Cascais' role in the Revolution - 50 years

Two important preparatory meetings that would lead to the Carnation Revolution took place in Cascais. At the meeting held in Cascais on 5 March 1974, the Captains assumed that the coup d'état was irreversible, determined that their organisation should be strengthened and set in motion the mechanisms for completing a political project that summed up their fundamental objectives. The clandestine meeting was prepared with significant security concerns. The 200 or so men (representing more than 600) who would be attending were summoned to 18 cafés or pastry shops in Lisbon, where they had to wait for someone to direct them to the venue. The initial plan was to hold the meeting in the Franjinhas building, at the crossroads of Castilho and Braamcamp streets, but it was changed that same day: the destination ended up being the 1st floor of number 45 Visconde Luz street, in Cascais, in the studio of architect Braula Reis. In this small space, a decisive stage in the history of the Captains' Movement and for the success of “Operation Historic Turnaround”, which, in 51 days, would overthrow a dictatorship that had lasted almost half a century. During the meeting, the summary document ‘The Movement, the Armed Forces and the Nation’ was approved by the majority of those present (111). This is the Captains' first political project, and it is fundamental for setting their goals. The Movement's intention to democratise the country and put an end to the war is clear, and this is when the Captains' Movement becomes the Armed Forces Movement (MFA). The Captains decided to delegate to Melo Antunes the responsibility of chairing and coordinating the committee to draw up the Programme. At the same meeting, a new vote is held on the future heads of the Movement, once again won by Francisco da Costa Gomes, then Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces. Those present also gave a vote of confidence to the Movement's Coordinating Committee and its leadership to carry out all the activities necessary to prepare for the coup d'état. "Fifty years ago we united and defeated an undemocratic regime. The celebration of 25 April in Cascais is an affirmation of principles. It's an affirmation of a strong democracy. To honour April is to remember and admire those men and women who freed us from servitude to give us full freedom. It means thanking the many men who were on the front line, the Captains of April, who courageously brought about the world's only bloodless revolution, replacing guns with flowers: our carnations. Let's fight, today more than ever, for a Democracy without masters. Here, in our town of Cascais, it is also the people who call the shots", emphasised Carlos Carreiras, Mayor of Cascais.