THE Porto Liberal Revolution it was a movement that took place in 1820, in the city of Porto, in Portugal.
Among several demands, the members demanded the promulgation of a Constitution and the return of the Portuguese Court that was in Brazil.
Historical context
"Disembarkation of El Rei Dom João VI, accompanied by a deputation from the Cortes, in the magnificent Praça do Terreiro do Paço on July 4, 1821, returning from Brazil".
The Portuguese Royal Family, in 1808, had moved to their colony in America due to the Napoleonic invasions.
However, the French emperor had already been defeated in the Battle of Waterloo and it no longer posed any threat to European countries.
During the Congress of Vienna, representatives of European governments refused to accept the requests of Portuguese ambassadors. They claimed that the Portuguese King would not have the right to voice in the assembly because he ruled the Kingdom from a colony.
In order to calm the spirits, Dom João VI, in 1816, elevates Brazil to the category of United Kingdom. Legally, the territory is no longer a colony and becomes part of the Kingdom, with the same legal status as Portugal.
On the other hand, this meant that Portuguese traders lost their commercial monopoly with the colony. In this way, those born in Brazil could trade with the metropolis in the same way.
Porto Revolution
Background
The British had taken over the regency of Portugal while Dom João VI he was absent. When Napoleon was defeated, many Portuguese thought that the king would soon return.
However, Dom João VI postponed his return, desiring to remain in that land that had made him king. Some scholars point out that there, the monarch felt free from the pressures of the Court and European powers.
Be that as it may, in 1817, a group of Freemasons and Army officers rebelled in Lisbon declaring themselves against the British occupation of Portugal and proclaimed themselves regents of the Kingdom. The movement was denounced and its members sentenced to death.
In this way, political tension was palpable throughout the country.
Porto Liberal Movement
Allegory of the Liberal Revolution in Porto: Liberty crushes tyranny under its feet and soldiers and the population carry banners calling for "Constitution".
In the city of Porto, another group dissatisfied with the Court's permanence in Brazil constitutes the Provisional Board of the Supreme Government of the Kingdom. It was made up of members of the clergy, nobility and army and representatives of the cities of northern Portugal.
They wrote a “Manifesto of the Portuguese Nation to the Sovereigns and Peoples of Europe” in which they reaffirmed their loyalty to the King, but demanded the promulgation of a Constitution that would limit the sovereign's power. They also wanted the return of Brazil to the status of a colony and the restoration of the Portuguese commercial monopoly.
Other cities join the movement and on September 28 elections are called to form the Constituent Court. In January 1821, the Portuguese Cortes met to prepare the document. Meanwhile, Dom João VI returns to Portugal with part of his family and the nobility that accompanied him.
The oldest son, Dom Pedro, would stay in Brazil, as Prince Regent. This, perhaps, was the last great political move of Dom João VI, as leaving his son there, he nurtured the hope of keeping the ties between Portugal and Brazil together.
Consequences of the Porto Revolution
- Return of the Portuguese Court to Brazil,
- drafting and promulgating the first Portuguese Constitution,
- end of absolutist state in Portugal,
- articulation of the Brazilian elite around Dom Pedro, who would make Brazil's Independence.
read more:
- day of stay
- Independence of Brazil
- Flag of Portugal
- The coming of the Royal Family to Brazil
- Constitutional monarchy
- Causes of Brazilian Independence
