however, the history of petrópolis goes back only about 150 years, when it was one of the main passages between rio de janeiro and the nearby mina gerais, home to brazil's most important gold mines.

when the king of portugal and emperor of brazil dom pedro i, on his way to minas gerais, became enchanted with the natural beauty and climate of the region, he decided to buy a local farm called fazenda do córrego seco, planning on transforming it in the palace palácio da concórdia. 

due to political issues back at home in portugal, he returned to europe without even getting back to brazil.

in 1843, his son dom pedro ii, took it upon himself to build on his father's land a royal summer residence.