Old Cathedral of Rio de Janeiro
Encyclopedia
Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order. The first Carmelites were Christian hermits living on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land during the late 12th and early to mid 13th centuries...
, (Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
full name: Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Monte do Carmo da antiga Sé) is an old Carmelite
Carmelites
The Order of the Brothers of Our Lady of Mount Carmel or Carmelites is a Catholic religious order perhaps founded in the 12th century on Mount Carmel, hence its name. However, historical records about its origin remain uncertain...
church which served as cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
(Sé) of Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
from around 1808 until 1976. During the 19th century, it was also used as Royal and Imperial chapel by the Portuguese
Portuguese Empire
The Portuguese Empire , also known as the Portuguese Overseas Empire or the Portuguese Colonial Empire , was the first global empire in history...
and Brazil
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...
ian royal families. It is located in the Praça XV square, in downtown Rio. It is one of the most important historical buildings in the city.
Carmelite Church
When the Carmelite Order arrived in Rio in 1590, they settled in a small chapel near Guanabara BayGuanabara Bay
Guanabara Bay is an oceanic bay located in southeastern Brazil in the state of Rio de Janeiro. On its western shore lies the city of Rio de Janeiro, and on its eastern shore the cities of Niterói and São Gonçalo. Four other municipalities surround the bay's shores...
. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the order built a large convent
Convent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
and renovated the chapel, referred to as the Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Monte do Carmo. Building of the present church started around 1761, and was probably directed by 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...
architect Manuel Alves Setúbal. The church was consecrated
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
in 1770, still with the façade unfinished. The inner decoration, in gilded woodwork in Rococo
Rococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
style, was carved after 1785 by master Inácio Ferreira Pinto, one of the main sculptors of 18th-century Rio de Janeiro.
Royal Chapel and Cathedral
In 1808, Prince RegentPrince Regent
A prince regent is a prince who rules a monarchy as regent instead of a monarch, e.g., due to the Sovereign's incapacity or absence ....
John VI of Portugal
John VI of Portugal
John VI John VI John VI (full name: João Maria José Francisco Xavier de Paula Luís António Domingos Rafael; (13 May 1767 – 10 March 1826) was King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves (later changed to just King of Portugal and the Algarves, after Brazil was recognized...
and his court arrived in Rio, fleeing Napoleonic
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
troops which had invaded Portugal
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
. Several of the buildings of Rio started being used by the Portuguese court, including the old Viceroy Palace (now known as Paço Imperial
Paço Imperial
The Paço Imperial , or Imperial Palace, is a historic building in the center of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Paço Imperial was built in the 18th century to serve as residence for the governors of colonial Brazil. From 1808, it was used as a royal residence by King John VI of Portugal as...
), the Carmelite Convent (in which the Prince Regent's mother, Maria I of Portugal
Maria I of Portugal
Maria I was Queen regnant of Portugal and the Algarves from 1777 until her death. Known as Maria the Pious , or Maria the Mad , she was the first undisputed Queen regnant of Portugal...
, was housed) and the nearby Carmelite Church, which was converted into a Royal Chapel and soon afterwards into the new Cathedral of Rio.
As Royal Chapel, the church was a witness to several important events in this period. The Funeral Rites after the death of Queen Maria I, the Te Deum following the acclamation of her son and heir John VI as King of Portugal are among them. Prince Pedro, future Emperor of Brazil as Pedro I and Princess Leopoldina of Austria
Maria Leopoldina of Austria
Maria Leopoldina of Austria was an archduchess of Austria, Empress consort of Brazil and queen consort of Portugal....
received the nuptial blessing in the chapel on 6 November 1817, having previously entered into marriage by proxy.
Imperial Chapel
With the declaration of the Independence of Brazil in 1822, the church became the Imperial Chapel. The façade was completed around this time by Portuguese architect Pedro Alexandre Cavroé, who added a pedimentPediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
in Neoclassical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
style to the church.
Important events in the Imperial Chapel include the coronation
Coronation
A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...
s of Emperor Pedro I (1 December 1822) and his successor, Pedro II
Pedro II of Brazil
Dom Pedro II , nicknamed "the Magnanimous", was the second and last ruler of the Empire of Brazil, reigning for over 58 years. Born in Rio de Janeiro, he was the seventh child of Emperor Dom Pedro I of Brazil and Empress Dona Maria Leopoldina and thus a member of the Brazilian branch of...
(18 July 1841); the signature of the Constitution of the Brazilian Empire
Brazilian Empire
The Empire of Brazil was a 19th-century state that broadly comprised the territories which form modern Brazil. Its government was a representative parliamentary constitutional monarchy under the rule of Emperors Dom Pedro I and his son Dom Pedro II, both members of the House of Braganza—a...
, followed by a Te Deum (March, 1824); the baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
of Princess Isabel
Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil
Dona Isabel , nicknamed "the Redemptress", was the heiress presumptive to the throne of the Empire of Brazil, bearing the title of Princess Imperial....
(15 November 1846) and the marriage of the Princess with Gaston, comte d'Eu
Gaston, comte d'Eu
Gaston d'Orléans , the first son of Louis, the Duke of Nemours and Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Kohary. His full name was Louis Philippe Marie Ferdinand Gaston d'Orléans; Portuguese: Luís Filipe Maria Fernando Gastão de Orleães...
(15 October 1864).
Republic
With the declaration of the Republic of Brazil (1889), the church lost its title of Imperial Chapel but remained the cathedral of the city. The façades of the church were remodelled in the early decades of the 20th century. A large statue of the Virgin Mary sits atop the present tower, which was rebuilt between 1905 and 1913 by the ItalianItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
architect Rafael Rebecchi. The main and lateral façades were also extensively altered during this period.
In 1976, when the modern Rio de Janeiro Cathedral
Rio de Janeiro Cathedral
The Cathedral of Rio de Janeiro , is the seat of the archbishop of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is dedicated to Saint Sebastian, the patron saint of Rio de Janeiro. The current church was built between 1964 and 1979 and replaced a series of old churches that had served as cathedrals since 1676. It...
was completed, the old church lost its status as seat of the archbishops
Archdiocese of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro
The Archdiocese of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro in Brazil was established as a territorial prelature on July 19, 1575. It was elevated to the status of a diocese on November 16, 1676. It was later elevated to a metropolitan see on April 27, 1892. On May 6, 2003, the territorial abbey of...
. However, it has remained one of the most important historical churches in Rio and in all of Brazil.
Art
The Old Cathedral of Rio de Janeiro, apart from being of exceptional historical value for the city and the country, has one of the most harmonious interior decorations among the churches in Rio. The walls, chapels and ceiling are covered with ornate RococoRococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
(late Baroque
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
) woodwork showing lightness and unity in style. The decoration was executed after 1785, mainly by one of Rio's best Rococo wood carvers of the period, Inácio Ferreira Pinto. He was also responsible for the main altarpiece
Altarpiece
An altarpiece is a picture or relief representing a religious subject and suspended in a frame behind the altar of a church. The altarpiece is often made up of two or more separate panels created using a technique known as panel painting. It is then called a diptych, triptych or polyptych for two,...
. The upper walls of the one-aisle
Aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of seats on both sides or with rows of seats on one side and a wall on the other...
d nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
have a series of balconies
Balcony
Balcony , a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade.-Types:The traditional Maltese balcony is a wooden closed balcony projecting from a...
and oval paintings of the Apostles by painter José Leandro de Carvalho.
Later reforms did not substantially alter the inner decoration, but the façades were almost completely remodelled in the early 20th century. Only the lower part of the main façade, with its three portals, is still original.
Music
The Old Cathedral of Rio was an important setting for classical musicClassical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
in Brazil. In 1808 the Brazilian composer Father José Maurício Nunes Garcia
José Maurício Nunes Garcia
José Maurício Nunes Garcia was a Brazilian classical composer, one of the greatest exponents of Classicism in the Americas....
(1767–1830) was appointed Master of the Royal Chapel by Prince Regent John VI. Father José Maurício is considered the best composer of the period. He was later replaced by another important musical figure, the Portuguese Marcos Portugal
Marcos Portugal
Marcos António da Fonseca Portugal was a Portuguese classical composer, who achieved great international fame for his operas in Italian....
(1762–1830).