SCOUTING IN BRAZIL

The first news about Scouting published in the  Brazil, it was the day  december 1st  in  1909, in number 13 of the magazine Illustrator Brasileira, published in  Federal District, in  Rio de Janeiro  and with national circulation. The report was titled: Scouts and the Art of Scouting; it took up three pages and featured seven photographs. The material was prepared in  England  by the 1st Lieutenant of the War Navy Eduardo Henrique Weaver, where he was on duty. He thus had the opportunity to witness the birth of the Scout Movement –  Scouting for Boys, created in  1907  by the English General  Baden-Powell.

At the time, together with Lieutenant Weaver, a large contingent of Navy Officers and Soldiers was in England — they were preparing to man the new ships of the Brazilian fleet under construction. A group of noncommissioned officers became enthusiastic about the revolutionary method of further education. Among them was Petty Officer Amélio Azevedo Marques who made his son Aurélio join one of the local Scout Groups. Thus, the young Aurélio Azevedo Marques was the first Brazilian scout.

When coming to Brazil, the military brought with them English Scout uniforms, worth thirty pounds sterling. the battleship  Minas Gerais, the ship on which most soldiers interested in bringing the Scout Movement to Brazil, arrived in Rio de Janeiro in  april 17  in  1910. On the day  June 14  of the same year, in house number 13 of Rua do Chichorro in Catumbi, Rio de Janeiro, everyone interested in scouting and aboard the ships that had arrived in Brazil met. In that place was officially founded the  Center for Boys Scouts of Brazil. The event was reported to the newspapers, which published the letter received from the Steering Committee.

The correspondence sent began as follows: "To the press of this capital, brilliant and powerful factor of progress, champion of all noble ideas, comes the  Centro de Boys Scouts do Brasil, to ask for the help of your good will, the support you need so that in all Brazilian homes the knowledge of the country can be useful, the instruction of the  Boy Scouts".

Soon the movement spread across the country, being adopted even as a governmental educational proposal. Over time, it changed, in some aspects adapting to changes in society, for example, starting to accept girls in its staff and expanding the range of care for young people aged between seven and 21 years.

The Union of Scouts of Brazil,  UEB, founded in 1924, was the result of the union of several scout associations existing at the time (hence the name "União dos Escoteiros") and affiliated to the  World Organization of the Scout Movement. The União dos Escoteiros do Brasil adopts a vertical organization, defining action parameters for the associated Local Units (Scout Groups and Autonomous Sections), through a single program, aiming at greater cohesion among all members.