ConventodaAjuda

The Convento da Ajuda was the first convent in Rio de Janeiro. Inaugurated on March 30, 1750, it had 23 novices in its first year, reaching 57 by 1766. It was considered an elite convent because the nuns generally came from wealthy families. The convent's church was one of the most sumptuous in the city.

Image description: This is an old black and white photograph. In the foreground, there is a tree with green leaves and a light post with decorative details. In the background, there is a large three-story building with regular windows. To the right, there is a leafless tree. At the bottom of the image, there is text that reads "Convento da Ajuda demolished in 1911."

The idea of creating a convent in Portuguese America dated back to 1678, when D. Cecília Barbalho, a descendant of Luiz Barbalho Pereira – captain-major of the captaincy of Rio de Janeiro in 1643 – and sister of Governor Agostinho Barbalho and of Fernando Barbalho, moved into a house built next to the chapel dedicated to Nossa Senhora da Conceição da Ajuda, along with her three daughters and two other maidens from high society. The four-room house was built with the intention of expanding the construction, so as to create a space for women who wished to devote themselves to God. The first inhabitants of the house were called conversas, since they were not nuns, but sought out this space for religious seclusion and devotion.

The proposal to build the convent was rejected by the Catholic Church in the 17th century, but, in the 18th century, the prelate D. Fr. de Silveira Dias succeeded in his intent to build a great place of devotion for women.

It was inaugurated in 1750, and in 1795 the viceroy Count of Resende donated the Chafariz das Saracuras, a work by Mestre Valentim, to the convent. The fountain still exists, but, since 1917, it has been located in Praça General Osório, in Ipanema.

Image description: This is a photograph of a public space with a central fountain. The fountain is located in the center of the image, with a tall pedestal and a decorative brick element on top. Around the fountain, there are several stone vases. In the background, there are modern buildings and palm trees. The sky is clear blue and cloudless. There are green trees scattered around the site.

The convent's space was located in what is today Praça Floriano, present-day Cinelândia. It stretched from the present-day Theatro Municipal to the gardens of the later-built and now-demolished Palácio Monroe. The Convento da Ajuda existed at that site until 1911, the year it was demolished. Following the urban reforms carried out by Pereira Passos, imposing buildings were constructed facing Praça Floriano: the Centro Cultural da Justiça Federal, former headquarters of the STF (1907); the Museu Nacional de Belas Artes (1908); the Theatro Municipal (1909); and the National Library (1910). The convent came to clash with the eclectic architectural ensemble and Frenchified atmosphere that had taken shape there.

Image description: This is an old black-and-white photograph showing a panoramic view of a coastal city. On the left side, we see a large mound of earth, possibly a construction in progress or a recently leveled plot of land. In the center, there is an extensive building with a sloped roof, which appears to be the Convento da Ajuda, as mentioned in the provided context. On the right, there is a densely populated area with houses and smaller buildings, situated on the hills. In the background, we see the sea and a few more hills.

The convent was then sold to Cia. Light & Power, which intended to build a hotel with 300 rooms. The project never got off the ground, but the complex was demolished anyway, in 1911. The site remained abandoned for a while and was later temporarily occupied by Parque Centenário, an amusement park owned by Spanish businessman Francisco Serrador. In the early 1920s, the park gave way to the complex of buildings housing cinemas and theaters, also conceived by the famous businessman, which led the area to become known as Cinelândia.

The nuns were transferred to Tijuca and, later, to a building in Vila Isabel that still exists today. The community of Nossa Senhora de Conceição da Ajuda is one of the last cloistered convents in Brazil. Until 1970, the nuns could not even go out to see a doctor. The convent is one of the most important producers of communion wafers in Rio and supplies most of the city's churches.

Image description: This is a photograph of a historic building known as Convento da Ajuda. The image shows the main building, with a light-colored, detailed façade. On the left side, there is a lower, modern structure, while on the right, there are green trees. A clear blue sky with a few clouds is above the building. At the top of the building, there is a metal cross. The windows are rounded and have yellow frames. There is a stone staircase that leads to the upper level of the building.