History of Joao Pessoa

The area soon proved perfect for sugar production, with the French, the Dutch, and the Portuguese all fighting to control the Paraíba region as a place to grow the lucrative sugarcane. The fortress of Santa Catarina, near João Pessoa, was built by the Portuguese to protect the city from the invading Dutch, who soon became the greatest threat to Portuguese supremacy in Portugal's Colonial Brazil. From 1634 through 1654, the city was held by the Dutch, who renamed it Frederikstadt after their stadtholder Frederick