2027 Tiradentes Day

Tiradentes Day on April 21 honours Joaquim José da Silva Xavier, nicknamed Tiradentes ('tooth-puller') after his sideline as a dentist, a leader of the 1789 Inconfidência Mineira conspiracy that sought independence from Portuguese rule in the gold-mining region of Minas Gerais. He was hanged in Rio de Janeiro on April 21, 1792, and after the fall of the monarchy the republic adopted him as its national martyr; the day has been a national holiday since 1890. The main ceremonies take place in Ouro Preto, the former colonial capital where the conspirators met, with the governor of Minas Gerais presenting the Medalha da Inconfidência and military honours in the town's baroque squares. By coincidence, Brasília was inaugurated as the capital on the same date in 1960. It is a public holiday nationwide, and as it often falls near Easter it creates a popular long weekend for beach and mountain trips. This countdown ticks to midnight Brasília time in São Paulo on April 21.