Английская Википедия:1964 Sailors' Revolt
Шаблон:Short description Шаблон:Infobox military conflict The Sailors' Revolt was a conflict between the Brazilian Navy authorities and the Association of Sailors and Marines of Brazil (AMFNB) from March 25 to 27, 1964, taking place in Rio de Janeiro at the Sindicato dos Metalúrgicos, Arsenal de Marinha, and Armada ships. Its outcome, negotiated by João Goulart's government, outraged the perpetrators of the coup d'état a few days later, and was thus one of its immediate antecedents.
The AMFNB was part of the Шаблон:Ill (low military ranks) of the early 1960s, also responsible for the Шаблон:Ill of 1963, in which many of its members participated. It was a class association for a poor category, with difficult working conditions, deprived of rights such as voting and marriage, and marked by social difference in relation to the officers. Founded in 1962, its president in 1964 was the sailor José Anselmo dos Santos, known as "Corporal Anselmo".Шаблон:Efn In those two years it acquired thousands of members and a more combative leadership, coming closer to President Goulart and leftist organizations, as well as becoming interested in issues outside the corporation, such as Шаблон:Ill. She encountered hostility from Navy officers around the issue of military indiscipline. Her politicization was not tolerated, unlike the political activities of the officerate.
The Association's two-year anniversary, on the 25th, was celebrated at the Metalworkers Union. Upon receiving news of the arrest of directors for statements made on the 20th, those present decided to remain in assembly until the fulfillment of a series of demands. The Minister of the Navy, Шаблон:Ill, decreed strict readiness, which required the presence of the sailors in their units, but they disobeyed. This disobedience did not constitute an armed movement. On the 26th, the minister wanted to invade the Union with marines reinforced by the Army. The commander of the marines, Admiral Шаблон:Ill, was exonerated for his refusal to attack. Subsequently, the first attempt failed as some marines joined the opponents, while the second operation was cancelled to allow the president to negotiate. By the next day the revolt spread to ships, and sailors were shot at the Navy Arsenal. The left was generally in favor of the insurgents, while the officerate was against. Goulart ended the confrontation by giving amnesty to the sailors and appointing Шаблон:Ill to the Ministry of the Navy. Together with his appearance on the 30th at the meeting at Automóvel Clube, this was harshly criticized by the opposition and seen by the officers as connivance with the breakdown of military discipline, thus strengthening the support base for the military coup that overthrew him at the end of the month.
The episode is related to the Revolta da Chibata of 1910, as was already felt at the time, and was followed by the punishment of those involved, the entry of some into the Шаблон:Ill, and, in the long run, the improvement of the conditions of the Navy enlisted men. The revolt is often accused of being the work of agents provocateurs (especially "Corporal Anselmo") in the service of the coup plotters, which has been contested by more recent historians.Шаблон:Efn
Background
The Condition of Sailors
In Brazil, the first half of the 1960s was a period of great mobilization of groups such as "students, unionists, politicians, artists, organized peasants, communists [and] Catholic youth". As part of this social agitation and linked to the other forces, movements emerged among the lower ranks of the Armed Forces, such as sergeants, corporals and soldiers. They were typically leftist, with nationalist and reformist ideology. They organized themselves into class associations, among them the Brazilian Sailors and Marines Association, founded on March 25, 1962Шаблон:Sfn by sailors and marines, up to the rank of corporal. The Brazilianist Thomas Skidmore characterizes it as a union.Шаблон:Sfn
The reason for its foundation was the social difference between officers and enlisted men in the Brazilian Navy.Шаблон:Sfn Historically this institution had an officer corps with an aristocratic character, while the initial graduates were mobilized among the poor, especially pardos and blacks.Шаблон:Sfn The harshness of discipline motivated the "Revolta da Chibata", in 1910. Since then, punishments were not as rigorous, but the working and eating conditions on the ships were terrible, and restrictions remained, as in the case of marriage:Шаблон:Sfn sailors, soldiers, and corporals could only marry after years of service and with the permission of officers.Шаблон:Sfn They were not allowed to wear civilian clothes outside the barracks,Шаблон:Sfn vote or run for elections.Шаблон:Sfn Officers could register disciplinary infractions for arbitrary reasons.Шаблон:Sfn Corporals were very unhappy with the career plan, which only allowed two attempts at the sergeant qualification exam. Sergeants had much higher pay than corporals.Шаблон:Sfn
Both volunteers and conscripts served as enlisted men in the Navy.Шаблон:Sfn Most came from poor families, with relatives in the countryside, from the North and Northeast of the country.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn They served in large numbers in Rio de Janeiro, where most of the ships were.Шаблон:Sfn There, they were without family support and unable to marry. During vacations, they could not afford to visit their hometown and looked for temporary jobs. They lived in poor neighborhoods and many were involved with drugs, prostitutes (the "low-life") and petty crime. The stereotype of the sailor was that of a "stray individual of dubious morality, brothel-goer and violent, a drug addict and alcoholic".Шаблон:Sfn Testimonials from Association members reveal frustration of expectations with the career and the feeling that the Navy had modern technology but anachronistic social organization.Шаблон:Sfn
AMFNB Development
The sailors' movement was initially disconnected from the leftist movements.Шаблон:Sfn Corporal João Barbosa de Almeida, the first president, had a conciliatory attitude with the officers, trying to avoid confrontation and radicalization.Шаблон:Sfn A faction of sailors who served on board wanted a more political and militant entityШаблон:Sfn and criticized Barbosa de Almeida's moderation. In April 1963, they supported the election of Sailor 1st Class José Anselmo dos Santos, erroneously known as "Corporal Anselmo." He is recognized among the left and the military as a more militant leader, but sources from the sailors reveal that the most militant was not Anselmo, but vice-president Marcos Antônio da Silva Lima.Шаблон:Sfn Marcos Antônio had a leadership position among the sailors and maintained contact with other civilian and military entities.Шаблон:Sfn
Of the seven purposes listed in the bylaws of the Association, five were welfare purposes. It provided "medical and legal assistance, development of educational incentive projects with partnerships that provided access to classrooms, courses in basic etiquette, English courses, recreational activities (dances, soccer and city tours), and help to those who wished to abandon addictions such as gambling and alcoholism",Шаблон:Sfn in addition to lodging for those who lost their transportation. This welfare activity filled the gap left by the Navy's social assistance, "considered almost non-existent".Шаблон:Sfn The Association also published the newspaper A Tribuna do Mar.Шаблон:Sfn
AMFNB was from the beginning viewed with suspicion by officials.Шаблон:Sfn Despite Barbosa de Almeida's efforts, the association could not get permission from the Navy Ministry to collect the membership dues directly from the Шаблон:Ill, which made the collection laborious.Шаблон:Sfn This privilege was granted to less politicized class associations, but not to possible sources of trouble like AMFNB.Шаблон:Sfn The naval authorities demanded the modification of the statute, making it purely apolitical, and did not accept the demands of the sailors.Шаблон:Sfn According to Justice Minister Шаблон:Ill, Sílvio Mota showed him studies proving the viability of the claims ("marriage, wearing plain clothes off duty, salary improvement, recognition of the Association's statutes with minor modifications"), and their compliance had already been decided. However, it was not implemented.Шаблон:Sfn
Conflicts with authorities
As they saw no solution from the naval authorities, the Association's sailors sought the support of the federal government and social movements. In 1964, they became radicalized.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The approach was mutual, as the Association grew in relevance and attracted interest from both enemies and allies. It appeared in the press and, according to Anselmo, reached 15 thousand members, of which a third were contributors. President Goulart, Leonel Brizola, the CGT and the Шаблон:Ill (PCB) sought the sailors' support,Шаблон:Sfn who, in turn, supported the reforms proposed by Goulart, admired Brizola, and had contacts with organizations such as the PCB and the Шаблон:Ill.Шаблон:Sfn This, however, pushed the AMFNB further away from the Admiralty Council.Шаблон:Sfn The officers in general, with a few exceptions of government officials such as Admiral Cândido Aragão, commander of the Marine Corps, did not accept the recognition of the Association, nor did they allow their members to participate in the entity's activities.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
The sailors came closer to the sergeants' movement, whose concern of the moment was the legal impediments to the candidacies they launched in the 1962 general elections. In September 1963, sergeants from the Air Force and Navy launched military operations in Brasilia as a reaction to a Supreme Court decision reiterating the ineligibility of sergeants. The AMFNB was not responsible for the revolt, but 72 of its members (out of 270 participating Marine enlisted men) were involved and its board of directors favored the insurgents. With the defeat of the sergeants in Brasilia, the press criticized the sergeants' movements and the military authorities began to persecute them.Шаблон:Sfn To avoid a repetition of the revolt, the AMFNB directors were dispersed among the ships and subjected to summonses from the Шаблон:Ill (CENIMAR).Шаблон:Sfn
The concern was the breakdown of the military hierarchy. Sailors "followed the example" of officers who also attempted to undermine the hierarchy to oppose the government,Шаблон:Sfn but these political disagreements were only treated as indiscipline and a breach of hierarchy when they came from the enlisted men.Шаблон:Sfn Unruliness, also relevant, was in fact used by the AMFNB as a bargaining tool. As sailor Raul Duarte wrote in "A Tribuna do Mar" in February 1964, the granting of the demands was necessary "in order to safeguard discipline and military hierarchy".Шаблон:Sfn
The Minister of the Navy was under pressure from the government to keep the Association, and from the Admiralty Council to close it. However, it would not be simple to close the Association with thousands of sailors; the political effect would be dramatic,Шаблон:Sfn and it was a legal entity. The minister feared that if he ordered it closed, this would be challenged in the courts and it would be reopened by a writ of security.Шаблон:Sfn The sailors, in turn, were willing to make some concessions to reach an agreement, and rewrote the parts of the statute that bothered their superiors.Шаблон:Sfn
On March 20, the AMFNB would pay tribute to Petrobras president Marshal Шаблон:Ill at the Шаблон:Ill, but Minister Mota interceded with Osvino to prevent the event. The sailors and marines then gathered at the Bankers Union, where they harshly criticized the Minister of the Navy and demanded his resignation.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn In his place, they wanted former minister Шаблон:Ill.Шаблон:Sfn The minister responded with successive arrests of directors of the Association.Шаблон:Sfn Three of them - Antônio Duarte dos Santos, José Anselmo dos Santos, and Marcos Antônio da Silva Lima - stayed hidden so that they could participate in the entity's anniversary.Шаблон:Sfn
While the crisis was unfolding, President Goulart traveled to São Borja, in Rio Grande do Sul, to spend the Holy Week.Шаблон:Sfn
Revolt
The Association's Anniversary
The celebration of the Association's two years, on March 25, had been announced since January.Шаблон:Sfn It was scheduled for the Metalworkers' Union, the "Palácio de Aço," at 7:00 pm. The President of Brazil was invited, but did not attend, advised by the Minister of the Navy.Шаблон:Sfn Most historians record that the event was banned by the Navy, but Minister Mota never claimed to have made such a ban in his 1964 testimony. He challenged the meeting on other legal grounds, such as the prohibition on public demonstration on internal and political issues. The arrest warrants were for the events of the 20th.Шаблон:Sfn The anniversary itself was legal: AMFNB was a civilian registered entity, the sailors were off duty, and the celebration wasn't happening in a military office.Шаблон:Sfn
Absent were the president, Minister Jurema and Admiral Aragão. A notable presence was that of João Cândido, leader of the Chibata Revolt, who received a pension from the Association.Шаблон:Sfn At age 84, he was photographed by Ultima Hora with the caption "Revolt of 1910 present in 64," emphasizing the connection between the two generations of sailors. However, the "Sea Dragon", as he was known, disagreed with the younger sailors because of his involvement in issues outside the naval sphere; "A sailor's revolt only works at sea".Шаблон:Sfn "A sailor should be taking ship, because that's where he knows how to move, and not going to a union, exposing himself to the action of the enemy, who could have even bombed the whole thing."Шаблон:Sfn
More than 1,000Шаблон:Sfn or 1.600Шаблон:Sfn seamen. In addition to sailors and marines, there were soldiers from other corporations, such as the Guanabara Military Police and the Brazilian Air Force, and civilians,Шаблон:Sfn including deputies, union leaders, and journalists.Шаблон:Sfn Шаблон:Ill notes how "the unity of the left had been reestablished": leading figures from various sectors, such as the Communist Party, the General Workers Command, Шаблон:Ill, and the Women's League, attended and spoke. Шаблон:Ill, from the CGT, said he could stop Brazil.Шаблон:Sfn Deputy Max da Costa Santos represented the Brizolistas.Шаблон:Sfn
The sailors approved the creation of a General Union of Military Workers, unifying the soldiers' associations, and decided to send the minister proposals for "the end of punishments and the release of all prisoners, recognition of the Association, humanization of the Navy, improvement of food in ships and barracks, and the presentation and punishment of torturers".Шаблон:Sfn
"Corporal Anselmo," known for his oratory skills, made a very political speech, speaking of "latifundium," "imperialism," "basic reforms," and "exploited". His rhetoric was fully aligned with the left of the time, and his agendas were compatible with those of the CGT, União Nacional dos Estudantes (UNE), Шаблон:Ill, and Frente Parlamentar Nacionalista.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The concepts were not unheard of and revealed a closeness to Brizolism.Шаблон:Sfn Communist Carlos Marighella collaborated in the writing of the text, as Anselmo and Antônio Duarte report.Шаблон:Sfn The speech was addressed to the President of Brazil, declaring himself in favor of his reforms, and sought his support by emphasizing that the sailors belonged to the "popular classes".Шаблон:Sfn
Anselmo characterized AMFNB as a response to discrimination and defended it from being labeled a "subversive entity". Rebutting this accusation, he affirmed that those who "try to subvert the order are the allies of the occult forces, who led one president to suicide, another to resign, and tried to prevent the inauguration of Jango, and now prevent the Base Reforms from taking place". He then associated the present situation with the Revolta da Chibata. In the military field, he said he had the support of soldiers in the Army, Air Force, Military Police and Fire Department. He clashed with the officialdom when he reported the expulsion of the director of the Association and the prohibition of listening to the rally on ships. To the Congress, he demanded that it accept land reform without prior cash compensation and full voting rights for the military. With the Navy, he wanted reform of the Disciplinary Regulation, recognition of the AMFNB, amnesty for the Brasília rebels, the annulment of disciplinary faults and stability for corporals, sailors and marines.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
The permanence in the Metalworkers Union
The anniversary began in a festive mood, but turned into an uproar with the news of the arrests.Шаблон:Sfn Those present decided, in solidarity, to report to the brig on Monday the 30th. But the sailor Octacílio dos Anjos Santos ("Tatá") took the floor and suggested that they remain there, remembering that many lived on board. Corporal Cláudio Ribeiro raised the tone, proposing that the commemoration should become a permanent assembly to obtain recognition of the Association by the Navy.Шаблон:Sfn These two speeches were exalted and of great importance.Шаблон:Sfn
The Minister of the Navy heard at 02:30 in the morning, as early as the 26th, the sailors' idea to report arrested on Monday.Шаблон:Sfn His response was to decree strict readiness. In this way, the sailors were obliged to report to their military organizations, or they would be committing insubordination. At dawn Admiral Aragão went to the Union to personally transmit this order. He returned with the sailors' conditions - the recognition of the AMFNB and the cancellation of the punishments. The minister did not accept and prepared a military response.Шаблон:Sfn The sailors, for their part, would remain on watch as long as their demands were not met. Thus, the conflict was drawn.Шаблон:Sfn The sailors did not use weapons to make their demands.Шаблон:Sfn
In a note, the AMFNB defined the situation as "an epic that will culminate in reforms of our archaic regulations," while for the Navy, a "minority of the military, about 600 men, between sailors and marines, have been since last night in an attitude of frank indiscipline." The communiqué from the naval authorities also stated that the Navy Minister supported President Goulart's reforms and that the improvement of the sailors' conditions was already underway.Шаблон:Sfn
A Navy helicopter and a yellow plane flew over the Union. Curious family members and girlfriends brought supplies and cigarettes.Шаблон:Sfn The emotion inside was one of distress, with the sailors feeling defensive. Statements by Anselmo and Antônio Duarte also describe a loss of control; Duarte points, in particular, to "Tatá's" speech as destabilizing.Шаблон:Sfn On the other hand, in making its demands, the movement was not on the defensive.Шаблон:Sfn
The left in general came out in favor of the sailors, even with internal objections that the infraction of discipline was serious and would serve as a pretext for a right-wing coup. Sympathy for the cause of the rebels was strong. For the UNE, "only the reaction feels threatened by the sailors' movement". For the Communist Party newspaper Novos Rumos, only "the enemies of the homeland, the gorillas with or without a uniform" were against the sailors. Panfleto, linked to Leonel Brizola, announced: "The feudal regime in the Navy will end". The CGT threatened a general strike if the sailors were repressed and assumed an arbitrator role.Шаблон:Sfn
Legalistic Offensives
Admiral Aragão was ordered to attack the sailors, but he refused and resigned. His subcommander, Admiral Washington Frazão Braga, did the same. Only Admiral Luiz Phelippe Sinay agreed to command the operation.Шаблон:Sfn He commanded the Marine Division Core.Шаблон:Sfn
The officialdom demanded that the sailors leave, "dead or alive."Шаблон:Sfn The Marine Corps Police Company, deployed from Ilha das Cobras, was in charge of the invasion, scheduled for 09:15.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Efn 90 marinesШаблон:Sfn came in five buses.Шаблон:Sfn From inside the Union, the sailors incited the marines and sang the National Anthem. Private Raimundo Nonato Barbosa, disobeying his orders, abandoned his helmet, ammunition, and INA machine gun and joined the sailors. 25 of his comrades repeated the gesture, to the euphoria of the sailors and the amazement of the commanders. The rest of the company had to retreat.Шаблон:Sfn
At the Navy Ministry, indignant admirals demanded that Minister Mota assert his authority.Шаблон:Sfn A new invasion was planned, this time with the Riachuelo Battalion, based on Ilha do Governador.Шаблон:Sfn Commanded by Frigate captain Helio Migueles Leão, it arrived at 4:00 pm. A platoon received tear gas. However, at 6:00 pm Admiral Sinay received the order to withdraw the troops:Шаблон:Sfn nothing would be done without the order of the president, who was returning from São Borja. Negotiations remained, and continued throughout the day.Шаблон:Sfn
The Army had a marginal participation in the containment of the insubordinates. The disciplinary situation in the Land Force was better, and its soldiers did not join the revolt.Шаблон:Sfn The support was requested by the Navy Minister to the Ministry of War and included twelve tanks and 500 soldiersШаблон:Sfn of the Mechanized Reconnaissance Regiment and the 1st Army Police Battalion,Шаблон:Efn the latter with the field presence of Colonel Domingos Ventura.Шаблон:Sfn Participation was requested for both offensives, and by the afternoon the entire block was closed by the Army.Шаблон:Sfn However, the official position of the War Ministry was that the problem "at present, is restricted to the purview of the Navy Ministry."Шаблон:Sfn
Spreading to ships
On the morning of the 27th, a large group of sailorsШаблон:Efn left their boats and went through the Navy Arsenal to join the others in the Union. On the way, they fell into an ambush: officers and marines posted in the buildings, among them that of the Navy Ministry, opened fire,Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn under the command of Admiral Arnoldo Hasselmann Fairbairn.Шаблон:Sfn Captain of Frigate Rafael de Azevedo Branco advanced against them. Some fell in the water, others reactedШаблон:Efn and most of them retreated to their ships.Шаблон:Sfn Of those who swam, two made it to the Union.Шаблон:Sfn The balance was eight arrests,Шаблон:Sfn one dead (according to Jornal do Brasil)Шаблон:Efn and several people wounded,Шаблон:Efn treated, then, at the Navy hospital.Шаблон:Sfn Conflicts between sailors in favor of the revolt and officers opposed to it spread throughout the ships. There was insubordination, sabotage of ship components, shooting, and falling into the water. This was recorded on the cruiser Tamandaré, the destroyer Pernambuco, the ship José Bonifácio and the ocean-going vessel Bauru.Шаблон:Sfn Sailors from the aircraft carrier Minas Gerais participated in the events at the Navy Arsenal.Шаблон:Sfn However, despite the tension, the officers believed that most of the ships were under their control.Шаблон:Sfn
In counterpoint to the sailors' movement, a movement of officers arose. Gathered at the Шаблон:Ill, they refused to board ships until there was a sufficient response to the sailors. They also demanded the punishment of Admiral Aragão.Шаблон:Sfn
Ministerial change and amnesty
The president landed in Rio de Janeiro at 1:00 am on the 27th. Half an hour later, he met at the Palácio Laranjeiras with the heads of the Civil and Military Houses and the military ministers. General Genaro Bontempo was replacing War Minister Шаблон:Ill, who was hospitalized. The subject was the Navy Minister's request for exoneration.Шаблон:Sfn The Admiralty Council did not want to accept this resignation, but Goulart confirmed it.Шаблон:Sfn By this time the AMFNB had already expressed its demand that a new Minister of the Navy be appointed.Шаблон:Sfn
Sílvio Mota's successor was Admiral Paulo Mário da Cunha Rodrigues, "president of the Maritime Court, a man of the left and trusted by the CGT". Jornal do Brasil reported that his name "was chosen from a triple list presented by the Executive Committee of the CGT," which was acting with permission granted by the AMFNB. Hércules Côrrea, of the CGT, confirms that the name was presented by his organization.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Dante Pelacani, CGT emissary inside the Union, reports that Paulo Mário's name came from the sailors.Шаблон:Sfn The two other names on the list were Admirals Suzano and José Luiz de Araújo Goyano.Шаблон:Sfn After taking over, Paulo Mário nominated Suzano to the Navy General Staff and restored Admiral Aragão's command in the Marine Corps. As negotiations continued, on the 27th, the Army's Floriano Regiment,Шаблон:Efn kept the Metalworkers Union surrounded.Шаблон:Sfn
Goulart wanted a negotiated outcome.Шаблон:Sfn His interlocutors were Darcy Ribeiro, Armando de Moraes Ancora, commander of the First Army, and the ministers Abelardo Jurema, of Justice, Шаблон:Ill, of Labor, and Шаблон:Ill, of Aeronautics.Шаблон:Sfn The CGT represented the sailors to the president. The solution was to drive the sailors to Army installations, where they would be free of retaliation from the Navy officers, and their amnesty.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The CGT emissaries managed to convince most of the sailors, although "Corporal Anselmo" was still reticent.Шаблон:Sfn
The origin of amnesty is a controversy.Шаблон:Sfn Historiography accepts that it came from Goulart. In the Navy document "Aspectos dos Acontecimentos Político-Militares de 25 de Março a 1º de Abril de 1964", without authorship, it is stated, however, that the decision was made by the minister Paulo Mário, with carte blanche from the president, who until then had a commitment with the previous minister to punish the insurgents.Шаблон:Sfn This version is also corroborated in testimony from the minister himself, according to whom he obtained permission for the amnesty after arguing that the admirals also had to be punished.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn According to Шаблон:Ill, Goulart was actually thinking about amnesty, reasoning that it had been granted to officers involved in rebellions since 1922 and it would be unfair not to apply it to the enlisted men as well.Шаблон:Sfn
The sailors were taken from the Union in Army trucks and detained at the Guards Battalion, in São Cristóvão, for three hours. As of 5:30 pm they were released.Шаблон:Sfn On the way back, some stopped at the Candelária Church. It was Good Friday, and they prayed for those affected at the Navy Arsenal. As they were heading toward the Ministry of the Navy, Minister Paulo Mário sent Admirals Aragão and Suzano to advise the sailors not to continue. However, they were lifted by the shoulders and carried amidst the euphoria.Шаблон:Sfn They passed the Ministry of War, startling the Army officers who silently watched the march.Шаблон:Sfn
Consequences
Political repercussions
The sailors imagined themselves victorious and already saw on the horizon the granting of their demands.Шаблон:Sfn For the lefts in general, there could be the appearance of victory.Шаблон:Sfn For President Goulart, the result would prove negative, as the focus of political debate shifted from the reforms he advocated to military discipline, and his response to the revolt was considered tolerant of indiscipline. Among the newspapers, Ultima Hora treated the solution as the restoration of order, but Шаблон:Ill and Correio da Manhã criticized the president for not enforcing the principle of authority and denounced the disintegration caused by indiscipline.Шаблон:Sfn The press in general pointed to Goulart as responsible for the breakdown of hierarchy and discipline.Шаблон:Sfn The repercussion was international: in France, La Croix, Le Figaro, and France-Soir saw the revolt as a serious event.Шаблон:Sfn Goulart did not back down and attended a meeting of the enlisted men at the Automóvel Clube, in the presence of the unionists and sailors who participated in the revolt.Шаблон:Sfn
Detail by detail, the outcome offended the officers and especially humiliated those in the Navy: the choice of a new minister under the influence of the unionists, the detention of the sailors in Army, not Navy, facilities, and the provocative march with the admirals on their shoulders.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Amnesty was more offensive than the "Corporal Anselmo" speech itself.Шаблон:Sfn The sergeants' revolt of the previous year, although serious, did not have such repercussions, because those responsible were punished.Шаблон:Sfn The Navy officers, after watching it unfold in silence, published a manifesto at the Naval Club on the 29th. The document characterizes the "mutinied sailors" as an "insignificant minority"; however, they did not receive the "due disciplinary punishment" and on top of that were able to overthrow the Minister of the Navy and appoint his replacement. This was a "blow struck against discipline in the Navy" and a threat to the country's institutions as a whole. Finally, the officers declared themselves willing to "resist by all means in our power the attempts to communize the country." The next day, the Army officers at the Military Club expressed solidarity with the Navy.Шаблон:Sfn
According to the columnist Carlos Castelo Branco, the left-wingers already compared what happened to "an action of the Kronstadt sailors in support of the Petrograd Soviet line", that is, to the Russian Revolution of 1917. Шаблон:Ill remembers that, during the revolt, the climate among the left was exalted; some "already saw the Odessa stairs, from Eisenstein's film", events of the Russian Revolution of 1905.Шаблон:Sfn Tribuna da Imprensa also saw parallels with Russian history,Шаблон:Sfn as well as anti-communists in general; with exalted spirits, they had an exaggerated view that this could be the "harbinger of the Bolshevik revolution".Шаблон:Sfn
Relation with the coup d'état
In the Navy, tension continued after the amnesty. Some officers did not allow the sailors to board their ships.Шаблон:Sfn For the government, the conservative officers in the naval force were demoralized and would not be a threat.Шаблон:Sfn Until the 31st, the AMFNB kept the officers cornered. They even controlled the armament, prevented the ships from leaving, and maintained contact with the legalist officers.Шаблон:Sfn An extreme group of admirals plotted the capture of the Navy Ministry, but was repulsed by the conspiratorial generals, for whom the Navy officers did not control their ships and could do nothing but publish manifestos. Instead, they were waiting for General Olímpio Mourão Filho's offensive from Minas Gerais.Шаблон:Sfn
The precipitation of the conspiracy against the president became a question of time, and in a few days it emerged in a coup d'état. Its perpetrators unanimously pointed, in statements, to the disintegration of the Armed Forces, with the breakdown of hierarchy and discipline, as its motivation. The bulletin of the Шаблон:Ill of March 31 points to the revolt as the reason for its offensive against the government. Records of officers of the Military Police of Minas Gerais, a participant in this operation, have the same condemnation of the events in Guanabara. The legalist military, even those favorable to the president's causes, shared this concern, which diminished their willingness to fight the coup.Шаблон:Sfn The president felt supported by his military apparatus,Шаблон:Sfn and the conquest of the legalists' camp was fundamental to the conspirators' victory: according to them, if Goulart had shown toughness with indiscipline, the correlation of forces would have been favorable to his permanence in power.Шаблон:Sfn The military unit was momentarily strengthened, which allowed the coup to take place.Шаблон:Sfn
Avelino Capitani, one of the directors who was in prison during the revolt, interprets it as not an antecedent to the coup, but an anticipated response, because the Association was already observing what the coup plotters were doing.Шаблон:Sfn
During the coup, AMFNB members were willing to fight on behalf of the government under Admiral Aragão. Some occupied the headquarters of pro-coup newspapers on his orders. Anselmo and the other directors also acted on their own initiative, collecting weapons and planning their military action together with UNE students, unionists, the Peasant Leagues and others. These efforts did not alter the course of the coup, nor did they prevent its success.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
Fate of those involved
Soon after the coup, the new regime began a political "cleansing", and the participants of the revolt, as the center of attention of the previous days, were its first targets. For the dictatorship this set an example to the dissidents, and for the Navy, it was a question of prestige.Шаблон:Sfn The Naval Force, due to the great politicization of its bases, was the corporation in which the "cleaning" process was strongest. On April 2, CENIMAR officers began the retaliation. Augusto Rademaker, the new Minister of the Navy, expelled the members of the AMFNB, and on November 23 it was dissolved. The Шаблон:Ill to investigate the events at the Metalworkers Union had 1,123 people indicted.Шаблон:Sfn The arrests and political persecution were done through the ordinary disciplinary legislation, not the Institutional Acts, as occurred with the officers.Шаблон:Sfn About 1,200 sailors were expelled, of whom about 300 were, after a two-year trial, sentenced by the Шаблон:Ill to two to fifteen years in prison.Шаблон:Sfn
Some of the insurgents joined revolutionary organizations and participated in their armed struggle. Among them, Anselmo worked as a double agent, allowing the execution of other militants in the early 1970s. With his betrayal, he became the target of the militants' frustration and hatred.Шаблон:Sfn
In the 1970s, when amnesty was under debate, the regime's hardliners wanted to limit its scope, including for enlisted men.Шаблон:Sfn The 1979 Шаблон:Ill was initially interpreted by the Supreme Court as not applicable to military personnel punished under common law, thus excluding sailors.Шаблон:Sfn The former insurgents got amnesty in legal disputes over years.Шаблон:Sfn
During the dictatorship, the Navy tried to avoid a new crisis by raising pay and improving the living conditions of its enlisted men.Шаблон:Sfn The demands of the sailors were eventually met.Шаблон:Sfn In the 21st century, conditions for non-commissioned officers are better and the institution is more open. Corporals, sailors and soldiers can marry and vote, although the Military Regulations still prevent them from running for office. The 1983 Disciplinary Regulations are little different from those of 1955.Шаблон:Sfn
Historiography
In the memory of the military, the revolt is remembered as the desecration of their values by the president,Шаблон:Sfn emphasizing the "disorder and indiscipline", the weakness of the government and the link to the communists. Journalist Elio Gaspari and historian Thomas Skidmore are close to this understanding.Шаблон:Sfn Some authors address only indiscipline, but Skidmore also describes the social demands of the sailors.Шаблон:Sfn Among the left, there are retrospective views that the revolt was a mistake, a provocation, and an attack on discipline.Шаблон:Sfn There is, on the left, an interpretation of the revolt, and especially Anselmo's, as a destabilization of the Goulart government, paying little attention to the AMFNB. Its exponents are Шаблон:Ill, Moniz Bandeira, Marcos Aurélio Borba, Шаблон:Ill, Шаблон:Ill, Boris Fausto and Dênis de Moraes. Another version, represented by political scientists Caio Navarro de Toledo and Alfred Stepan and historians Шаблон:Ill and Шаблон:Ill, treats the revolt carefully, distinguishes Anselmo from the AMFNB and writes little about the Association.Шаблон:Sfn
Accusations about agents provocateurs
The interpretation of the revolt as a destabilization blames Anselmo and puts credit on the testimony of naval officer Ivo Acioly Corseuil,Шаблон:Sfn head of the Шаблон:Ill (SFICI) in the Goulart government. In a statement to Moniz Bandeira, published in 1977 in the book O governo João Goulart: as lutas sociais no Brasil (1961-1964), he stated that Anselmo was an agent of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) infiltrated into the sailors' movement to create a pretext for a right-wing coup.Шаблон:Sfn The book adds that the work as a double agent during the dictatorship is evidence of work before the coup, and the CIA was linked to the CENIMAR and the Military Police of opposition governor Carlos Lacerda, who infiltrated agents, in sailor's uniform, to carry out mayhem.Шаблон:Sfn Anselmo is also cited as an undercover agent for the Navy.Шаблон:Sfn
In this line of reasoning, "History has already proven that there were undercover agents among the sailors",Шаблон:Sfn and thus, "The movement of the Association of Sailors and Marines of Brazil was, subsequently, quite discredited and seen as a 'black page' in the history of Brazil, according to the immediate memory of the events."Шаблон:Sfn This version prevails at the beginning of the 21st century.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
However, for a "new batch of studies",Шаблон:Sfn the movement of the military subalterns was "misrepresented", "biasedly interpreted as being plotted by the CIA, without further investigation".Шаблон:Sfn According to authors contrary to this interpretation, there is no proof for Corseuil's accusations and this version disregards the activities of Anselmo, the other sailors, and the left; it uses the sailors, especially Anselmo, as a scapegoat for the coup;Шаблон:Sfn segregates them from the left and society; treats the revolt as the result of external interference, does not consider the movement's demandsШаблон:Sfn and reproduces the officers' contempt for their subordinates' capacity for autonomous action.Шаблон:Sfn Another source, without taking sides, points out that Anselmo's speech had repercussions because it was in line with what the sailors and leftist militants wanted.Шаблон:Sfn Corporal and "sailor-journalist"Шаблон:Efn Pedro Viegas contests that Anselmo was an undercover agent. He notes how Anselmo was not the strongest name for the AMFNB presidency, and was only elected due to the withdrawal of three other more preferred candidates.Шаблон:Sfn
Name
There is confusion as to the designation of the episode. The military use the terms revolt, rebellion, revolution, mutiny, strike, and assembly. Other titles are mayhem, uprising, insurrection and revolt. Historians and participating sailors prefer revolt. A 2010 dissertation discusses the names rebellion, revolt, and mutiny, preferring rebellion for what occurred in the Metalworkers Union, and mutiny, for on the ships. The latter two were in military legislation, mutiny as a form of disobedience and revolt, involving weapons.Шаблон:Efn
Notes
References
Sources
- Books
- Шаблон:Cite book
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- Articles and papers
- Шаблон:Cite journal
- Шаблон:Cite thesis
- Шаблон:Cite journal
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- Шаблон:Cite journal
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- Шаблон:Cite journal
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- Newspapers
Шаблон:Government of João Goulart Шаблон:Military dictatorship in Brazil
