativos históricos da catedral. No centro há um sarcófago duplo com os restos do Imperador D. Pedro II e da Impetartiz D. Tereza Cristina. O túmulo foi esculpido em mármore de Carrara cerca de 1925 pelo francês Jean Magrou, e pelo brasileiro Hildegardo Leão Veloso. Os túmulos da Princesa Isabel e seu marido, o Conde D’Eu, foram esculpidos pelo brasileiro Humberto Cozzo.
Opened in 1939 by Getúlio Vargas, the imperial mausoleum, a chapel located on the right of entry, is one of the major historical attractions of the cathedral. In the center is a double sarcophagus with the remains of Emperor D. Pedro II and his wife, D. Tereza Cristina. The tomb was carved in Carrara marble about 1925 by Frenchman Jean Skinner, and the Brazilian Hildegardo Leo Veloso. The tombs of Princess Isabel and her husband, the Count D’Eu, were carved by Brazilian Humberto Cozzo.
Vitrais do jazigo (Mausoleum stained)
Os coloridos vitrais tem poemas escritos por D. Pedro II quando estava exilado, e que deixa transparecer a saudade que sentia de sua terra natal.
The stained glass windows has poems written by D. Pedro II when he was exiled, and that show the nostalgia he felt for his homeland.
Av. Koeller (Koeller avenue)
Câmara dos vereadores (council chamber)
Detalhe (council chamber detail)
Capela em ruínas (chapel ruins)
Capela em ruínas (chapel ruins)
Capela em ruínas (chapel ruins)
Belvedere
Ruínas da era de ouro do setor têxtil -antiga fábrica Dona Isabel (Ruins of the good times of textile sector – Dona Isabel factory)
Ruínas da fábrica Cometa (Cometa factory ruins)
Ruínas da fábrica Cometa (Cometa factory ruins)
Antigo túnel (Old tunnel)
Parque Cremerie (Cremerie Park)
Parque Cremerie (Cremerie Park)
Entrada para o parque São Vicente (Entrance to the São Vicente park)
Praça Pasteur (Pasteur square)
Praça Pasteur (Pasteur square)
Praça 14 bis (14 bis square)
Represa do Caxambu (Caxambu dam)
Represa do Caxambu (Caxambu dam)
Obelisco
Antigo Forum (Former justice court)
Antiga fazenda no Vale do Cuiabá (Old farm in the Vale do Cuiabá)
Ruínas do silo de grãos (Seed silo ruins)
Antiga fábrica S.Pedro de Alcântara, fundada em 1888 (Former factory S. Pedro de Alcantara, founded in 1888)
Detalhe da arquitetura do antigo mercado (Old market architecture detail)
Museu de armas Ferreira da Cunha (Ferreira da Cunha Museum of weapons)
Mansão Tavares Guerra (Tavares Guerra Mansion)
O primeiro relógio de torre da cidade (The first clock tower of the city-Tavares Guerra Mansion)
Museu imperial (Imperial museum)
Museu imperial (Imperial museum)
Palácio Quitandinha, antigo hotel-cassino (Quitandinha palace, former hotel-casino)
Farol e lago quitandinha (Quitandinha’s lake and lighthouse)
Vista parcial do centro da cidade (Partial view of the city center)
Vista parcial da cidade (Partial view of the city)
Um lugar escondido no centro (A hidden place in the city center)
A toad (Bufo Ictericus)
