A Cricket Match and the Brazilian Naval Revolt of 1893

Cricket weekend

During the first days of November 1893, a cricket match was arranged between visiting British Navy ships HMS Sirius, a second class cruiser, HMS Beagle and HMS Racer, both sloops, and the Rio British community. Lieutenant St John Beauchamp Mowbray from HMS Sirius was batting at number one and led the ships’ team out for the start of a weekend of fun and sport. An opportunity for relaxing and an important social event for the British residents. The wives and girlfriends of the community came out to support, and put on the usual cricket ritual of tea and sandwiches.

Lieutenant Mowbray made a respectable 22 in his two innings and stumped Rio Captain, Henry Lawrence Wheatley. The young Lieutenant Charles Tupper from HMS Racer was noted as having caught Rio’s starting batsman, W. Morrissey. On the Rio side, Wheatley was the “Man of the Match” with several wickets.

Wheatley was a pillar of the local British community, one time Cumberland wrestler, early member of Rio Cricket Club, lead engineer on the construction of the new Strangers’ Hospital, and a dynamic and driving personality in the Masonic Lodge. By the end of the match, the visiting fleet were worthy winners by 64 runs and The Rio Times was ready with its usual match report for publication. For the naval officers, it was back to work on their ships within the wondrous Rio harbour.

Military Coup and the Revolutionary Climate

Had the match taken place just a few years before, Dom Pedro II and other members of the Royal family might have been out to watch; they were habitués at such afternoons, and handed out the prizes at many British sporting events. Whilst popular with the people, the aging Dom Pedro II had nonetheless been ousted by a military coup led by Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca in 1889.

Two years later the Brazilian navy still objected to this coup, and threatened the bombardment of Rio after Deodoro ordered the closure of Congress, in a clear violation of the new Constitution. In order to avoid a civil war, Deodoro resigned and allowed his vice president Floriano Peixoto to take over. In 1892, 13 generals sent a manifesto to Peixoto demanding new elections, as per the new Constitution; Peixoto harshly suppressed the movement and ordered the arrest of the leaders. By September 1893, the Brazilian Navy had revolted, seizing parts of the fleet and naval docks, including ammunition stores in Rio. Government forces and revolutionaries exchanged fire.

Collecting Sand

Set against this turbulent background, young British officers Mowbray, Tupper and seven other seamen from the fleet had landed on the Ilha do Governador on the 3rd November, the day after the cricket match, to gather sand. Since the start of the revolution, the Englishmen had not been allowed ashore, but this embargo had been lifted about a month previously. Some 15 minutes before landing, Lieutenant Tupper was photographed on his vessel, relaxing with his legs over the side and soaking up the breath-taking views. Small buildings on the side of a hill on the Island formed the frame to the photograph, a scene of total tranquillity.

A mere 15 minutes later, this calm was broken by a terrific explosion which shook a good part of the city of Rio, breaking windows and causing mayhem. The first explosion was soon followed by a smaller one. When the dusty debris had settled, it was obvious that the explosions had come from the Mattoso Powder Deposit, with its 70 tons of powder and the shell magazine, both on the Ilha do Governador, the same buildings that had formed the backdrop of Lieutenant Tupper’s last photo. The buildings had literally disappeared as the “before” and “after” photos from The Graphic clearly illustrate.

All that was recovered of Lts Mowbray and Tupper were some small personal items, buttons, and a watch and chain. Boatswain Robert Harris of the Sirius also died immediately and Seaman John Lynch was so badly injured that he died shortly after. Five other British seamen were injured. There were also several Brazilian casualties, including Coronel Francisco Machado, former commander of the police force of the state of Rio.

A Question of Timing

Initial reports suggested that the explosions had been deliberate, and that they were known about in the city of Rio. They were thought to have been the government’s pre-emptive attack on the rebel-held explosive storage buildings. There was never any suggestion that the British naval officers and men were targets; they had just – fatally – been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Following the initial acknowledgement that the explosions had been planned, a deep official silence descended on the unintended deaths of the four British naval personnel.

The Rio Cricket team lamented the death of the young men whom they had just played against just days earlier. Together with Boatswain Harris and Seaman Lynch, who were buried in the British Cemetery at Gamboa, Lts. Mowbray and Tupper are remembered by a monument in the cemetery paid for by a subscription organized by the British residents of Rio.

The Naval revolt eventually wound down by March of the following year, and cricket matches between visitors and the Rio community continued as part of the social calendar.

— Clive Dawson

Clive Dawson is in reinsurance and commutes between Copacabana and the Cayman Islands. His collection of Rio and Brazil memorabilia is astounding, and includes the edition of The Graphic in which the “before and after the bang” picture is featured. Among his recent acquisitions is a Programme published to mark the 1910 Ball welcoming HMS New Zealand to Rio, listing the names of all the organizers and even the dances. One that got away from him at a recent Gloucestershire auction was a private photograph album containing 170 photos of the Rio Cricket Club in the 1920s. We look forward to getting to know Clive’s Collection in greater depth in forthcoming editions of The Umbrella.

The Umbrella

Produced by the British & Commonwealth Society of Rio de Janeiro for the English-speaking Community

Vol XXII - FEB/MAR17