The 18 of Copacabana - Gastão Formenti, 1930
On July 5, 1922, lieutenants of the Brazilian Army in Rio de Janeiro rose up in opposition to the victory of presidential candidate Arthur Bernardes and to the electoral process. The military were already dissatisfied with the Republic, controlled by the agrarian oligarchies of Minas Gerais and São Paulo. Taking place mainly at the Forte de Copacabana, the uprising, which ended with the participation of only 18 soldiers, went down in history as the Revolta dos 18 do Forte.
Revolt of the 18 of Forte de Copacabana: lieutenants confront the legalist forces on Avenida Atlântica, Rio de Janeiro - 1922 - Author unknown. Wikimedia Commons.
Image description: The image is a black-and-white photograph. On the left, we see a man in a suit and hat walking with a rifle in hand. In front of him, two men dressed in military uniforms advance toward the beach. In the center, a man stands still in the water, looking at the soldiers. On the right, two soldiers advance along the sidewalk, holding rifles. The background shows the beach with waves breaking on the sand.Arthur Bernardes ran against Nilo Peçanha in the presidential succession race following Epitácio Pessoa, deepening the tensions between the Army and the dominant oligarchies. The situation worsened when the press published letters supposedly written by candidate Bernardes, containing accusations against the Army and insults to Marshal Hermes da Fonseca, president of the Clube Militar. A disagreement with Epitácio over the state succession in Pernambuco led to the marshal's arrest and the closing of the Clube Militar on July 2, 1922.
Days later, the uprising began. Unlike the initial plans, which called for the participation of other states and sectors, only the Forte de Copacabana and the Escola Militar de Realengo followed through. The rebels bombarded several military hubs, such as the Quartel General and the Arsenal de Marinha. After brief fighting, government forces put down the revolt, leaving only the Forte de Copacabana still holding out.
Lieutenant Odilio Denys and other 1922 rebels at the "Colônia Fluminense" correctional facility. Odilio Denys Archive/CPDoc/FGV
Image description: This is a black-and-white photograph of a group of men in military uniforms. The men are arranged in two rows: in the front row, five are seated in chairs numbered 1 to 5; in the back row, six are standing behind those seated. All the men have numbers written on their trousers, with "8," "9," and "10" visible. At the top of the image, there is a series of windows numbered 1 to 6.The leaders of the revolt allowed the fighters who wished to leave, a choice made by the majority of the 301 involved. Armed with rifles and revolvers, 28 officers decided to press on and marched down Atlântica Avenue to confront the loyalist troops. Along the way, they gained the support of a civilian, Otávio Correia, and lost ten of the soldiers, who gave up. The last 18 rebels marched amid the gunfire. Only two of them survived: lieutenants Siqueira Campos and Eduardo Gomes, important figures in the following decades.
Eduardo Gomes and Henrique Cordeiro Autran, on the occasion of a mass held at the Igreja da Candelária, commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the Revolta de 1922 - 1972. Arquivo Clube /CPDoc/FGV
Image description: This is a black-and-white photograph of two men in formal attire. The figure on the left has his back to the camera, while the figure on the right is facing forward. Both are wearing glasses and ties. The background appears to be an interior with a door and a barred window.
