Guanabara Palace
The Guanabara Palace (Portuguese: Palácio Guanabara, formerly known as Paço Isabel) is located on Pinheiro Machado Street (formerly Guanabara Street), in the Laranjeiras neighborhood (bairro), in the south zone of Rio de Janeiro, capital of the homonymous state. It is the official seat of the government of the State of Rio de Janeiro. The Guanabara Palace should not be confused with Laranjeiras Palace, located in the same neighborhood (at Paulo Cesar Andrade Street, 407), which is the official residence of the Governor of the State of Rio de Janeiro.
Guanabara Palace
Paço Isabel
Seat of government
Rua Pinheiro Machado
1853
1865; 1908; 1920; 2012
José Machado Coelho
Rio de Janeiro state government
Brazilian Imperial Family v. Union[edit]
In December 1889, when the palace was confiscated by the military government and transferred to the Union, decree 78-A formally banished the imperial family and forced Emperor Pedro II to liquidate his assets in Brazilian territory within two years. A new decree of the then-provisional government, in 1890, determined that the imperial family's assets were incorporated into the Union.[5]
A third decree in the following year, already under the 1891 Republican Constitution, again determined the transfer of possession of the palace to the Union, but a court decision at the time in favor of the legal representative of the imperial family in Brazil stopped the execution of the order of president Deodoro da Fonseca. The basic argument was that, as much as the Imperial Family had lost its political rights and privileges, the "political revolution" of 1889, consolidated with the Constitution of 1891, did not affect the private property rights of the former dynasty. Thus, until 1894 the Imperial Family's possession of the palace was not disturbed.[6]
In 1894, the palace was confiscated by military forces and incorporated into the Union's assets. The following year, princess Isabel and her husband filed a lawsuit for possession of the palace.[7] In the process, princess Isabel's successors asked for the restitution of the Guanabara Palace and recognition of ownership of the property, so that the palace could be considered part of the Royal Family's estate.[8]
In 1955, Isabel's eight grandchildren filed a new lawsuit, this time claiming ownership of the palace — which made this one differ from the first, since the original was a repossession lawsuit.[9]
In 1967, the first case was considered time-barred by Brazilian courts due to prescription, but the heirs appealed the decision.[9]
In 1969, the two cases were in the former Regional Federal Court of Rio de Janeiro. They go hand in hand through the intricate mesh of the courts. And that started a new discussion about whether or not the lawsuits were time-barred. Nine years later, the court was abolished by the 1988 Constitution.[9]
On 6 December 2018, between decisions and appeals of the lawsuit filed in 1895, brought by Princess Isabel, the Superior Court of Justice judged the oldest case appeal in progress in the country. In the decision, the court decided that the Guanabara Palace belonged to the Union, and not to the imperial family.[10] The case was closed by the Supreme Federal Court on 28 August 2020, after 125 years, in favor of the Union.[11]