NEUVILLE’S COFFEEHOUSE: SOCIABILITY, POLITICS AND COMMERCE VIOLATION OF RIO DE JANEIRO (1833-1841)

Abstract

In 1833, the capital of Brazilian Empire was the stage of political rivalries and social dissatisfactions. Meanwhile, the ruling government faced the opposition, leaded by “caramuru” faction in street protests throughout town. In the period of political reaction, the regressive movement started to defend an agenda of reforms that led to a series of changes in the areas of mobility, and consequently, in the life of the citizen. In this sense, under the flag of the reestablishment of order and public tranquility, the new legal codes talked about the discipline and the standardization of procedures. The civilizing project for the capital of the country intended to change the “city of riots” into an orderly and modern city. Located in the traditional “Largo do Paço” (nowadays Praça XV de Novembro), Neuville’s Coffeehouse witnessed significant events in the city of Rio de Janeiro between 1830 and 1840. The place promoted events and was known as the site of the first Carnival ball in the city, but also moved in the boundary between the licit and illicit, sheltering the practice of forbidden games. The history of this famous coffee shop is tangled with that of his owner, Jeant Geant Neuville, a foreigner merchant whose nationality is indefinite (French or Belgian?) and practices are suspicious. Neuville moved among the police records and the news in the papers of Rio de Janeiro. The purpose of this paper is to bring back part of the history of this important commercial site, little mentioned by the historiography of the time, although it was noteworthy by Jornal do Commercio from 1830 to 1996.

Keywords:
Commerce; politics; discipline