In 1964, the military, joined by civilian elites - businessmen, intellectuals, and right-wing politicians -, carried out a coup that established the civil-military dictatorship in the country for 21 years. João Goulart (PTB), Vargas's political heir and president following Jânio Quadros's resignation, was facing strong opposition from the UDN and losing support from allied parties in Congress due to his labor policies and base reform proposals.
Without support from Congress, Jango sought popular backing: on March 13, 1964, he gathered 200,000 people at the Central do Brasil Rally. On that occasion, the president announced the signing of two decrees: one expropriating areas along railways, highways, irrigation zones, and reservoirs (Supra), and another allowing the government to take back possession of private oil refineries.
About 200,000 people gathered at Central do Brasil to hear Jango's speech in defense of the base reforms. Arquivo Nacional - Correio da Manhã Collection
Image description: The image is a black-and-white photograph of a demonstration. In the foreground, we see police officers in military uniforms, wearing helmets with visors. They have their backs to the camera, facing a group of people standing in front of them. The people at the demonstration are holding up signs with various texts in Portuguese. The signs are arranged vertically, taking up much of the background of the image. Among the signs, there is an illustrated figure of a bearded man wearing a military uniform, with the text "LÍDER" below it.Two days later, Jango sent a message to Congress, defending changes to the text of the 1946 Constitution and requesting more powers for the Executive, which caused great distrust. Members of Congress, the press, and public opinion joined forces and, on March 19, 1964, a crowd set out from Praça da República toward Praça da Sé, in São Paulo, in the famous "Marcha da Família com Deus pela Liberdade" ("March of the Family with God for Freedom"), in response to the Comício da Central that had taken place a few days earlier in Rio.
The government was weakened, was facing a serious economic crisis (high inflation and a drop in GDP in 1963) and had no political support. Thus, in the early hours of March 31, troops commanded by general Olympio Mourão Filho left Juiz de Fora (MG) heading toward Rio, beginning the longest dictatorial period in the country's republican history.
Members of the Força Pública, now the Military Police, protecting Palácio Guanabara, in Rio de Janeiro, during the Military Coup in Brazil, on March 31, 1964. CPDoc/Arquivo Nacional
Image description: This is a black-and-white photograph showing a group of people carrying sandbags in front of a building with a staircase. On the left side, three individuals are stacking bags on the steps. On the right, a man is standing near a street lamp, holding an object that appears to be a suitcase. In the background, more sandbags are arranged against the wall of the building.
