Marineslaydowntheirweaponsandjointhesailors'mutiny

March 26, 1964

Danilo Araujo Marques

On March 25, 1964, the leaders of the Brazilian Sailors and Marines Association (AMFNB) defied the order of Admiral Sílvio Mota, the Minister of the Navy, and went ahead with the celebrations marking the organization's 2nd anniversary. And they did so knowing full well the political meaning of that decision. It was about taking a stand in favor of demands for better conditions for sailors aboard ships. But, for the officer corps, that was nothing more than the most brazen insubordination. An act of indiscipline, in defiance of the ban on any union organizing within the Armed Forces.

Admiral Mota sent a detachment of marines to the Palácio de Aço, headquarters of the Sindicato dos Metalúrgicos do Rio de Janeiro, in the São Cristóvão neighborhood, where the sailors were gathered. The goal was to arrest the organizers in a swift action. However, to everyone's surprise, as soon as they arrived at the site, the marines laid down their weapons and helmets and joined the sailors – the scene was captured by the Correio da Manhã photographer. All of this happened with the approval of the troop commander, Admiral Cândido Aragão, who was soon given an arrest order and removed from his post. With this act of allegiance, the occupation of the Palácio de Aço and the sailors' revolt began.

The tension rose the following day, when the Metalworkers' Union building was surrounded by 500 soldiers. While they awaited orders to storm the building and carry out the arrests, President João Goulart intervened and forbade any action. And he went further: through his Minister of Labor, Amauri Silva, he struck a direct deal with the sailors to demobilize the occupation. The agreement was that they would leave the building and report to the Army's 1st Guards Battalion in São Cristóvão, as a guarantee that they would not suffer any kind of reprisal from Navy officers.

Demoralized, admiral Sílvio Mota left his post as Minister of the Navy and joined the growing number of officers dissatisfied with president João Goulart.

Image description: This is a black-and-white photograph showing a group of people in military uniforms arranging equipment on the ground. On the left side, two men are bent over, picking up marine helmets. In the background, other men in military uniforms are watching. Behind them, there is a metal fence with objects hanging on it.