Portugal

Historical overview

Portugal’s political history includes the establishment of an independent kingdom, overseas exploration and empire, constitutional monarchy, republican revolution, authoritarian rule and a peaceful transition to parliamentary democracy.

Portugal became an independent kingdom in the twelfth century. The 1385 Battle of Aljubarrota strengthened the independence of the Kingdom of Portugal. During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, Portugal developed a major maritime empire, establishing trading posts and colonies in Africa, Asia and South America. The colonial system involved forced labour, slavery and the exploitation of indigenous populations.

In 1820, a liberal revolution began in Porto and demanded a constitutional government. The Constitution of 1822 established a constitutional monarchy, although the country experienced political instability and civil conflict. The monarchy ended with the Republican Revolution of 5 October 1910, which established the First Portuguese Republic.

A military coup in 1926 ended the First Republic and led to the authoritarian Estado Novo regime, consolidated under António de Oliveira Salazar. The Constitution of 1933 established the regime’s institutional framework. Political opposition was restricted, censorship was imposed and the political police targeted dissidents. Portugal’s colonial wars in Angola, Guinea-Bissau and Mozambique intensified from 1961.

On 25 April 1974, the Armed Forces Movement overthrew the Estado Novo in the Carnation Revolution. The revolution initiated decolonisation, political liberalisation and the establishment of democratic institutions. The Constituent Assembly was elected in 1975, and the Constitution was approved on 2 April 1976 and entered into force on 25 April 1976. parlamento.ptPortugal became a member of the European Economic Community in 1986. Its contemporary democratic system is based on a semi-presidential constitutional republic, with a directly elected president, a parliament and a government responsible to the legislature.

Key historical timeline

1. 1143Treaty of Zamora recognises Portugal as a kingdom.
2. 1385Battle of Aljubarrota secures the independence of the Portuguese monarchy.
3. 1415Portuguese conquest of Ceuta begins the era of overseas expansion.
4. 1494Treaty of Tordesillas divides claimed overseas spheres between Portugal and Spain.
5. 1755Lisbon earthquake devastates the capital.
6. 1820Liberal Revolution begins in Porto.
7. 1822First Portuguese Constitution adopted.
8. 1910Republican Revolution ends the monarchy on 5 October.
9. 1911Constitution of the First Republic adopted.
10. 1926Military coup ends the First Republic.
11. 1933Estado Novo Constitution takes effect.
12. 1961Colonial wars begin in Angola.
13. 1963Armed struggle expands in Guinea-Bissau.
14. 1964Armed conflict begins in Mozambique.
15. 25 April 1974Carnation Revolution overthrows the Estado Novo.
16. 1974–75Political transition and decolonisation accelerate.
17. 25 April 1975Constituent Assembly election.
18. 2 April 1976New Constitution approved.
19. 25 April 1976Constitution enters into force.
20. 1986Portugal joins the European Economic Community.
21. 1999Macau transferred to Chinese sovereignty.Important historical documents to digitiseTreaty of Zamora (1143).Treaty of Tordesillas (1494).Portuguese constitutional documents of 1822, 1826, 1838 and 1911.Constitution of 1933.Colonial administration and colonial-war records.Records of the political police (PIDE/DGS).Armed Forces Movement programme, April 1974.Law No. 1/74 of 25 April 1974.Constituent Assembly proceedings, 1975–76.Constitution of the Portuguese Republic (1976).Decolonisation agreements with Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde and São Tomé and Príncipe.

Archive notes

Archive and research links

National Archives of Torre do Tombo – Portugal’s principal national historical archive.

Portuguese Parliament – History of Torre do Tombo – archival institutional history.

Portuguese Parliament – Building Democracy, 1974–1976 – the Carnation Revolution and the democratic transition.

Portuguese Parliament – Estado Novo, 1933–1974 – parliamentary and constitutional history of the dictatorship.

Official Gazette – Law No. 1/74 of 25 April – original legal instrument ending the Estado Novo government.

Parliamentary Historical Archive – Original 1976 Constitution – record of the original constitutional document.

Editorial note: Portugal’s democratic transition cannot be separated from the end of its colonial empire. The archive should include the experiences of people in Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde, São Tomé and Príncipe, and East Timor, as well as the Portuguese anti-dictatorship movement and the political prisoners released after the revolution.