A Brief History of Portugal

Part  13 - Political Parties start to Emerge

WELL, MY EVER faithful historical enthusiasts, (no, I did not say hysterical enthusiasts, you must listen more carefully or bring your ear trumpet for our final lesson) we are about to enter the last days regarding the monarchy from Portugal's history.  We will have poked about through twenty-six kings and queens lives and found some fascinating facts.  Such as Dom Luis (who will be the first under our microscope today) preferring to translate Shakespeare into Portuguese, rather than be bothered with running the country.  The monarch with the longest reign during the period we have been looking at was our first, Dom João I, who sat on the throne for forty-eight years from 1385 to 1433.  And, as it happens, arguably the shortest was the last monarch, Manuel II, who had only been doing the job for eighteen months before the people of Portugal decided it was time for a Republic.  Now we might as well polish off the reigns of the remaining monarchs.

Dom Luis: 1861-89

Next on the scene came Dom Luis, one of Pedro's brothers and his twenty-eight year reign was seen to have been relatively successful.  This was the time when politics and political parties started to emerge in Portugal.  As with any country trying out politics for size, there was a lot of `suck it and see' in terms of the various factions involved.  There were the Regenerators, the Reformists and the Historicals, all claiming to be the legitimate representatives of the people.

It would be some time before a merger of interests took place.  But eventually the Historicals and the Reformists decided to join forces and form the Progressive Party in 1879.  From that date for the next 27 years the Progressives and Regenerators shared power alternately.  The system worked well in the beginning, with Dom Luis acting as arbitrator should any serious disputes between the two parties become apparent.  A little way down the line, as with any system, splinter groups of unsatisfied politicians from the two main parties started to form new sub-parties.  Eventually, these sub-groups became stronger and decided to set themselves up as new, democratic parties in their own right.  At one point, there were five political parties trying to run the country; the Liberal Regenerators (led by Franco), the old Regenerators, the Progressives, the Socialists and, last but not least, we have the Republicans.

An improved communication infrastructure was gradually put into place.  This helped bring about a general expansion of the economy by allowing foreign investment into Portugal for the first time.  The shrewd Dom Luis did the sensible thing by letting the politicians run the country.  This gave him the freedom to indulge himself into things like translating Shakespeare into Portuguese.  When he needed a break from this, he would go off and play the cello (he sounds like a very sensible chap to me, don't you think?).

Dom Carlos: 1889-1908

It was at the start of the reign of Dom Carlos that Britain renewed her pledge to look after Portugal and her interests in the Treaty of Windsor dated 1889.  Shortly afterwards, the British and Portuguese politicians nearly came to blows over Africa. Britain wanted to form a continuous link North to South, effectively from Cairo right through to the Cape.  This was to allow trade to be freely undertaken without interruption along this strategic route.  But Portugal's plan was directly the opposite; their intention was to bring all the land between the Angolan and Mozambican border under Portuguese control.

At first, both sides stuck rigidly to their original plans but after a lot of threats and counter threats, Britain prevailed, following the issuing of what became known as the British Ultimatum in 1890.  Of course, as with any agreement, you can't please everyone - or in this example, hardly anyone! Reports from around Portugal showed that the general populace was very unhappy with the way parliament seemed to be dishing out money from the public purse to the monarchy whenever they asked.  They were getting increasingly restless with the general running of the country by the numerous political parties now emerging from the original two main parties.  On top of that, they did not take kindly to what they felt was a total humiliating, by the abdication to the English over Africa. Sensing that there could be some mileage in this unrest, the Republicans supported the protests and street riots which were becoming more prevalent.

In 1906, with bomb-throwing incidents adding to the growing unrest, Dom Carlos stepped into the ring in an effort to stem the tide of civil disobedience.  Unfortunately, his intervention only seemed to make matters worse.  Following the putting down of one revolt and the arrest of the ringleaders, a group of activists assassinated not only Dom Carlos but also the Infante Dom Luis Filipe as well. Dom Carlos's youngest son, Dom Manuel II survived the onslaught and took over the throne in what was to be the last gasp for the Portuguese monarchy.

Dom Manuel II: 1908-10

The assassination of both Dom Carlos and the Infante Dom Luìs Filipe came as a monumental shock to the people of Portugal.  Such was the impact of this heinous act by a small group of activists, who were fighting for a new beginning.  As a direct consequence, there were eight appointed parliaments during the eighteen months of Dom Manuel`s reign.

From the very start of Dom Manuel II's short spell on the Portuguese throne, it became clear that the authority of the crown had been well and truly lost.  The push by the revolutionists became stronger as every day passed until the First Portuguese Republic became a reality on the 3^rd of October 1910.

Well, my friends, that looks like the ideal place to shut up shop once again (yes, I know this isn't a shop, clever clogs, it was only a figure of speech), so gird your loins and whatever else needs attending to before you set off home.

In our final installment we will have a look at those years from the forming of the republic in 1910 until Portugal joined the Common Market in 1958.

I look forward to seeing you again then. Bye for now!

David Devereux

     dfdev@btinternet.com

Why not now have a look at the Family Tree of Kings and Queens of Portugal?

return to A brief history of Portugal index