Few conflicts in Brazilian history combined so many elements at once: republican ideals, accumulated economic grievances, disputes over regional autonomy, and a set of leaders who would be etched into the collective memory of Rio Grande do Sul. The Ragamuffin War, also known as the Farroupilha Revolution or Farroupilha Revolt, was a rupture that lasted nearly a decade—from September 20, 1835, to March 1, 1845—and left marks that time has not erased.
The conflict originated in the then Province of São Pedro do Rio Grande do Sul, but its roots ran deeper than a mere regional dispute. Brazil lived under a centralizing constitution, enacted in 1824, which left the provinces with very little autonomy. Liberals advocated for a more decentralized state model, and this clash between imperial power and provincial elites created tension in various parts of the country. In Rio Grande do Sul, this tension had a very specific economic component that made it particularly explosive.
The economy of Rio Grande do Sul at the time revolved around *charque* (salted beef) and leather, products primarily destined for the Brazilian domestic market. While provinces like São Paulo and Bahia exported sugar and coffee abroad and reaped the benefits of this international trade, Rio Grande do Sul fed the enslaved workers in the mines of Minas Gerais and the sugarcane plantations of the Northeast. This Rio Grande do Sul *charque* had to compete with similar products from Argentina and Uruguay, imported at lower prices thanks to an exchange rate that favored foreign goods. Local *charque* producers clamored for protective tariffs, but the imperial government had no interest in raising the cost of feeding the enslaved labor force in the more prosperous central and northern regions of the country.
There was also an open wound: the Cisplatine War, which resulted in the loss of the territory that is now Uruguay. In that conflict, military command had been given to the Marquis of Barbacena, a man from the imperial court deemed unprepared for the role, to the detriment of experienced local candidates. The episode crystallized the resentment of the *gaúchos* toward the central government’s disregard. Added to this was the imposition of provincial presidents by the Empire, defying the political orientation of the province’s own Legislative Assembly.
The revolt began on September 20, 1835, and quickly gained momentum. Among its leaders were figures such as General Bento Gonçalves da Silva, General Davi Canabarro, Colonel Onofre Pires, and General Gomes Jardim, along with other military and political figures who shared republican ideals and a desire for greater autonomy. The ideological influence of Italian Carbonari refugees, such as the scientist and lieutenant Tito Lívio Zambeccari and the journalist Luigi Rossetti, gave the movement an unusually cosmopolitan character for a regional conflict. Among the foreigners involved, Captain Giuseppe Garibaldi stood out—though not a Carbonari, he had participated in republican movements in Italy and would become known in Brazil for his naval and land exploits alongside the *farrapos*.
The movement extended beyond the borders of Rio Grande do Sul. The Revolution declared the province’s independence as the Riograndense Republic and even expanded its reach to the coast of Santa Catarina, where the Juliana Republic was proclaimed in Laguna, and to the plateau of Lages. The revolt inspired other movements in different parts of Brazil: the Liberal Revolution of São Paulo in 1842 and the Sabinada in Bahia in 1837 shared ideological connections with what was happening in the south. The *farrapos* also maintained ties with the newly formed republics in the Río de la Plata region and with Argentine provinces like Corrientes and Santa Fe.
One of the most contradictory aspects of the Farroupilha Revolution is the issue of slavery. Although the conflict involved armies that included Black men fighting for freedom, most of the *farrapo* leaders were slaveholders. Abolition was never a central goal of the movement, and the same caudillos who preached republic and liberty defended the maintenance of slave labor as a pillar of their economy. This ambiguity deeply marks the historical interpretation of the war.
Bento Manuel Ribeiro, one of the most intriguing figures of the conflict, fought on both sides throughout the war. At times he sided with the rebels, at others with the imperial forces. His trajectory illustrates the complexity of loyalties and interests at play in a conflict that, despite its republican rhetoric, had very concrete roots in the struggle for power and resources.
The war ended in 1845 with a peace agreement that granted amnesty to the rebels and some concessions to the province, without recognizing independence. Rio Grande do Sul returned to the fold of the Empire, but the legacy of the Farroupilha Revolution remained. September 20 became a state holiday, celebrated to this day with parades, horseback rides, and a collective memory that transforms the *farrapos* into a symbol of *gaúcho* identity. The war that lasted nearly ten years became, in the regional imagination, something much greater than an armed conflict: it turned into a founding myth.