This book follows three decades of democratic experimentation--and the rise and fall of constitutional government--in Brazil. Beginning with Getulio Vargas' fifteen-year rule and ending with the coup d'etat that ousted President Joao Goulart from office in 1964, Skidmore sets political events in the context of social and economic factors to show how the problems posed by economic expansion, an unfavorable trade balance, inequitable land distribution, and shifting political power have profoundly affected Brazil's growth and stability.

A study of Brazilian politics from 1930 to 1964, this book begins with Getulio Vargas' 15-year-rule & traces the following years of economic difficulty & political turbulence, culminating in the coup d'etat that overthrew the constitutional government of President Joao Goulart & changes the nature of Brazils' political institutions.

In this authoritative study, Thomas E. Skidmore, one of America's leading experts on Latin America and, in particular, on Brazil, offers the first analysis of more than two decades of military rule, from the overthrow of João Goulart in 1964, to the return of democratic civilian government in 1985 with the presidency of José Sarney.

"Detailed study of the political, economics, and social changes carried out by Brazil's twenty-year military regime, in the context of a South American era of military rule during the Cold War"--Jacket flap.