Bombing of São Paulo

The bombing of São Paulo, which took place during the São Paulo Revolt of 1924, was the largest artillery and air attack in São Paulo's history. From 5 to 28 July 1924, rebel and loyalist forces used bombing in their fight for the city; the rebels had up to 26 artillery pieces from the Brazilian Army, while the loyalists had more than a hundred guns and six bombers from the Army Aviation. Artillery, and especially loyalist artillery, was largely responsible for the conflict's casualties, most of whom were civilians.

The rebels had the artillery advantage in the early days and had been firing since the morning of 5 July. From positions such as Campo de Marte and Cemitério do Araçá, they aimed their 75 and 105mm Krupp cannons at the Campos Elíseos Palace, headquarters of governor Carlos de Campos, the headquarters of the 4th Battalion of the Public Force of São Paulo, and other loyalist targets. Mistakes in aim cost the lives of several civilians, but the pressure on the governor contributed to the withdrawal of loyalist troops to the outskirts of the city on 8 July. General Eduardo Sócrates' loyalist division received continuous reinforcements, gaining a strong advantage in artillery, with more recent designs from Schneider and Saint Chamond, including the conflict's most powerful 155mm artillery.

On the sides of Penha and Ipiranga, the divisional artillery launched intense attacks beginning on 11 July, targeting mainly the working-class neighborhoods in the south and east of the city, such as Brás, Belenzinho and Mooca, where the loyalist troops were trying to advance. Loyalist bombardment destroyed some defensive strongholds, such as factories, but was generally ineffective; loyalist general Abílio de Noronha criticized the bombardment in technical terms as a haphazard attack, without regulation and correction of fire, destroying mainly civilian targets. The population was terrorized, hiding in cellars and leaving the city by the hundreds of thousands. Foreign diplomatic representatives and São Paulo's economic elite, harmed by the chaos in the city, tried to negotiate an interruption in the bombings, but the government did not give in. The bombing had the full endorsement of president Artur Bernardes and governor Carlos de Campos, who was the author of the expression: "São Paulo would rather see its beautiful capital destroyed than legality in Brazil destroyed".

1,800 buildings were damaged in the conflict, among which the Theatro Olympia, the Glória Church, the Cotonifício (Cotton Factory) Crespi, and the Duchen Biscuits Factory are emblematic. The bombing was very controversial at the time and has a negative impact on the image of Artur Bernardes in historiography. The brutality of the bombing is compared to previous conflicts in Brazil like the War of Canudos, and the government is accused of deliberately attacking civilians in a "terrorizing bombing", either as punishment for the population of working-class neighborhoods or as pressure to force the rebels to withdraw – which they did on 27 July. The legality of the bombing has been contested since 1924, as international law at the time already condemned the bombing of a city without regard for civilian lives, which could constitute a war crime.