Brazilian Army

The Brazilian Army is the land arm of the Brazilian Military force.

History

After the Brazilian declaration of Independence in 1822 from Portugal, the Brazilian Army was essential to avoid a fragmentation of the new-born Brazilian Empire. It destroyed any separatist tendencies of the early years, supporting the authority of Emperor Dom Pedro I over vast lands.

In May 1 of 1865, the triple alliance (Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina) was signed to fight against aggression from Paraguay, ruled by the dictator Francisco Lopez , who invaded the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, the north of Argentina and was heading for Uruguay. Supported by England and with overwhelming numbers, the alliance defeated Lopez.

After World War I, the Brazilian Army was restructured following the French experiences on the war, upon a contract where French officials came to Brazil.

In 1942, after German torpedoes sunk many Brazilian merchant ships, Brazil declared war on the Axis Powers. In 1944 the FEB (Brazilian Expeditionary Force) was sent to Italy to meet with the V American Army in the Italy Operations Theatre efforts. It suffered heavy losses, however it took 15,000 enemies as prisoners, defeating two German divisions in Monte Castello, Montese and Fornovo. It had support from the FAB (Brazilian Air Force) recently created to fight in that war.

In 1964 Brazilian army general Castello Branco took power in a state coup and started the Military Dictatorship in Brazil that lasted until 1985.

External links

Official Brazilian Army Website (in Portuguese)