Brazil was first colonized by the Portuguese in 1500. Through the Treaty of Tordesillas, Portugal claimed the Atlantic coasts of the South American continent and later colonized the south and the interior. through the Amazon rainforest. Originally, the Portuguese profited from the extraction of Brazilian wood and its red dye. During the colonization process, the Portuguese originally relied on the labor of indigenous peoples. Jesuit missions largely converted the natives to the Catholic faith. However, due to the effects of European diseases, African slaves began to become the primary source of labor. Ultimately, the economy was dominated by the export of sugar from the 16th to the 19th century. When Napoleon invaded Portugal during the Napoleonic Wars, the Portuguese monarchy moved into Brazil and elevated the colony's status to a kingdom. In 1822, Brazil declared independence under Peter I and fought a very short war with Portugal. The Brazilian Empire quickly achieved political stability and largely avoided the civil wars that ravaged the rest of the continent. Economically, the export of coffee, sugar, cocoa and rubber allowed Brazil to modernize with the construction of railways, wastewater treatment and telephone service. Education focused on preparing the elite for government positions and the literacy rate was 23% for men (even lower for women). In foreign policy, Brazil became one of the most powerful nations on the continent through its expansion and successfully fought the War of the Triple Alliance against Paraguay in the 1860s. Massive European immigration from Italy , Germany and Spain would also be the norm throughout the century. The proportion of slaves also declined over time and was a fa...... middle of paper ...... low access to cheap, readily available food. At the same time, Brazil's economy was growing very strongly and was grouped with Russia, China and India within the BRIC economies. President Lula also began to take a more neutral role in world affairs: while maintaining close relations with the United States and the Western world, he also reached agreements with the fiercely anti-American Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Iran. Unlike President Collor, Lula also survived the corruption scandal that hit his Workers' Party in 2005. His great popularity allowed President Dilma Rouseff to win the elections in 2010. Despite his successes in the fight against corruption in the previous regime, it encountered opposition from mass spending. on the World Cup and the slowdown of the Brazilian economy. This led to massive protests and reduced his former popularity..