Vincenzo Rovea, known in Brazil as Vicente Rovea (Voghera, February 25, 1861 - Caxias do Sul, November 20, 1941) was an Italian-Brazilian merchant and politician.
Biography
Vicente, son of Italians Remigio Rovea and Rosa Fiori, arrived in Caxias do Sul in the 1880s, and in 1890 established a commercial house. Located at one of the entrances to the village, the store soon became an important trading and supply center. It worked with grains, farm items, and haberdashery supplies, besides being an obligatory stop for the muleteers who came to negotiate their products, providing a farmyard for the animals to rest.
While conducting his business, he became actively involved in the political life of the village. When Caxias was emancipated in 1890, from the condition of district of São Sebastião do Caí to autonomous town, a Government Board was installed, which had to start the structuring of the new municipality amidst a turbulent scenario, reflecting both the recent proclamation of the Republic and the dispute for power between federalists and republicans. In addition, the settler population was massively Catholic and a large part followed a conservative and radical current, the ultramontanism, which fiercely resisted the Freemasons, the positivists and the liberals, who dominated the main public offices. In this turbulent environment, Rovea became the leader of the Federalists, as well as a Freemason. Soon, part of the population, in disagreement with the orientation of the newly appointed Board, rose up in the two Revolts of the Settlers, in which Rovea took part as one of the leaders. The main reasons for dissatisfaction were the late taxes charged with fines and interest, and the poor condition of the roads and transportation. The rebels deposed the Board and the first Council, and a Revolutionary Board led by Affonso Amabile and Francisco Januário Salerno took over the town's government. In order to pacify the atmosphere, the State Government reinstalled the council, admitting two revolutionaries, Luiz Pieruccini and Domingos Maineri. The attempt had no effect, and shortly afterwards the second revolt occurred; the official Board and Council were deposed again, and the Revolutionary Board, now composed of Rovea along with Pieruccini and Maineri, took power. The State Government had to interfere again and dissolved the Board it had appointed, appointing in its place an intendant, Antônio Xavier da Luz, with Luiz Pieruccini as his vice, who took office on August 1, 1892.
Meanwhile, Rovea was making his business prosper quickly. Early in the 20th century, he became the richest merchant in Caxias, and was one of the founders of the Associação dos Comerciantes, which brought together the main businessmen. Loraine Giron mentions that he was not very active in the entity, but Mário Gardelin remembered his participation in the commission that promoted the construction of the Korff Bridge, an important achievement to boost trade with the Campos de Cima da Serra, being one of the contractors of the work, and in the commission that raised funds for an Exhibition-Fair that would be held in Porto Alegre. The Association soon became the main engine of the local economy and an influential spokesman for the settlers' demands. Due to its influence, Serafim Terra was appointed intendant in 1904, taking Rovea himself as his vice-governor. At this time, however, the Association was beginning to face a crisis, divided by internal disputes that led to the removal of several members, and with the ascension of merchants to the Vice-Intendency and the council, its role as a claimant faded away. This process was intensified when Rovea assumed the title upon Terra's licensing on May 16, 1907, and when he was elected to the Intendency the following year. In Giron's words, "on August 12, 1908, Vicente Rovea was elected intendant, so the merchants' struggle became a municipal struggle. The municipal intendant assumed the leadership of the community, managing to bring to Caxias the works that were necessary. In this way, the struggle of the Associação dos Comerciantes ceases to be essential to the municipality. Since there are no causes to be defended, once they have been taken over by the intendant, the movement comes to a standstill".