A prince by a creek ended three centuries of colonial rule
On this day · 7 September 1822
Ordered home to Portugal and stripped of power, Brazil's regent chose instead to break with the crown that sent him.
On September 7, 1822, Prince Pedro of Braganza declared Brazil independent of Portugal, ending more than three centuries of colonial rule. The moment, made beside the Ipiranga brook near São Paulo, is remembered as the Cry of Ipiranga.
The decision was anything but abstract. Riding back toward Rio de Janeiro, Pedro had just received letters from Lisbon: the Portuguese Cortes had annulled his cabinet’s acts, stripped his remaining powers, and ordered him home. Rather than obey, he chose to stay and to sever the tie.
His reported watchword — “Independence or death!” — became the rallying cry of a new nation.
Unlike the wars that tore through Spanish America, Brazil’s split was comparatively swift. Pedro was acclaimed emperor weeks later, and Portugal formally recognized the new country in 1825. The date remains Brazil’s national independence holiday.
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