After the death of Governor Gomes Freire in January 1763, and the city's transformation into the Colony's capital, the modernization process of Rio de Janeiro, begun in 1733, intensified. D. Antônio Álvares da Cunha - the Count of Cunha - took on the duties of viceroy (1763-1767), completing Gomes Freire's works. His main contribution was covering Rua da Vala with stone slabs, in order to eliminate the foul smell that bothered the population.
Image description: This is a colored engraving depicting an urban landscape. On the left side, there is a large tree with broad leaves and a curved trunk. In the background, there is an aqueduct with arches, built on a hill. The city is located below the aqueduct, with several houses and buildings spread across the area. On the right, there is a hill with dense vegetation and a building with a tower at the top. In the center, there is a road that cuts across the landscape. At the bottom of the image, three people walk toward the left. The text in the image reads: "The Aqueduct in Rio de Janeiro".Carioca Aqueduct in 1812 - painting by George Cooke. The aqueduct was rebuilt during the administration of Gomes Freire de Andrade, in 1744.
Imbued with Enlightenment ideals, the Marquis of Lavradio and the Count of Figueiró (D. Luís de Vasconcelos e Sousa) were the viceroys who were most active in the modernization and expansion of the city. D. Luís D'Almeida Mascarenhas - the second Marquis of Lavradio - took office as viceroy in 1769 and held the position for 10 years. During this period, he expanded the urban area toward Campo de Santana and Cidade Nova, opening new streets, as well as building the Glória fountain.
Image description: This is a black-and-white engraving. In the center of the image, we see a portrait of a man wearing formal eighteenth-century attire. He is shown in profile facing left, with graying hair tied back in a bun. His clothing includes a coat with embroidered details and a chain collar. On the upper chest, a medal with a centered cross can be seen. In the background, there is a signature and some numbers and letters in a calligraphic style.Marquês do Lavradio, the second viceroy of the colony.
In order to remove the disembarkation and trade of enslaved Africans from the city's most central location (Largo do Carmo, present-day Praça XV), in 1774 the Marquês do Lavradio ordered the transfer of the port to the Saúde region, in Valongo. However, despite receiving enslaved people from that year on, the Valongo wharf was only actually built in 1811, being the only port infrastructure work made of stone during the reign of D. João VI in Brazil.
In 1779, D. Luís de Vasconcelos e Sousa took office as viceroy and completed the urbanization of Largo do Carmo with paving, the creation of a wrought-granite wharf – a reference to the Lisbon wharf – and the replacement of the Gomes Freire fountain with the Chafariz da Pirâmide (1789), built by Mestre Valentim. He renovated the Casa da Alfândega and filled in the Campo dos Ciganos (present-day Praça Tiradentes), annexing it to the city and encouraging the construction of houses there, transforming the landscape of the region.
Image description: This is a black-and-white engraving depicting a square with historic buildings. On the left side, we see classical-style buildings, while in the center stands a monument with a dome and ornamental details. On the right, there is a chapel with towers and a white building with windows. In the background, there are more buildings and a complex architectural structure. People are scattered around the site, some sitting on the ground and others walking. In the lower corner, it reads "Largo do Paço, Palácio, Capela Imperial e Carmo."Chafariz do Largo do Carmo fountain, designed by Mestre Valentim, in 1860.
Vasconcelos e Sousa consolidated the expansion of the urban area toward the south, with the landfilling of the Lagoa do Boqueirão da Ajuda - carried out by leveling the Morro das Mangueiras - and the construction of the colony's first public garden, the Passeio Público. The entire process of landfilling, construction, and embellishment was placed under the responsibility of Mestre Valentim da Fonseca e Silva and the dozens of enslaved prisoners from the Calabouço, used as labor by the public authorities.
The creation of the Passeio marked the transition from the Baroque style to the neoclassical. Built in the shape of a walled quadrangle cut through by straight tree-lined walks, it was planted with tropical species that provided shade for visitors. Following the axis of the main walk, the entrance gate opened onto Rua das Belas Noites (later Rua das Marrecas), which ended at the Marrecas fountain – another work by Mestre Valentim. At the far end of the garden, by the seaside, there was a rectangular terrace designed by Captain Francisco dos Santos Xavier – known as Xavier das Conchas – paved with stone slabs and enclosed by low walls shaped like masonry benches, with backrests of tiles. At each end of this terrace stood a pavilion: the first dedicated to Apollo, its interior decorated with feathers, and the second to Mercury, decorated with shells. In addition to the feathers and shells, the interior of the pavilions featured the art of Leandro Joaquim, who created a series of landscapes depicting the city's daily life and festivities. The terrace was demolished during the administration of Mayor Pereira Passos, in the early twentieth century, on the occasion of the opening of Avenida Beira-Mar.
Image description: This is an old photograph of a courtyard with tables and chairs arranged in rows. On the left, we see a series of tables and chairs in front of a building with windows. In the center, there is a large decorative vase and lamps along the pathway. On the right, there are more tables and chairs, as well as a building with classical architecture. In the background, we see a structure that appears to be a bridge or viaduct over water, with trees along the opposite side.Terrace of Passeio Público, demolished in the early 20th century. Image taken from the Rio que passou website.
The remaining viceroys carried out few urban transformation works. D. José Luís de Castro (Count of Resende), who assumed the viceroyalty in 1790, faced the tension of the aftermath of the Conjuração Mineira and the imminent outbreak of the
, which restricted his urban intervention to replacing the stone slabs that covered Rua da Vala (present-day Uruguaiana), introduced by the Count of Cunha (viceroy from 1763 to 1767), and the landfilling of Campo de Santana to create a leisure space. One of his most important achievements was starting the process of public lighting in the city with whale-oil lampposts.
