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But the boom in gold and diamond mining, like that of sugar, was destined to be followed by the rise of an even more important source of wealth - coffee. Just as mining caused a migration of people from Pernambuco and Bahia southwards to Minas Gerais, so the spread of coffee-growing advanced the settlement of empty land still further to the south. Coffee first reached Brazil via French Guiana in the 18th century. The early plantations were in regions well provided with slave labour in the hinterland of Rio de Janeiro; but the abolition of slavery and European immigration into the State of São Paulo in the late 19th century caused coffee growing to move southwards to the region where soil conditions, climate, and altitude combined to create an ideal environment. This favourable environment, in turn, made Brazil the biggest coffee producer in the world.
Another important event in the second half of the 18th century was the transfer of the seat of colonial government. After more than 200 years in Salvador, the capital was moved to Rio de Janeiro, where it dominated the main access route to Minas Gerais and was closer to the growing population centres in the southern regions of the colony.
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