9. A Bandit at a Wedding
In 1921, Lampiao and his brothers joined Sebastião Pereira e Silva, known as Sinhô Pereira, a famous Pernambuco cangaceiro. Under Pereira’s command, they fought numerous battles with police, winning some, and losing others. In 1922, Lampiao robbed the farm of a noblewoman, the Baronesa de Água Branca, in the state of Alagoas. It netted him a fortune, and he began to lead his own band for the first time. Later that year, Lampiao invaded São José do Belmonte, Pernambuco. There, he killed a wealthy merchant and political leader, at the behest of one of his political enemies. In 1923, Lampiao descended upon his old village of Nazare do Pico, to stop the wedding of a former childhood sweetheart. He was talked out of it by the local priest and agreed to leave and let the wedding continue, but imposed an arbitrary condition: that nobody dance at the wedding.
In 1923, Lampiao returned to Nazare do Pico, and was driven off after a fierce gunfight with the locals, led by his godfather Joao Flor. Afterwards, Joao Flor and his clan joined a paramilitary force formed by Pernambuco state to combat banditry. The unit from Nazare do Pico, led by Joao Flor, became Lampiao’s fiercest foes and most determined pursuers. They were brave men, as their quarry’s reputation grew ever more fearsome. In 1924, Lampiao attacked a village that sheltered some rival bandits, captured their leader, chopped up his body, and scattered the bloody pieces on the streets. Later that year, he suffered a serious foot injury, and while receiving treatment, a priest talked him into abandoning banditry and turning himself. Lampiao almost went through with it, but at the last moment, changed his mind and decided to continue on as a cangaceiro.
