Historedia
AmericasEvent

Start of the Quebra-Quilos Revolt in Paraíba

When
1874
Where
Fagundes marketplace
Episodes
1

The Quebra-Quilos Revolt began in Paraíba on 31 October 1874, driven by opposition to the metric system and local market taxes. The unrest started in Fagundes when protesters shouted against fees for goods touching the ground, marking the start of a three-month-long revolt in the Empire of Brazil.

Episodes

  1. 31 October 1874 · Fagundes marketplaceDisturbance in Fagundes Marketplace

    Protesters in Fagundes shouted against market taxes requiring payment for goods touching the ground, marking the revolt's start on 31 October 1874.

Background and detail

Background. The revolt opposed the proposed transition to the metric system, which had been introduced in Brazil in 1862 to counter foreign merchant monopolies. Paraíba, a state in the Brazilian Northeast, participated in these anti-government protests from October to December 1874, instigated by the replacement of the measurement system.

Outbreak in Fagundes. On 31 October 1874, a marketplace in Fagundes, Paraíba, was disturbed by shouts from a group protesting market taxes. The specific grievance involved a requirement to pay 200 reis for every quantity of purchased goods that touched the ground, sparking the initial unrest that defined the revolt's start.

People involved

Sources

  1. Quebra–Quilos revolt Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-29
  2. Paraíba Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-29

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.