Amaro Soares Bittencourt (1885–1963) was a diplomat, a military and civil engineer and a general officer of the Brazilian Army, who attained the Brazilian Army rank of General of Division or in its original Portuguese "General de Divisão" (the equivalent U.S. Army rank is

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

). During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, then Brazilian “General de Brigada” (

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

) Bittencourt was the chief of the Brazilian military mission to the United States, that is the military attaché at the Brazilian Embassy in Washington, D.C. Bittencourt was also a member of the Brazilian delegation to the Inter-American Defense Board. In October 1942, he became the first recipient of the United States Legion of Merit (Commander). France awarded Bittencourt the Legion of Honor (Officer) for his wartime service, and Brazil awarded him the

Order of Military Merit (Brazil) The Order of Military Merit ( pt, Ordem do Mérito Militar) is an award of the Brazilian Army, established on 11 July 1934 by President Getúlio Vargas. The order is presented in five grades and recognizes distinguished service and exceptional co ...

or in its original Portuguese the “Ordem do Mérito Militar”. The Major General was a graduate of Brazil’s Escola Militar and its Escola de Estado-Maior. In Brazil itself, where the military played a significant role in civilian infrastructure development and administration, the Lieutenant General with Brazilian Admiral Ary Parreiras led in a civilian capacity the Special Commission on Steel of Brazil’s Federal Technical and Financial Council. Most significantly, in 1939 this commission created a controversy when it voted to make Brazil’s ore exports a state monopoly as a precondition to the nation’s founding of a state steelworks. The government of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

did not ultimately follow the commission's recommendation.John D. Wirth, ''The Politics of Brazilian Development (1930–1954)'', 1970, Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, pp. 103–106

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Generals.dk {{DEFAULTSORT:Bittencourt, Amaro Soares 1885 births 1963 deaths Brazilian generals Brazilian military personnel of World War II Recipients of the Order of Military Merit (Brazil) Recipients of the Legion of Merit Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Military engineers Brazilian civil engineers

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