Rio De Janeiro Brazil History - Way back when Estácio de Sá in l565 founded Rio he didn’t have a clue as to how the city would turn into one of the finest in the world. Back then it was small and uninhabited. Rio de Janeiro means the “River of January” and was named after the infant king of Portugal.

During the seventeenth century the sugar cane economy brought new wealth to Rio, though the city remained poorly developed.

Royal patronage allowed the arts and sciences to flourish, and Rio then became prosperous with more and more people moving into the area.

However, by the late nineteenth century, Rio had lost much of its mercantilist colonial flavour and started to develop as a modern city. Gone were the simple days of their yesteryear. It took a while but the people got used to it and now it is one of the largest, most prosperous cities in the world. People come from all over the world to play on its famous beaches and bask in its glory.