Alegrete

This article is about the town in Rio Grande do Sul. For other uses, see Alegrete (disambiguation).

Alegrete (Portuguese: [a.leˈɡɾe.t͡ʃi] ^ⓘ) is a municipality in Rio Grande do Sul located in southern Brazil. Its medium altitude is 102 m (335 ft). Its estimated population in 2020 was 73,028 inhabitants and its total area is 7,803.967 km² (3,013.129 sq mi), making it the largest municipality by area in southern Brazil. Its inhabitants are called Alegretenses.

Railroad depot in Alegrete, 1911

City of Alegrete
Municipality
Fountain at the lake of Neytha Ramos Park
Flag Seal
Nickname:  "Baita Chão" ("Hell of a Ground")
Location in Rio Grande do Sul and Brazil
Coordinates: 29°47′01.63″S 55°47′27.54″W
Country	Brazil
Region	Sul
State	Rio Grande do Sul
Founded	25 October 1831
Government
• Mayor	Márcio Amaral (MDB)
Area
• Total	7,804 km2 (3,013 sq mi)
Elevation	102 m (335 ft)
Population  (2020 [1])
• Total	73,028
• Density	9.4/km2 (24/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−3 (BRT)
HDI' (2000)	0.793 – medium[2]
Website	alegrete.rs.gov.br

Alegrete was settled in 1816 and became a municipality in 1857. It is the hometown of the abolitionist leader Franklin Gomes Souto, of the politician, diplomat and statesman Osvaldo Aranha, first President of the United Nations General Assembly, and of the Brazilian poet Mário Quintana. Every 20 September (Ragamuffin War Day), about 8,000 young, adult and old horsemen and horsewomen parade through its streets, using their native costumes and riding their horses with trappings.

Alegrete is served by Gaudêncio Machado Ramos Airport.

The municipality contains part of the 351 hectares (870 acres) Ibirapuitã Biological Reserve, a fully protected conservation unit created in 1982 to preserve an area of the pampas biome.^[3]

See also

• List of municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul