Brazil - Famous brazilians

Joaquim José da Silva Xavier, also known as Tiradentes (d.1792), led an unsuccessful uprising in 1789 against Portuguese colonial rule. The patriarch of Brazilian independence was José Bonifacio de Andrada e Silva (1763–1838), a geologist, writer, and statesman. Pedro I (Antonio Pedro de Alcántara Bourbon, 1798–1834), of the Portuguese royal house of Bragança, declared Brazil independent and had himself crowned emperor in 1822; he became King Pedro IV of Portugal in 1826 but gave up the throne to his daughter, Maria da Gloria. His Brazilian-born son, Pedro II (Pedro de Alcántara, 1825–91), emperor from 1840 to 1889, consolidated national unity and won respect as a diplomat, statesman, and patron of the arts and sciences. Other famous Brazilians during the imperial period include the Brazilian national hero, Luís Alves de Lima e Silva, Duque de Caxias (1803–80), a patron of the Brazilian army; and Joaquim Marques Lisboa, Marques de Tamandaré (1807–97), a naval hero, soldier, and statesman. In the field of international politics, Joaquim Nabuco (1849–1910) won distinction as a diplomat, journalist, and champion of the abolition of slavery; José Maria de Silva Paranhos, Barão de Rio Branco (1847–1912), was a famous minister of foreign affairs, who represented Brazil at many international conferences; and Ruy Barbosa (1849–1923) was a lawyer, diplomat, statesman, and jurist. A leader of industrial and economic development was Irineu Evangelista de Souza, Barão de Mauá (1813–89). Brazilian aviation pioneer Alberto Santos Dumont (1873–1932) is called the father of flight for his invention of a gasoline-powered airship in 1901. Oswaldo Cruz (1872–1917) founded the Brazilian Public Health Service and helped eradicate yellow fever in Rio de Janeiro. Marshal Cândido Rondon (1865–1957), an explorer of Amazonia, organized the Brazilian Indian Bureau. Dr. Vital Brasil (1865–1950) developed São Paulo's snakebite serum institute at Butantã.

Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis (1839–1908), author of Memórias Póstumas de Braz Cubas and other novels and poems, is generally considered the greatest Brazilian literary figure. The poet Euclides da Cunha (1866–1909) wrote Os Sertões (1902), one of the foremost works by a Brazilian. Other literary figures include Antônio Gonçalves Dias (1824–64), a romantic poet who idealized the Brazilian Indian; Castro Alves (1847–71), who influenced the abolition of slavery; and contemporary writers such as Gilberto de Mello Freyre (1900–1987), José Lins do Rego (1900–1959), Erico Verissimo (1905–1975), and Jorge Amado (1912–2001).

Aleijadinho (Antônio Francisco Lisboa, 1739–1814) was an 18th-century church architect and carver of soapstone religious statues in Minas Gerais. Contemporary artists include the painter Emiliano di Cavalcanti (1897–1976); the painter and muralist Cândido Portinari (1903–62), considered the greatest artist Brazil has produced; and the sculptor Bruno Georgio (b.1905). Lúcio Costa (b. France, 1902–85), regarded as the founder of modern Brazilian architecture, designed the new capital city of Brasília, and Oscar Niemeyer (b.1907) designed most of the government buildings. Robert Burle Marx (1909–94) originated an unusual form of landscaping to complement modern architectural form. Another Brazilian architect of note, Alfonso Eduardo Reidy (b. France, 1909–64), designed the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro.

The greatest figure in Brazilian music is the composer and educator Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887–1959), who wrote prolifically in many styles and forms. Other musicians include the composers Carlos Gomes (1836–96), Oscar Lorenzo Fernandez (1897–1948), Francisco Mignone (1897–1987), and Camargo Guarnieri (1907–1993); the concert pianist Guiomar Novaës Pinto (1895–1979); the operatic soprano Bidu Sayao (Balduina de Oliveira Sayao, 1902–99); and the folklorist and soprano Elsie Houston (1900–1943). One of the best-known Brazilians is soccer star Edson Arantes do Nascimento (b.1940), better known as Pelé.

Other noted figures are Getúlio Vargas (1883–1954), president-dictator in the period 1930–45, who increased the power of the central government; Francisco de Assis Chateaubriand Bandeira de Melo (1891–1966), a publisher, diplomat, and art collector; Oswaldo Aranha (1894–1960), president of the UN General Assembly during 1947–49; and Marcelino Candau (1911–83), director-general of WHO during 1953–73. Gen. Ernesto Geisel (1907–96) and his presidential successor, Gen. João Baptista de Oliveira Figueiredo (1918–99), guided Brazil through a period of political liberalization.