RanieriMazillimeetswiththe“SupremeCommandoftheRevolution”atthePalácioDuquedeCaxiastoannouncetheministerialcompositionoftheprovisionalgovernment

April 3, 1964

Danilo Araujo Marques

On the morning of April 3, 1964, interim president Ranieri Mazzilli left Brasília for Rio de Janeiro. His destination: the Palácio Duque de Caxias, headquarters of the Ministry of War, for a meeting with the self-styled Supreme Command of the Revolution, led by General Artur da Costa e Silva.

Just two days earlier, still on the night of April 1st, Costa e Silva had carried out a bold political maneuver. In an attempt to seize the leading role in events and stand up to the group conspiring under the command of general Castello Branco, he appointed himself commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces and set up a military junta – the so-called "Supreme Command of the Revolution." But Costa e Silva's move had an even more precise objective: to centralize the State's control under the Armed Forces.

It was against this backdrop that Mazzilli headed to Rio. At 11:35 a.m., his plane landed at the 3rd Air Zone of Santos Dumont airport. As soon as he disembarked, he inspected the Brazilian Air Force troops and announced a press conference for 4 p.m. at the Palácio das Laranjeiras.

However, the main destination of the trip was another one. At the Palácio Duque de Caxias, Mazzilli was received by Costa e Silva and the other members of the "Supreme Command of the Revolution": Admiral Rademaker Grünewald and Brigadier Francisco de Assis Correia de Melo. After a long closed-door meeting, all the plans were changed and the promised press conference had to take place right there, in the War Minister's office. Starting at 11 p.m., Ranieri Mazzilli announced the composition of the new ministry: Otávio Bulhões at Finance, Gama e Lima at Education, and Arnaldo Sussekind at Labor.

But those present quickly realized that real power leaned in another direction. The presence of Costa e Silva, Rademaker, and Correia de Melo made the new order clear. The announcement that the three commanders would remain in their posts was more than an administrative decision – it signaled, once and for all, military control over the government.

While Mazzilli mentioned the acceleration of the process for choosing the new president by the National Congress, all eyes turned to Costa e Silva. The general knew that his scheme had placed him in a prominent position in the new political scenario.

The press conference at the Palácio Duque de Caxias ended late, and Mazzilli prepared to return to Brasília. Not as a president in full power, but as a mere representative of the transition to a government that, for all intents and purposes, was already in the hands of the military.

Image description: This is a black-and-white photograph of a formal gathering. In the foreground, there is a group of men in formal attire, some in military uniforms, others in suits. They are standing, facing a central man who appears to be speaking or presenting something. In the background, there is a large painting depicting historical figures, possibly related to the revolution mentioned in the provided context. The spatial arrangement is asymmetrical, with the participants distributed at different heights and positions.