Second reign (Empire of Brazil)

Second reign
1840–1889
Emperor Pedro II in his majestic costume with imperial insignia
Key events	Declaration of age of Pedro II Proclamation of the Republic
Chronology Regency period Republic of the Sword [pt]

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Empire of Brazil Reign of Pedro I 1823 Constituent Assembly Night of Agony 1824 Constitution Confederation of the Equator Cisplatine War Abdication of Pedro I Regency Period April Revolt 1834 Additional Act Malê Revolt Cabanagem Ragamuffin War Balaiada Declaration of majority of Pedro II Reign of Pedro II Liberal rebellions of 1842 Praieira revolt Coffee cycle Eusébio de Queirós Law Platine War Christie Affair Uruguayan War Paraguayan War Religious Issue Revolt of the Muckers Grande Seca Abolition of Slavery Post–abolition of slavery
Old Republic Proclamation of the Republic 1891 Constitution Republic of the Sword [pt] Encilhamento Navy Revolts Federalist Revolution Belle Époque Coffee with milk politics Coronelism Amazon rubber boom War of Canudos Annexation of Acre Vaccine Revolt Taubaté Agreement Naval arms race Revolt of the Lash Contestado War World War I Lieutenant revolts
Vargas Era Second Brazilian Republic Revolution of 1930 Constitutionalist Revolution 1934 Constitution Communist uprising of 1935 Estado Novo 1937 Brazilian coup d'état 1937 Constitution Integralist Uprising World War II Ousting of Getúlio Vargas
Populist Republic Lott's preventative coup Construction of Brasília Legality Campaign Plano Trienal
Military dictatorship 1964 Brazilian coup d'état Vacancy in the Presidency AI-5 Araguaia Guerrilla War March of the One Hundred Thousand Brazilian Miracle Redemocratization Diretas Já
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The Second Reign is a period of history within the Empire of Brazil that lasted 49 years, beginning with the end of the regency period on 23 July 1840, upon the declaration of Pedro de Alcântara's majority, and ending on 15 November 1889, when the parliamentary constitutional monarchy in force was removed by the proclamation of the republic.

The Second Reign represented a period of great cultural progress and significance for Brazil, with the growth and consolidation of the Brazilian nation as an independent country and as an important member of the American nations. This era witnessed the consolidation of the country's army and navy, culminating in the Paraguayan War in 1865, and profound changes in the social sphere, such as the gradual abolition of slavery and the encouragement of European immigration to join the Brazilian workforce.

The visual arts, literature and theater also flourished during this period. Although heavily influenced by European styles ranging from Neoclassicism to Romanticism, each concept was adapted to create a genuinely Brazilian culture.^[1] The expansion of the urbanization of the big cities, the large-scale construction of railroads, aimed at mobilizing the flow of consumer goods more efficiently, and the interiorization of the country also happened during the Second Reign.

Other examples of this historical period are the introduction of electric telegraphs lines that interconnected the Brazilian provinces and other South American countries; steamships lines that updated the merchant and war navies and, in 1877, the acquisition of the first telephone sets.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} The second half of the 19th century was marked by an incipient Brazilian modernization based on basic principles: the coffee economy in the Southeast, the end of the slave trade and the gradual extinction of slavery, the replacement of the old slave system with paid labor, and incentives for the country's industry to develop and assume, by the end of the Second Reign, an important position.^[7]

It is historically incorrect to refer to this period as the "Second Empire", since Brazil had a single continuous imperial period, divided into the First and Second Reigns and separated by a 9-year span known as the regency period, which was the most troubled moment in Brazilian history.^[7]