Prudente José de Morais e Barros (; 4 October 1841 – 3 December 1902) was a Brazilian lawyer and politician who was the third president of Brazil. He is notable as the first civilian president of the country, the first to be elected by direct popular ballot under the permanent provisions of Brazil's 1891 Constitution, and the first to serve his term in its entirety. His presidency, which lasted from 15 November 1894 until 14 November 1898, was marked by the War of Canudos, a peasant revolt in the northeast of the country that was crushed by the Brazilian Army. He also had to face a break in diplomatic relations with Portugal that was successfully mediated by Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. Previously he had been the Governor of the State of São Paulo and President of the Senate from 1891 to 1894. He was also president of the Constituent Congress that drafted and approved Brazil's 1891 Constitution. The city of Presidente Prudente, located in the western part of the State of São Paulo, is named after him. Training and early career Prudente de Morais was born in the vicinity of Itu, in the province of São Paulo, on 4 October 1841. His ancestry dated back to the early Portuguese settlers of Brazil. At the age of three he lost his father, an animal dealer, who was murdered by a slave. After his mother remarried, Morais took up residence in the city, where he finished primary school. He graduated with a law degree from the Law School of São Paulo in 1863 (today's Faculty of Law of the University of São Paulo) and moved to Piracicaba that same year. He practiced law there for two years and began his political career in 1865. He married Adelaide Benvinda da Silva Gordo in Piracicaba in 1866. During the period of the Empire of Brazil, Morais belonged first to the Liberal Party as a monarchist. He was elected an alderman in 1865, presiding over the city of Piracicaba. In 1873, he joined the Paulista Republican Party (PRP) and declared himself a republican as a representative in the Provincial Assembly. He was a provincial deputy in the city of São Paulo and deputy to the General Assembly of the Empire as a supporter of the republican form of government, abolition of slavery and federalism. As provincial deputy, he worked with the complex issue