Paço de São Cristóvão

Paço de São Cristóvão (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpasu d(ʒi) sɐ̃w kɾisˈtɔvɐ̃w]; English: Palace of Saint Christopher; also known as Palácio Imperial or Palácio Imperial de São Cristóvão) was an imperial palace located in the Quinta da Boa Vista park in the Imperial Neighbourhood of São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It served as residence to the Portuguese royal family and later to the Brazilian imperial family until 1889, when the country became a republic through a coup d'état deposing Emperor Pedro II. The palace briefly served as a public building by the provisional government for the constituent assembly of the first republican constitution. It housed the major part (92.5%) of the collections of the National Museum of Brazil, which, together with the building, were largely destroyed by a fire on 2 September 2018. The palace was reopened after restoration in 2025.

Text adapted from “Paço de São Cristóvão” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Paço de São Cristóvão ranks #1,117 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #3 of the 81 mapped in Brazil. Founded 1803, it is older than 13% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 562 atlas entries founded in the 19th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 6,647 times in the last 60 days, more than 88% of the atlas. 18 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Greater Rio de Janeiro, 2 km away. See how Brazil compares in the castle statistics.

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