With the transfer of the capital from Salvador to Rio, besides the change in its political status, Rio underwent significant changes in its urban structure. The rise of King Dom José I to the Portuguese throne (1750-77) and, especially, the appointment of his Secretary of State, the Marquis of Pombal, echoed the metropolis's transformations in the colony. The Marquis of Pombal was the main mastermind behind these changes, driven by his Enlightenment-inspired modernization project.
Portrait of the Marquis of Pombal (1766), by Louis-Michel van Loo and Claude Joseph Vernet. Wikimedia Commons
Image description: This is a painting depicting a man seated in an armchair, with a panoramic view of a city in the background. The scene is dominated by shades of blue and gray, with the cloudy sky standing out. On the left, there is a table with an open map and a decorative vase. The man is wearing a black suit and white trousers, resting on one arm of the chair. In the upper left, there is a red curtain and a statue on a golden base. In the background, several vessels are sailing on a river, with tall, distant buildings to the right.After the earthquake that destroyed Lisbon in 1755, Pombal assumed a central role in royal politics and was responsible for rebuilding the Portuguese capital. Reason and calculation, striking Enlightenment characteristics, were the tools that guided the new urban planning in the metropolis and reached Rio de Janeiro and its baroque architecture, which welcomed the new Portuguese ideals of modernization.
Representation of the Lisbon Earthquake - Museu da Cidade, Lisbon. Wikimedia Commons
Image description: This is a black-and-white engraving depicting the Lisbon Earthquake. The image shows a city in flames, with buildings in ruins and dense smoke rising into the sky. On the left side, we see ships sinking in the rough sea. In the center, the city is ablaze, with debris scattered across the landscape. On the right, other buildings are also in flames, with smoke rising. At the top of the image, there is text that reads "Destruction de Lisbon".
