Júlio de Castilhos

Júlio de Castilhos
President of Rio Grande do Sul
In office 25 January 1893 – 25 January 1898
Preceded by	Fernando Abbott
Succeeded by	Borges de Medeiros
In office 17 June 1892 – 17 June 1892
Preceded by	Viscount of Pelotas
Succeeded by	Vitorino Monteiro
In office 15 July 1891 – 12 November 1891
Preceded by	Fernando Abbott
Succeeded by	Governing Junta (acting)
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office 15 November 1890 – 14 July 1891
Constituency	Rio Grande do Sul
Personal details
Born	(1860-06-29)29 June 1860 Cruz Alta, Rio Grande do Sul, Empire of Brazil (now Júlio de Castilhos)
Died	24 October 1903(1903-10-24) (aged 43) Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Political party	PRR (1882–1903)
Spouse	Honorina Martins França da Costa ​ ​ (m. 1883)​
Children	6
Parents	Francisco Ferreira Castilhos (father) Carolina de Carvalho Prates (mother)
Alma mater	Faculty of Law of Largo de São Francisco
Occupation	Editor-in-chief of A Federação
Profession	Journalist politician
Militia service
Allegiance	Republicans
Years of service	1893–1895
Battles / wars	Federalist Revolution

Júlio Prates de Castilhos (Cruz Alta, 29 June 1860 – Porto Alegre, 24 October 1903) was a Brazilian journalist and politician, having been elected Patriarch of Rio Grande do Sul.

Politics

He was elected twice as the governor of Rio Grande do Sul and was the principal author of the State Constitution of 1891 and a model for many future politicians of the region. He disseminated positivist ideas in Brazil.

On 15 July 1891, Castilhos was elected president of the state of Rio Grande do Sul. However, with the 3 November coup of Deodoro da Fonseca, he was deposed that year. He re-ran for the same office one year later, without adversaries, and regained his old post. Less than a year later, the unsuccessful Federalist Revolution began, with one of the rebel force's demands being his removal from power. His opposers claimed that the State Constitution granted the state governor near-dictatorial powers.

Castilhism

Castilhism was a political theory instituted by Júlio de Castilhos in Rio Grande do Sul, having as characteristics the centralization of powers in the Executive, the institution of mechanisms of direct participation, such as plebiscites and popular referendums; the establishment of a modernizing, interventionist and regulating State of the economy, in addition to its intermediary and moralizing role in society.

Personal life

Castilhos and his wife, Honorina, had six children.

Death

Júlio de Castilhos died prematurely in 1903, a victim of throat cancer.

Legacy

1231 Duque de Caxias, the last house in which he lived was acquired by the state, following the death of his widow in 1905. The house was converted into the Júlio de Castilhos Museum (Museu Júlio de Castilhos) in the centre of Porto Alegre, the oldest museum in Rio Grande do Sul. The politician was also honoured in the capital with the construction of a large monument in the Praça da Matriz (Matriz Square). The Júlio de Castilhos State School in Porto Alegre and the town of Júlio de Castilhos, where he was born, were named in his honour.

External links

Media related to Júlio de Castilhos at Wikimedia Commons