An overlooked demographic in Rio de Janeiro's early history is the cigano (Romani) people. In the late sixteenth century, ciganos fleeing persecution arrived in the city and slowly established themselves as an important part of the city's economic and social life through participation in the bustling slave trade and popular nightlife. Manuel Antônio de Almeida, author of Memoirs of a Militia Sergeant, and Jean Baptiste Debret, a French painter, provide contemporary perspectives of ciganos during the Portuguese Court's stay in Rio and exemplify the negative stereotypes of the population. In this ImagineRio narrative, I explore the characterization of the cigano people and their role in society before, during, and after the Time of the King through Debret's art, Almeida's writing, and historical perspectives. 

Geographically, the cigano community in Rio de Janeiro lived mostly in ​​Rua dos Ciganos, Campo de Santana, and the city slave market. 

Social Status

During the time of the king, ciganos added "an exotic air to the tropical local" in Rio de Janeiro.¹ A combination of their economic success and romanticism in Europe resulted in respect for the cigano population. Ciganos were seen as free and in touch with nature, and they participated in Court festivities.² Still, they were considered a lower class in the city's social hierarchy due to harmful stereotypes. According to historian Bill Donovan, police reports from the court's stay cite ciganos as the prime suspects in many crimes, especially thievery. This and the maintenance of their cultural practices kept them separate from the white upper class of the city.³ 

While many ciganos worked as slave traders and made fortunes from the industry, others were low-ranking officials or artisans. Providing evidence of cigano economic success at the time, José Rabelo was one of Rio's wealthiest citizens.⁴  

Festivities

While the Portuguese Court was in Rio, Campo dos Ciganos was Rio's bohemian neighborhood, known for its festivities.⁵ Memoirs of a Militia Sergeant illustrates the scenes of such parties in great detail, showing their appeal. Ciganos were invited to participate in royal festivities. For example, cigano dancers were invited to perform at the wedding celebrations for João VI’s daughter, which an eyewitness recounted:

"The young gypsy boys entered into the middle of the festivities mounted on handsome horses that were richly appointed. Each boy jumped on the floor with incredible agility, and joined together to perform the loveliest dance I ever saw. Everyone only had eyes for the young gypsy girls." ⁶

In 1815, João VI took the royal court to the cigano sector during the three-day celebration commemorating Brazil becoming a kingdom. The court and the royal delegation visited Campo dos Ciganos one evening, where they participated in dancing and celebrations. Donovan believes that Dom João VI was especially fond of the ciganos because he took a liking to a cigano woman. The historian writes that "even Dom Pedro, the future Emperor of Brazil, dropped in on the merrymaking and cast glances at the lovely ciganas".⁷ 

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¹ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance," 47. 

² Teixeira, História dos Ciganos no Brasil, 127.

³ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance," 47. 

⁴ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance," 46.

⁵ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance," 47.

⁶ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance," 47.

⁷ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance," 47. 

In Memoirs, young Leonardo encounters ciganos on multiple occasions in his rebellious excursions into Rio de Janeiro. Through both Leonardo's and his father's experiences with "gypsies," Almeida provides commentary on the presence of the cigano community in Rio. 

Almeida's labeling of the migration of ciganos to Brazil as the "gypsy plague" clearly shows how he felt towards them. He describes ciganos as "a slothful, unscrupulous people" with a "well-deserved reputation as the worst of scoundrels," demonstrating the strength of the stereotype of ciganos as dishonest thieves during Almeida's lifetime. According to Almeida, "no one in their right mind would do business with [ciganos] because they knew they would come out on the short end" (26). Despite this negative perception, the writer does note that ciganos were always celebrating and enjoyed "total liberty."¹

After joining the Via-Sacra procession, young Leonardo follows two boys whom he befriended to Rossio Square, also known as "Gypsy Camp." There, he witnesses a party after a baptism. At the celebration, people perform the fado dance while the guitar is played, which Almeida describes in detail: 

"The fado has different forms, each more original than the last. In one, just a single [person] dances for some time in the middle of the floor, performing the most difficult steps, assuming the haughtiest positions, accompanying all of this with a snapping of the fingers. Then he or she slowly begins approaching someone else of his or her choice. (...) the entire circle is called in until everyone has danced." (27)

Through Leonardo's experience, readers are able to learn about cigano culture in Rio. The cigano neighborhood was notorious for its nightlife in the first few decades of the nineteenth century, and this party provides a look into one of these famous celebrations.² Almeida notes that ciganos were known for not letting a "night [pass without having a] party" (26).

Another interaction between the main characters and the ciganos in the novel involves Leonardo Pataca, the boy's father, who falls in love with a gypsy woman. The woman resists his advances, so an obsessed Leonardo goes to see a necromancer to perform a ritual to gain her affection. When he is caught and sent to prison, he insists that it was the "cursed girl that [made him] do all this" (24). Leonardo's infatuation with the woman and the criticism of the liturgy master for staying with a cigano woman reflects the perception of cigano women during the time of the king.³ They were seen as dishonest because they were ciganos, but they were also sensual and attractive.⁴ Almeida also describes cigano women as dressing "with a considerable ostentation".⁵

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¹ Manuel Antônio de Almeida, Memoirs of a Militia Sergeant, trans. Ronald W. Sousa (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999), 26.

² Teixeira, História dos Ciganos no Brasil, 127.

³ Almeida, Memoirs of a Militia Sergeant, 55. 

⁴ Teixeira, História dos Ciganos no Brasil, 127. 

⁵ Almeida, Memoirs of a Militia Sergeant, 26. 

By the arrival of the Portuguese Court, there were hundreds of ciganos in Rio de Janeiro: 400 on the outskirts and another large group settled along Rua dos Ciganos (Cigano Street). Their proximity to the slave market at Valongo perhaps contributed to their important role in the city’s slave trade. In the nineteenth century, travelers described ciganos as dominating “the southern inter-provincial slave trade.” They carried out the in-between of the trade by transporting slaves from the coast to the interior of the country. Donovan argues that cigano involvement in the industry changed Brazilian society’s perception of the community, resulting in a different social status and allowing ciganos to create sedentary communities in places such as Rio. While they were still considered a lower class in Brazilian society, slave trading permitted them to make a living in Rio and even become wealthy.²

Jean Baptiste Debret's paintings depict the interactions between ciganos and slaves. One such painting depicts a room in Valongo, where a cigano slave master sits on a chair on the right side of the image. Debret’s description of this painting in particular provides commentary on the status of cigano slave traders: 

“One recognizes, from the arrangement of the shop, the simplicity of the furniture, a cigano, trader of nègres of modest fortune.”³

Despite these changes, Ciganos were still heavily stereotyped as thieves.⁴ Debret also described ciganos as “shady sellers of human flesh,” making it “important to bring along a [doctor] to choose a nègre in these stores, and subject them to tests that should follow the inspection visit,” showing that he saw ciganos as deceitful vendors.⁵ 

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¹ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance," 42.

² Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance,” 42.

³ Jean Baptiste Debret, Boutique de La Rue Du Val-Longo, 1820s, Ink on paper.

⁴ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance.”

⁵ Debret, Boutique de La Rue Du Val-Longo. 

Another drawing by Jean Baptiste Debret depicts two ciganos on a horse, accompanied by a slave, heading into the countryside. They are riding to either their country house or a party in the country, showing their higher socioeconomic status. These images and their companion texts are useful in illustrating the societal hierarchy at the time. While ciganos were stereotyped, their involvement in the slave trade gave them social mobility in Rio.¹

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¹ Jean Baptiste Debret, Ciganes allant à la campagne, 1823, Watercolor. 

When the Portuguese Court arrived in Rio in 1808, the cigano population benefitted from the changes brought by the presence of the court. Many of the ciganos in the city were slave traders and several became wealthy. The social status of ciganos improved due to their economic success and European romanticism, which generated a perception of ciganos as "exotic" and counteracted their ongoing characterization as "thieves" originating from their persecution during the early colonial period.¹ Despite the stereotypes that plagued ciganos, the women were sought after by royals and literary characters alike, as shown by Dom João VI's suspected involvement with a cigana woman and the liturgy master's affair with a cigana woman.  

However, after the Court left Brazil in 1821, the bohemian perception of ciganos deteriorated and the view that ciganos were dishonest thieves dominated once again. The growth of independence movements in the 1820s due to a focus on national identity and later challenges to slavery’s hold on Brazilian society also damaged the cigano community in Rio.² By the mid-nineteenth century, Rua dos Ciganos in Rio was renamed Rua da Constituição, suggesting a decline in the influence of ciganos in that area of the city. 

¹ Donovan, “Changing Perceptions of Social Deviance," 47. 

² Teixeira, História dos Ciganos no Brasil, 127.