O Military coup of 1964 was triggered on the night of March 31, with the deposition of President João Goulart.
This action against a legally constituted government marked the beginning of the military dictatorship in Brazil, which would last until 1984.
Among the main justifications for the coup was a possible communist threat posed by President João Goulart. Military activity was supported by a coalition formed by businessmen, landowners and foreign-owned companies.
The Catholic Church also played an important role in supporting the coup, as it was against communist guidelines. Later, however, part of the clergy would revise this position and the Church became one of the greatest opponents of the regime.
Historical context
Since the resignation of the presidency of Jânio Quadros, in 1961, the conservative sectors of Brazil had been restless. They prevented the inauguration of João Goulart and only allowed him to take over when the presidential regime was replaced by the parliamentary regime for almost two years.
Only in 1963, João Goulart would return to be the president within the presidential regime. Despite his trips to the United States in 1962, Goulart was unable to erase his “communist” tendencies. In fact, he came from the PTB and had a progressive speech, but he cannot be considered a staunch leftist at this time.
Central do Brasil rally
On March 13, 1964, in search of popular support, the president promotes a rally of the Central do Brasil, in Rio de Janeiro. There, in front of 150,000 people, he announces a series of measures, known as the “basic reforms” that would be enacted shortly.
At this time, he was accompanied by sectors of the left such as former governor Leonel Brizola, the General Command of Workers and the president of the Union of Students, José Serra.
The most controversial laws were the expropriation of land alongside public roads, railways and dams. The second was the announcement of the takeover of private refineries by the state.
Tomorrow, Jango would still announce the fixing of rent prices and the expropriation of vacant properties.
Family March with God for Freedom
This did not interest the military and sectors of the right. For this reason, part of society organizes marches such as the “Family March with God for Freedom”, supported by Catholic Church, in response to Goulart's proposals in order to mark the differences between the government and the opposition.
March 31, 1964
The climate of polarization increased every day. Representatives of the workers, the CGT (General Command of Workers) tried to articulate a general strike with the support of the government.
However, in the early hours of March 31, the military removes the tanks from the barracks and occupies several federal administration buildings.
The president João Goulart he even sought support traveling from Rio de Janeiro to Brasília on April 1, 1964, but gave up on a confrontation against the military upon learning that allies such as Leonel Brizola and Miguel Arraes, governor of Pernambuco, were trapped.
The fact that the coup had the support of the United States also weighed heavily. So he went to Porto Alegre and, from there, went into exile in Uruguay.
João Goulart had not yet left the country, when the then president of the Senate, Auro de Moura Andrade, declared the presidency vacant. This was assumed interim by the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Ranieri Mazzilli.
Power, however, was exercised by the military, who on April 2 organized the so-called "Supreme Command of the Revolution", composed of the Air Force, Navy and Army commands.
Coup or Revolution?
The military called their actions "Revolution". Supported by right-wing politicians such as the governor of Guanabara Carlos Lacerda and part of the Catholic Church, the military intended to rid the country of communism in the polarized world of the Cold War.
On the other hand, this fact was treated as a coup by the left considering the character of suppression of democratic freedoms.
It is necessary to remember that João Goulart had been democratically elected and deposed by arms, which characterizes a coup.
Read too:
- Cold War
- Amnesty Law
- Direct now
- Institutional Act No. 5
- Brazilian History Questions in Enem
- Questions about the Military Dictatorship
