Fourth Dynasty (House of Bragança)
Joseph I the Reformer, reigned from 1750 to 1777
Maria I the Merciful, reigned from 1777 to 1816
From the Period of the Constitutionalist Revolution to the Movement of Maria da Fonte
On August 24, 1820, a military rebellion in the city of Porto spread to the whole country, and on September 15 a party of Constitutionalist rebelling military expelled from Lisbon the regents of the Ancient Regime. A provisory government was set up under General Gomes Freire de Andrade, but this Vintista movement soon revealed inoperative and fell. John VI was summoned from Brazil to Portugal, having ruled in absolutism until his death, in 1826.
Portugal endured several fights between Conservatives and Liberals, the latter party eventually winning in 1834, when Michael I admitted defeat in a battle at the small fortified village of Évora Monte, in Alentejo.
António Bernardo da Costa Cabral constituted a new government, but his authoritarian ways led the country to the memorable rebellions of Maria da Fonte and of Patuleia, between 1846 and 1847; some 30 years later, the consequences of this War of the Two Brothers could still be felt in Portugal.
Fourth Dynasty (House of Bragança)
John VI the Clement, reigned from 1816 to 1826
Peter IV the Soldier King, reigned from 1826 to 1828
Michael I the Absolute, reigned from 1828 to 1834
From the period of the Regeneration to the Ultimatum
In the period of the Regeneration, peace and political stability were resumed in Portugal. Governments were appointed in a rotational sequence, firstly between the Regenerator and Historical parties, and lastly between the Regenerator and Progressive parties.
Railroad was implemented in Portugal under the government of Fontes Pereira de Melo. With the growth of the national income, favoured by great developments in commerce and industry, many foreign banks settled down in the country.
Influenced by the political situation in the rest of Europe, Portugal yet again went through a period of political agitation. The Republican Party, founded in 1876, emerged as the strongest group of those opposing the government; it opposed England’s claims to the Portuguese territory stretching from Angola do Mozambique, which eventually culminated in the English ultimatum. Public opinion soon associated the Republican Party with the defence of national interests, thus lending greater credibility to the creation of a Portuguese Republic.
Fourth Dynasty (House of Bragança)
Maria II the Educator, reigned from 1834 to 1853
Peter V the Hopeful, reigned from 1853 to 1861
Louis I the Popular, reigned from 1861 to 1889
From the period of the Crisis of 1891 to the Implantation of the Republic
In 1907 Charles I initiated efforts aiming to break the growing power of the Republican Party, by establishing a dictatorial government led by João Franco, leader of a conservative party, the Regenerators. These actions spurred intense protest reactions by the Republican Party, which were violently repressed. As a result of this, the students of the University of Coimbra went on strike and a great number of protests took shape throughout the whole country, culminating in regicide, with Charles I and his eldest son, Prince Luís Filipe being assassinated on February 1, 1908, while riding in an open carriage at Praça do Comércio, in Lisbon.
Fourth Dynasty (House of Bragança)
Charles I the Diplomat, reigned from 1889 to 1908
The First Portuguese Republic – 1910-1926
With the implantation of the Republic in Portugal, the Portuguese scene changed substantially. Several reforms took place: religious Orders were abolished, its possessions annexed as assets of the nation; teaching of the Christian doctrine was abolished; in 1911 the Law of separation between the Church and the State was promulgated, ceasing relations with the Vatican. In August of the same year, the Constitution of the Republic was promulgated and Manuel de Arriaga was elected President. The first Republican governments focused on the modernisation of the country: they developed the industrial sector, extended the road and railroad systems, and installed telephone and telegraph in the capital city, Lisbon.
Fourth Dynasty (House of Bragança)
Manuel II the Patriot, reigned from 1908 to 1910
From the period of the Military Dictatorship to the End of World War II
The first Republic failed its intent and was incapable of solving the country’s serious social and economic problems. When in 1914 the Great War erupted in Europe, Portugal became involved in the conflict despite intentions to remain neutral. Groups supporting either side immediately became active and Lisbon suffered from violent conflicts between factions of the Republican Party. The violence continued for several years and during several presidencies, until it was ended by the military coup-d’état led by general Gomes da Costa, in May 28, 1926.
University Professor António Oliveira Salazar, who made his political debut as Secretary of Finances of the second President of the military dictatorship, Marshal Óscar Carmona, took control of the New State in 1932 when he was appointed Prime Minister, a position he would hold for about 40 years. His right-wing dictatorship managed to keep the country neutral during World War II, sparing the country the horrors of war and enriching the coffers of the State. Nevertheless, in the years following the period of the war, the Portuguese people would feel the negative effects of Salazar’s protectionist policy.
From the period After the War to the Revolution of the Carnations
On April 25, 1974, a group of your military officers, in their majority captains in the Army, led by Otelo Saraiva de Carvalho and Ernesto Melo Antunes, carried out a military coup-d’état in which the self-proclaimed Movement of the Armed Forces (MFA) occupied Terreiro do Paço, the traditional headquarters of the political power in Lisbon. Military and civilian casualties were practically inexistent. The situation rapidly became favourable to the rebelling military, invested by the strength of the population joining them in taking control. The streets were crowded with people from all sides of life, demonstrating their joy in face of the possibility of closing a long-lasting chapter of ideological repression and war in the overseas colonies.