When was the portuguese monarchy overthrown

Many nationalist movements were rebelling against Portuguese rule in their African territories, which included Angola, Guinea-Bissau and Mozambique. This was an extremely unpopular conflict, and many of the troops had been conscripted. The majority of the population approved of decolonisation to put an end to the bloody and costly war — something the Estado Novo regime opposed. He had written a book in which he suggested that the Portuguese colonial wars should come to an end.

Captains within the armed forces were also unhappy with a law which would grant privileges to conscripted officers, to the resentment of professionally trained officers. This was the first of two secret signals that the army was waiting for.

Tanks entered the centre of Lisbon in the early hours of 25 April and soon the airport, television and radio centres were taken over, as well as the Salazar Bridge over the river Tagus. Prime Minister Marcello Caetano, along with other ministers, had taken refuge in the Carmo barracks, which housed the. National Republican Guard, and these were stormed by troops, armed with machine guns.

After initially being taken under custody to the Portuguese island of Madeira, Caetano spent the remaining years of his life as an exile in Brazil. Radio appeals by the revolutionaries asked people to stay inside, but many flooded the streets and joined in, supporting the troops. By the time the sun had risen on 26 April, the MFA was in charge and promised to hold democratic elections for a national assembly as soon as they could.

Unlike many military coups, almost no shots were fired, and red carnations were given to soldiers by the jubilant crowds to celebrate the overthrow of the government.

The soldiers placed the flowers inside their guns and pinned them on their uniforms. Carnations soon became a symbol of the revolution and its success in bringing democracy to Portugal. They were later arrested. In , the Portuguese Republican Party overthrew the monarchy and in , this was replaced with the Ditadura Nacional National Dictatorship which would later be renamed the Estado Novo.

Power was initially held by the National Salvation Junta. A chaotic period followed with attempted counter-coups, until the Portuguese Constituent Assembly election was held on 25 April Decolonisation was one of the key driving forces behind the new government.

Portugal also left East Timor — which was almost instantly invaded by Indonesia. The more than one million Portuguese citizens who left the former territories for Portugal became known as the retornados the returned. Under the new democratic government, censorship was prohibited, political prisoners were released, and free speech was allowed. In the confusion, more bullets rained down on them.

A gun battle ensued, but by the time officials got the royal carriage to safety, the King was dead, and his heir was in the last moments of his life. A double assassination, a weakened successor and the rise of republicanism led to the fall of the House of Braganza and the end of the monarchy in Portugal. The murders of Carlos I and his eldest son, Luis Filipe, that cold day caused shockwaves around Europe. Carlos had inherited a difficult crown.

The House of Braganza had ruled Portugal since and had seen its power expand throughout the 17 th and 18 th centuries. But by the early s, the Portuguese Royal Family found itself weakened and based itself in Brazil, part of its empire.

In the decades that followed, the thrones of the two countries parted ways leading to power struggles within the ruling house. But by the time her grandson, Carlos I, became King of Portugal and the Algarves in , the country was once again facing a crisis. It was seen as a humiliation for the King while popular unrest grew as the economy wobbled and the country found itself bankrupt. Strikes and protests took place while the press became more outspoken in its criticism of the monarchy.

Republican parties began to gain support while the mainstream political set up of Portugal fragmented and effective government began to disappear. By the time Carlos appointed Joao Franco as Prime Minister in , with sweeping powers that would only be scaled back when the new premier and the King thought it appropriate, he was facing opposition in every quarter, and he knew it.

As the King of Portugal signed a decree in the early part of which would allow his government to send opponents into exile, he called it his death sentence. Soon afterwards, he was proved right. In fact, his assassins had already made plans to murder their monarch before Carlos put his pen to parchment that fateful day.

The fact that the King was talking of death as a real possibility only underlined how fragile he realised his power and position were. The end came on February 1 st as Carlos, his wife Maria Amelia and their two sons rode in an open carriage through the centre of Lisbon on their return from a break at their country retreat.

As the royal party entered the Terreiro do Paco in the centre of Lisbon, it was fired on by republicans. His younger brother, Manuel, tried to save him, but it was too late. Police shot and killed Da Costa and fellow attacker, Manuel Buica, while other officers and soldiers rushed the carriage to the Royal Naval Arsenal. Carlos I was confirmed dead. His heir, Luis Filipe, died soon afterwards.

The tragic start to his reign would be a shadow of things to come for Manuel who was just 18 and still a student when he became king. He made public declarations that he would not intervene in politics and undertook a wide range of visits across his new kingdom to try and reach out to his subjects. Growing agitation bubbled into revolution in October With him were his mother and grandmother, but soon after they left, they found out Porto had fallen to the revolutionaries.

They were forced to divert to Gibraltar. Manuel headed to the UK — and exile. He insisted that the crown could only be restored at the will of the people.