Joaquim Jose da Silva Xavier

Joaquim José da Silva Xavier, also known as Tiradentes, was a Brazilian patriot and revolutionary who organized and led the first major uprising against Portuguese colonial rule in Brazil. He was born in 1746 in a farm near the town of São João del-Rei, in the province of Minas Gerais. He was the fourth of seven children of a Portuguese father and a Brazilian mother. He received some education from his godfather, who was a dentist, and learned various trades, such as peddler, miner, pharmacist, and doctor. He also became a member of the colonial militia, where he reached the rank of alferes (lieutenant). He was influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment and the American and French revolutions, and became dissatisfied with the oppressive taxation and exploitation imposed by the Portuguese crown on the Brazilian colonists. He joined a secret society of intellectuals, landowners, priests, and military officers, who planned to overthrow the colonial government and establish an independent republic in Brazil. This movement was known as the Inconfidência Mineira, or the Minas Gerais Conspiracy, and Tiradentes was one of its most active and enthusiastic leaders. He traveled across the province to recruit supporters and organize the rebellion. However, the plot was discovered by the authorities in 1789, before it could be carried out. The conspirators were arrested and tried by a royal tribunal. Tiradentes assumed full responsibility for the conspiracy and defended his ideals with eloquence and courage. He was sentenced to death by hanging, along with ten other conspirators, while the rest received lesser punishments. His execution took place on April 21, 1792, in Rio de Janeiro. His body was quartered and his head was displayed in a public square in Vila Rica, the capital of Minas Gerais, as a warning to other potential rebels. Tiradentes was initially forgotten by the Brazilian people, but after the proclamation of the Republic in 1889, he was rediscovered and celebrated as a national hero and a martyr of independence. His name and image became symbols of Brazilian identity and patriotism. He is honored with a public holiday on April 21, and his legacy is commemorated in monuments, museums, streets, and schools throughout the country.