Draft:Acampamento Farroupilha

Acampamento Farroupilha in Porto Alegre, 2026

The Acampamento Farroupilha (Farroupilha Camp) is an annual event dedicated to gaúcho traditionalist culture and is described by the Porto Alegre municipal government as the largest event of its kind in Latin America. It is held to commemorate the Farroupilha Revolution. It takes place at Parque Maurício Sirotsky Sobrinho, popularly known as Parque da Harmonia, in Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul. The event is traditionally associated with the celebrations of Semana Farroupilha in September and consists of hundreds of piquetes, temporary camps set up and organized by traditionalist groups, companies, and various associations, where the customs and traditions of gaúcho culture are maintained.

History

The event now known as the Acampamento Farroupilha developed around Parque da Harmonia in the early 1980s. Between 1981 and 1983, there was not yet a formal camp. Instead, groups of friends or piquetes would gather in the area known as the fazendinha. At the time, the Piquete Chimango, founded in 1979 by the Carrão family, was considered a pioneer. Its members would ride on horseback to the park one or two days before the parade held on September 20, turning the park into a place to stay or a gathering point. The park's earliest regular visitors would engage in traditional gaúcho activities, drinking and playing button accordion and guitar, particularly on weekends.

In 1984, the Fazendinha do Harmonia came under the administration of the former Epatur, a municipal public company responsible for tourism in the capital. The pavilion that existed at the time was leased to Churrascaria Galpão Crioulo, which was destroyed by fire in October 1986 and subsequently rebuilt with the same characteristics.

In March 1987, Parque da Harmonia was renamed Parque Maurício Sirotsky Sobrinho. That year, the first Acampamento Farroupilha was formally held, bringing together various Centro de Tradições Gaúchas (CTGs) and smaller or more locally focused organizations of a similar nature known as piquetes. The Piquetes Velho Camboim and Marasquim were pioneers in constructing traditional camp pavilions.

Piquete during the 2026 Acampamento Farroupilha

From 1987 onward, the camps included CTGs, DTGs, piquetes, families, associations, and organizations associated with gaúcho nativist culture. In 1990, fees began to be charged for commercial space, when the organization 1ª Região Tradicionalista assumed responsibility for coordinating the event. In 1997, this responsibility was assumed by the Movimento Tradicionalista Gaúcho (MTG).