Coup Atlas Research Database
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16501241964ConspiracyMilitary coup

Uruguay, 1964 — military coup conspiracy

Uruguay (URY)South America, AmericasJanuary 24, 1964

Event Summary

This entry is coded 24 January 1964, in the early phase of the military disquiet that would culminate a decade later in Uruguay's 1973 coup. In early 1964 Uruguay, long regarded as a model democracy, was governed by the collegial nine-member National Council of Government, which the National Party had controlled since its 1958 electoral victory shifted the government and the army's senior command rightward. The country faced near-zero growth, inflation running at 40 to 50 percent, and a large budget deficit, and by late 1964 U.

S. diplomats reported, for the first time in many years, rumours of serious unrest in the Uruguayan military and the possible threat of a coup. Regional pressures compounded the strain: Brazil's military seized power in April 1964, and deposed Brazilian president Joao Goulart took exile in Uruguay, prompting some Brazilian officers to favor a Uruguayan coup if Montevideo failed to restrict Brazilian exiles.

The January coding sits in this period of gathering military and economic stress rather than a single dated plot.

Researched Details

Researched

Independent research, added record by record. Hover any label for what it means.

Target identified in Coup Atlas research: Uruguay's collegial civilian government held in 1964; the military did not seize power until the 1973 coup
RESEARCHED NAME
Key figures
National Council of Government (collegial nine-member executive)
Uruguayan armed forces (increasingly restive senior officers)
Regional actors (Brazil's April 1964 military coup and Goulart's exile)

Sources

By late 1964 U.S. officials reported, for the first time in many years, rumours of serious unrest in the Uruguayan military and the possible threat of a military coup, amid near-zero growth and 40 to 50 percent inflation.
SOURCE REVIEWED U.S. State Department FRUS 1964-68 vol. XXXI, doc. 463 open source ↗
The 1958 election, won by the National Party, shifted public policy rightward and increased the influence of army officers positioned much further to the right.
SOURCE REVIEWED Transnational Institute: 50 years after the coup in Uruguay open source ↗
Certain Brazilian military figures were reported to favor a Uruguayan coup should Uruguay fail to restrict the activities of Brazilian exiles, including former President Goulart.
SOURCE REVIEWED U.S. State Department FRUS 1964-68 vol. XXXI, doc. 463 open source ↗
The 1973 institutional breakdown was the conclusion of a relatively long process of erosion of Uruguay's liberal democracy, with 1964 identified as a significant year in that timeline.
SOURCE REVIEWED Transnational Institute: 50 years after the coup in Uruguay open source ↗

Editorial Note

No discrete plot is precisely dated 24 Jan 1964 in the sources located this session; the coding captures the early 1964 phase of military disquiet in Uruguay's collegial democracy amid economic crisis and the regional shock of Brazil's April 1964 coup. Context with strong framing.

Cross-Reference

Only one dataset carries it. One of the three reference datasets we check against carries this event; the others do not list it. That is not a contradiction — the datasets cover different periods and use different thresholds — but it means the record has had less outside corroboration.

Identifiers for finding this same event in the other datasets:

Cline Center id
16501241964

How the match is made is described in crossref-report.md.

Outcome and Target

Coup Atlas research identifies the target as: Uruguay's collegial civilian government held in 1964; the military did not seize power until the 1973 coup.

Baseline coding: Plot discovered and disrupted before execution. Recorded leader fate: remained in office; not physically harmed. The baseline file does not name individual targets; researched names are kept in a separate layer.

Baseline Dataset Citation

Cline Center Coup d’État Project Dataset, v2.2.2
Peyton, Buddy, Joseph Bajjalieh, Michael Martin, and Andrea Gerald. 2026. Cline Center Coup d’État Project Dataset. Cline Center for Advanced Social Research. V.2.2.2. February 17. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. doi: 10.13012/B2IDB-9651987_V10
⚑ This citation establishes the coded baseline record; use the claim-level sources above for the researched narrative.

Baseline Source-Document Entries

New York Times

“2 Uruguay Papers Report Plot for Revolt Is Smashed,” January 27, 1964

The Philadelphia Inquirer Public Ledger

“Uruguay Blocks Rightist Revolt,” January 28, 1964

The Sun

“Uruguay Rebel Move Is Quashed,” January 27, 1964

This is the citation trail carried by the baseline dataset, grouped by outlet and rejoined from the line-wrapped original. Coup Atlas has not independently re-checked every document; read the original before citing a specific claim. URLs the import damaged beyond safe repair are shown as plain text and listed in citations-report.md. How this list is built →

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