Ernesto Geisel

Ernesto Beckmann Geisel ( born August 3, 1908 in Bento Gonçalves RS, † September 12, 1996 in Rio de Janeiro) was President of Brazil during the military dictatorship of the 1970s.

Geisel was the son of German immigrant Wilhelm August hostage, who had emigrated in 1883 as a 16- year-old from Herborn to Brazil. The family was originally from Kronberg im Taunus. Ernesto Geisel went through military training and was one of the best students of military academies of Porto Alegre and Rio de Janeiro. In 1930 he was already promoted to first lieutenant. In the same year he also supported the military coup of Getúlio Vargas Dornelles.

Under the new regime held hostage some military and civilian items, such as the Government of the States of Rio Grande do Norte and Paraíba.

In 1945, played hostage again an important role in the military coup, in which Vargas was overthrown. After Geisel was General Secretary of the National Security and Military Attaché at the Embassy in Uruguay. From 1957 he was a representative of the military in the National Erdölrat. In 1960 he was promoted to brigadier general and after the coup of 1964 military chief under the government of Humberto Castelo Branco. From 1967 he served as Secretary of the Supreme Military Court and from 1969 as president of Petrobras, the state oil company.

As the term of office of President Emilio Garrastazu Médici came to an end, hostage was his " crown prince " and was elected by Parliament on 15 January 1974. The opposition had no way to get their candidate in position because the Election Commission has been asked by the ruling party arena. During the presidential Geisel's military leaders began a slow abertura ( opening ), although hostage still maintained a strong control by the state.

In 1974 elections were approved for the Legislature, and the opposition was as many seats as never reach before. On the other hand, used hostage his great power to eliminate opposition parliamentarians and to get his legislation through Parliament, if it thought it necessary. Thus he was a middle ground between democratic freedoms and military rule. He also confirmed the 1977 Falcão - law according to which the state governors were elected indirectly, and which allowed them to change the constitution by a simple majority in Parliament.

In the economic sphere Brazil retained its great growth. The policy of " pragmatic nationalism " promoted the domestic industry.

At the end of the term Geisel censorship and torture of political prisoners were abolished and the state of emergency law giving rise to AI 5 set of 1968 repealed ( 31 December 1978).

After the end of the Presidency in 1979 hostage was active in the management of a private chemical company until 1991.