Portugal
Country in southwestern Europe, on the Atlantic Ocean, bounded north
and east by Spain.
Government
The 1976 constitution, revised in 1982, provides for a president, elected
by universal suffrage for a five -year term, renewable only once
in succession, and a single-chamber 230-member assembly, elected
through a party list system of proportional representation and
serving a four-year term. The president, an active politician
rather than a figurehead, appoints a prime minister who chooses
a council of ministers. The prime minister and council of ministers
are responsible to the assembly. A council of state, chaired by
the president, acts as a supreme national advisory body. The relationship
between president and prime minister is similar to the `dual executive´
in France.
History
Portugal shares much of its early history with that of the whole Iberian
peninsula (see Spain: history to 1492 ). The dominance of Carthage
in the south in the 3rd century BC gave place to that of Rome
in the following century. Lusitania, comprising that part of Portugal
south of the River Tagus, was formed into a Roman province during
the reign of the Emperor Augustus (31 BC-AD 14), and the country
prospered under Roman rule.
In the 5th century AD the area of what was to become Portugal
was overrun by two Germanic tribes in succession, the Suebi (Suevi)
and the Visigoths, and then in the 8th century by the Muslim Moors
from North Africa. By the 11th century the north of the country
was subject to León, while the south was still ruled by the Moors.
The creation of Portugal
Ferdinand (I) the Great, king of Castile, began the reconquest of the
northwest of the Iberian peninsula from the Moors in the mid-11th
century, a process continued by his son Alfonso VI of Castile-León.
Alfonso VI arranged for the marriage of his illegitimate daughter
to the brother of the duke of Burgundy, and their son, Afonso
I, had by 1140 established Portugal as his kingdom on a basis
of de facto independence, and established the Burgundian line.
In 1179 Pope Alexander III acknowledged Afonso as king in return
for an annual tribute. However, it was not until the late 13th
century that the kingdom of Portugal was acknowledged by the kings
of Castile -León. In 1147 Afonso captured Santarém from the Moors,
and, with the assistance of English and German crusaders bound
for the Holy Land, he also captured Lisbon.
The early kings
Afonso I was succeeded by Sancho I (ruled 1185-1211), who was engaged
during the earlier part of his reign in war with the Moors and
with Alfonso IX of León, and later, by his encouragement of local
self- government, won for himself the title of O Povoador (founder
of cities). He opposed the claims of Pope Innocent III, but in
1210 submitted to papal authority.
Afonso II, the Fat (ruled 1211-23), is notable as the first
king to summon the Portuguese Cortes (parliament). The Cortes,
an assembly representing nobles, clergy, and cities, went on to
secure control of taxation. Sancho II (ruled 1223-48) drove the
Moors from Alentejo, and won many successes in the Algarve. He
was forced to abdicate in favour of his brother, Afonso III (ruled
1248-79), who proclaimed himself king. Afonso III expelled the
Moors from the Algarve, united it with his other territories (1253),
and strengthened his kingdom by his marriage to the daughter of
Alfonso X of Castile. Thus the kingdom of Portugal reached its
present European boundaries.
The later Middle Ages
Afonso III's son Diniz (ruled 1279- 1325) devoted himself to the constitutional
and social reconstruction of the kingdom. He encouraged agriculture,
shipbuilding, and commerce, and was a patron of learning, founding
the University of Coimbra (initially in Lisbon) in 1290. He negotiated
a commercial treaty with England in 1294 and founded a Portuguese
navy.
Afonso IV (ruled 1325-57) was chiefly occupied in wars with
the Castilians and Moors, while his successor Pedro I, the Justicer
(ruled 1357-67), endeavoured to lessen the power of the nobility
and clergy. The claim of Ferdinand (1367-83) to the throne of
Castile was contested by Henry of Trastamara. Ferdinand allied
himself with the Aragonese and Moors and with England (the alliance
with England dating from 1373).
On Ferdinand's death the Burgundian line established by Afonso
I in the 12th century came to an end. In order to preserve Portugal's
independence of Castile, the Cortes asserted its right to elect
the new king, choosing John I (ruled 1385- 1433), an illegitimate
brother of Ferdinand and the first king of the house of Aviz.
In 1385 the united Portuguese and English forces defeated the
Castilians at Aljubarrota, securing Portugal's independence. The
Anglo-Portuguese alliance was confirmed by the Treaty of Windsor
(1386), and John cemented the friendship between the two countries
in 1387 by marrying Philippa, daughter of John of Gaunt (son of
Edward III of England).
The era of exploration and expansion
It was during the reign of John I that the great period of Portuguese
exploration and overseas expansion began, during which Portugal
became for a while the greatest maritime country in the world.
This period began with the capture of Ceuta on the northwest
coast of Africa in 1415 by John's fourth son Prince Henry the
Navigator (1394- 1460). Henry established a school for navigators
in 1419, and under his patronage Portuguese sailors sailed around
Cape Bojador (or Boujdour, in what is now the Western Sahara)
in 1434, and discovered Madeira and the Azores (1442), Senegal
(1445), and the Cape Verde Islands (1446). The first consignment
of African slaves was brought to Lisbon in 1434.
Exploration continued down the African coast in search of a
route to India; in 1486 Bartolomeu Diaz sailed round the Cape
of Good Hope, and in 1497 Vasco da Gama reached India. In 1494,
by the Treaty of Tordesillas, Spain and Portugal agreed on the
division between them of the uncharted world.
In 1500 King Manuel I (ruled 1495- 1521) assumed the title of
`Lord of the conquest, navigation, and commerce of India, Ethiopia,
Arabia and Persia´; in the same year Pedro Cabral claimed Brazil
for Portugal, and Portuguese settlements were made on the west
coast of India. Gaspar and Miguel Côrte-Real reached Greenland
in 1500-01, and new colonies were established in east and north
Africa. Afonso de Albuquerque conquered Goa (1510) in India and
Malacca in the Malay Peninsula (1511). Portuguese domination of
the East Indies (modern Indonesia) was established in 1512-14,
and commercial exchange began with China in 1517 and Japan in
1542. Portugal's commercial enterprise knew no limits, and Lisbon
was recognized as the centre of European trade with southern and
eastern Asia.
Spanish domination and rule
Portugal's pre-eminent position was not maintained. Alternative routes
were opened up to the east by Portugal's rivals, while Portugal
remained relatively weak and vulnerable. In addition, the commercial
classes in Portugal were weak by comparison with the feudal nobility
and the church.
Portugal's subsequent decline was at least partially due to
its adoption of a fanatically orthodox Roman Catholicism, largely
under the influence of Spain. This resulted in the persecution
and, from 1497, the expulsion of the Jews, largely at the behest
of Spain, which had expelled its own Jews in 1492. The Jews had
contributed greatly to the wealth of the country, and many settled
in the Netherlands, where their experience of the Portuguese trade
was to prove invaluable.
During the reign of John III (ruled 1521-57) Catholic orthodoxy
was rigorously imposed on the country, largely at the instigation
of John's wife Catherine, the sister of the ardently Catholic
Charles V, king of Spain and Holy Roman emperor. In 1536 the Inquisition
was introduced, and from 1540 all education was in the hands of
the Jesuits.
In 1578 the Portuguese army suffered a disastrous defeat at
the Battle of Alcazarquivir, during an ill- advised crusade against
the Moors of Morocco. The zealously religious King Sebastian,
the young grandson of John III, died in the battle. Sebastian
was succeeded by his uncle, the senile Cardinal Henry, last of
the Aviz dynasty, who died in 1580.
Among the many claimants to the crown was Philip II of Spain,
who marched into the country and had himself crowned king. From
1580 to 1640 Portugal remained under Spanish suzerainty, thus
becoming involved in the Dutch Revolt in the Spanish Netherlands
and the Thirty Years' War in Germany. England and the Netherlands
seized the Portuguese possessions in South America and the East
Indies, although the Dutch seizure of Brazil was only temporary.
Independence regained
After several insurrections, Portugal regained its independence, and
John, Duke of Braganza, a descendant of Manuel I, was crowned
John IV in 1640. England recognized the Braganza dynasty in 1662
when Charles II of England married Catherine of Braganza, who
brought in her dowry Bombay and Tangier. This confirmed the friendly
relations between the two countries, which already dated back
500 years.
Portugal became involved in colonial wars with the Netherlands
in Brazil and Angola, and a more serious conflict with Spain,
which did not recognize Portugal's independence. In the reign
of Afonso VI (1656-83), son of John IV, the Spanish were defeated
at Elvas (1659), Ameixial (1663), Ciudad Rodrigo (1664), and Montes
Claros (1665). The war concluded with the Treaty of Lisbon (1668),
by which Spain finally recognized Portugal's independence.
The reforms of Pombal
The Anglo-Portuguese alliance was renewed by the Methuen Treaty (1703),
and Portugal became involved in the War of the Spanish Succession
as Britain's ally. However, Portugal had lost many of its colonies
(a notable exception being Brazil, where gold and diamonds were
discovered in the last decade of the 17th century), and was no
longer one of the chief powers in Europe.
The Marquês de Pombal (1699- 1782), chief minister throughout
the reign of Joseph I (1750-77), tried to restore the kingdom
to its former position by strengthening the monarchy and encouraging
colonial development. His name is associated particularly with
the rebuilding of the city of Lisbon, destroyed by the great earthquake
of 1755. Pombal, an advocate of enlightened despotism, expelled
the Jesuits (1759), organized education, encouraged industry and
commerce, and reformed the army. However, his autocratic methods
alienated many, and on the accession of the mad Queen Maria I,
Pombal was deprived of office (1777). In 1799, Maria's son, John,
was appointed regent.
The Napoleonic period
Following the French Revolution and outbreak of the Revolutionary Wars,
in 1793 Portugal allied itself with Britain and Spain against
France. In 1807 Napoleon sent a French army to invade Portugal
and the royal family left the country for Brazil. Portugal then
became a battleground in the struggle between the French and the
British during the Peninsular War, until the French were finally
ousted from Portugal in 1811.
Portugal in the 19th century
In 1816, on the death of Maria I, John VI succeeded to the throne,
but remained in Brazil, appointing the British army officer Marshal
Beresford as his viceroy. The discontent that this caused among
his subjects resulted in a revolution (1820) and the establishment
of a more democratic form of government. John hurried back to
Lisbon, and promised to obey the ` constitution of 1822´. Meanwhile
Brazil had obtained complete independence (1822), with John's
son having declared himself constitutional emperor as Pedro I
of Brazil.
On the death of John VI (1826) Pedro, who was now Pedro IV of
Portugal, established the basis of the constitution that remained
in force until 1910, and then, returning to Brazil, abdicated
in favour of his seven-year-old daughter, Maria da Gloria, who
ruled with her uncle Miguel as regent. The latter headed a reactionary
movement, and with the aid of the nobility, military, and clergy
proclaimed himself king in 1828.
A period of civil war followed, between the supporters of the
autocratic Miguel and those of the more democratically and constitutionally
minded Pedro. With the help of British troops, the constitutional
party emerged victorious in 1834, and Pedro reinstated his daughter.
However, political instability continued for much of the following
two decades.
Maria's son, Pedro V (ruled 1853- 61), was succeeded by his
brother Luiz I (ruled 1861-89). He in turn was succeeded by Carlos
I.
Towards the end of the 19th century Portugal was obliged to
cede some of its territory in east and west Africa, giving up
its claim to Nyasaland (modern Malawi) after a British ultimatum
in 1890.
The foundation of the republic
Carlos I and the crown prince were assassinated in 1908. His second
son, Manuel II, was dethroned in a revolution in October 1910,
and a republic was proclaimed on 5 October.
The provisional government was under the presidency of Teófilo
Braga, who was succeeded in 1911 by Manuel de Arriaga, the first
president of the constitutional republic. A royalist counter-
revolution under Paiva Couceiro in 1911 was suppressed, as was
a leftist revolution in 1912. After three ineffective coalition
cabinets, Afonso Costa, head of the majority democratic party,
became prime minister. He ruled as a veiled dictator, although
he respected parliamentary forms of government to some degree,
effectively ruling by patronage.
Portugal in World War I
In 1914 Costa was succeeded by the more moderate Bernardino Machado.
When World War I broke out, Machado, who favoured the Allies,
was succeeded by Azevedo Coutinho. The non-interventionist president,
Arriaga, allowed the Germans to engineer a neutralist coup in
1915, which made Gen Pimenta de Castro a dictator, but he was
quickly overthrown.
Costa returned to power, and, because he allowed the Allies
the benefit of interned shipping, Germany declared war on Portugal
on 9 March 1916. Portugal's chief theatre of war was in Africa
(where its colony of Mozambique bordered German East Africa),
while Gen Tamagnini commanded the Portuguese Expeditionary Force
(numbering 40,000 men) in France. In 1917 Costa was ousted by
a coup led by the pro-German Sidónio Pais, who was assassinated
in 1918.
Salazar's dictatorship
Domestically, Portugal remained unstable after World War I; its economic
situation was chronically bad, and corruption was rife. Government
followed government until a military coup in 1926, and in 1928
Gen Carmona became president. Carmona appointed as his finance
minister Dr António de Oliveira Salazar, who stabilized the economy.
President Carmona continued his dictatorship despite protests
against it, leading to revolt and revolution in Madeira and the
Azores. In 1932 Salazar became prime minister, with dictatorial
powers, while Carmona remained as president until his death in
1951.
During World War II Portugal remained neutral, but in 1943,
under the treaty of 1373, it granted Britain facilities to set
up air and naval bases in the Azores. Britain returned these bases
in 1946. Portugal became a founder-member of NATO in 1949.
The assembly set up under the constitution of 1933 provided
a form of safety valve, but with the excesses of the later monarchy
and of the republic still in his mind, Salazar was not prepared
to entrust any substantial measure of power to an elected body,
and that of the assembly was very limited. The constitution established
Portugal as a corporative state, somewhat along the lines of Fascist
Italy, and although social conditions were improved, this was
at the cost of personal liberties.
Colonial wars
The constitution of 1933 adhered steadfastly to the idea that Portugal's
overseas empire was an integral part of the nation. However, its
remaining possession in India, Goa, was annexed by India in 1961,
and during the 1960s, while Britain and France granted independence
to their African colonies, Portugal refused to consider such a
move. This resulted in the formation of armed liberation movements
in Angola, Mozambique, and Portuguese Guinea (Guinea- Bissau),
and Portugal became involved in long and costly colonial wars.
The increasingly heavy demands made on the national budget by
these wars limited the supply of capital for investment at home.
In Africa itself Portugal's only friends were white-ruled South
Africa, and, after the unilateral declaration of independence
there in 1965, Rhodesia (Zimbabwe).
The 1974 revolution
Salazar's successor as premier in 1968, Marcelo Caetano, did not depart
much from Salazar's policies. Domestic repression of workers'
unions and of all criticism of the regime was exercised by the
much- feared security police (PIDE).
On 25 April 1974 the Caetano regime was overthrown in a coup
by the Armed Forces Movement (MFA) under the leadership of Gen
António Ribeiro de Spínola, a critic of the regime's African policies.
The MFA's stated aim was to `save the nation from government´.
One month later Spinola became president of the Junta of National
Salvation, with a military colleague replacing the civilian prime
minister.
Events moved rapidly in the first few months of the revolution.
The African colonies were granted their independence; the following
year Portugal also withdrew from East Timor (which was annexed
by Indonesia in 1976). Political parties burgeoned, with the socialists
and communists proving to be the best organized. Ministers of
the former regime were purged, the PIDE dismantled, and business
concerns nationalized.
After disagreements within the junta, Spínola resigned in September
1974 and fled the country. He was replaced by Gen Francisco da
Costa Gomes. The leaders of the Armed Forces Movement drew ever
closer politically to the Communist Party led by Alvaro Cunhal,
and President Gomes narrowly avoided a communist coup by collaborating
with the leader of the moderate Socialist Party (PS), Mario Soares.
Democracy restored National elections for the constituent assembly
held in April 1975 (after the Armed Forces Movement had announced
in advance their intention to retain control, whatever the outcome)
gave the Socialist Party 38 % of the vote and the Popular Democratic
Party of Francisco Sá Caneiro 25% - a clear victory for more moderate
policies. The military government's exclusion of the leaders of
these parties from power exacerbated political tensions as Portugal
entered its second year of post-Salazar rule.
In April 1976 further elections were held. The PS won 36% of
the vote, and Soares formed a minority government. The fact that
law-and- order policies appealed to the majority of Portuguese
was confirmed in the summer of 1976 by the election of the army
chief, General António Ramalho Eanes, to the presidency, with
the support of centre and left-of-centre parties. The government
headed by Soares faced a critical economic and political situation,
and in December 1977 it was defeated in the assembly. The government
survived precariously until Soares resigned in 1978.
A period of political instability followed, with five prime
ministers in two and a half years, until in December 1980 President
Eanes invited Francisco Balsemão, a cofounder of the Social Democratic
Party (PSD), to form a centre-party coalition.
The 1982 constitution Balsemão survived many challenges to his
leadership, and in 1982 the assembly approved his new constitution,
which reduced the powers of the president and moved the country
towards a fully civilian government.
The PS won the largest number of seats in the 1983 elections
and Soares formed a coalition with the PSD, led by former finance
minister Aníbal Cavaco Silva. The coalition collapsed in 1985,
and after an inconclusive election Cavaco Silva formed a minority
PSD government. He increased economic growth and raised living
standards, and favoured a free market and privatization.
In the 1986 presidential election Mario Soares became Portugal's
first civilian president for 60 years. In the same year Portugal
entered the European Community.
Socialism abandoned
In July 1987 the PSD won an absolute majority in parliament, with the
left-of-centre Democratic Renewal Party and the communists both
losing seats. In June 1989 parliament approved a series of measures
that denationalized major industries and renounced the socialist
economy. In January 1991 Soares was reelected to a five-year term,
and in October the PSD won the general election with a slightly
reduced majority.
Socialists returned to power
Cavaco Silva stepped down as PSD leader prior to the October 1995 general
election and was succeeded by former defence minister Fernando
Nogueira. The elections were won by the PS, which had adopted
a centre- left stance. Its leader Antonio Guterres formed a new
minority PS administration, which pledged itself to continue the
drive for closer European integration. In January 1996 PS candidate
Jorge Sampaio won the presidential election. Marcelo Rebelo Sousa
became leader of the opposition PSD in March 1996.
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