Attack on the railway stations: an episode from the Contestado War through Robert Helling's narrative

Abstract

Robert Helling was a German immigrant who lived in the southern region of Brazil for about 40 years. When arriving in this country, at the end of the 19th century, Helling worked mainly in functions related to construction and operation of the railways in the states of Santa Catarina and Parana. Helling left his recorded memoirs on the work "40 Jahre im Innern von Brasilien; Erlebnisse eines Eisenbahningenieurs, von Robert Helling", (Robert Helling - 40 years in the Brazilian inland - Adventures of a railway engineer). Helling established himself as a privileged observer of the society, culture and regional habits. Furthermore, he described important events relative to the Contestado Rebellion (1912-1916). One of these events, which are highlighted in his narratives, is the attack on the stations of Sao Joao and Calmon, in the Sao Paulo - Rio Grande Railway, in which far too many workers connected to the railway perished along with the military and civilians. In this article, I will approach Helling's character in this plot and analyze his narrative about the attack on the railway stations being related to the local community and the Contestado War.