Francisco Higino Craveiro Lopes (; 12 April 1894 – 2 September 1964) was a

Portuguese Air Force The Portuguese Air Force () is the air force, aerial warfare force of Portugal. Locally it is referred to by the acronym FAP but internationally is often referred to by the acronym PRTAF. It is the youngest of the three branches of the Portuguese ...

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served as the 12th

president of Portugal The president of Portugal, officially the president of the Portuguese Republic (, ), is the head of state and highest office of Portugal. The powers, functions and duties of prior presidential offices, and their relation with the prime minister ...

from 1951 to 1958.

Early life and career

Born in Lisbon, he was a son of ,

Portuguese army The Portuguese Army () is the land component of the Portuguese Armed Forces, Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With its ...

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

and 122nd

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

Portuguese India The State of India, also known as the Portuguese State of India or Portuguese India, was a state of the Portuguese Empire founded seven years after the discovery of the sea route to the Indian subcontinent by Vasco da Gama, a subject of the ...

(1929–1936), and his wife Júlia Clotilde Cristiano Salinas. He concluded his

Colégio Militar ''Colégio Militar'' ( Portuguese for "Military College") is a military secondary school in Lisbon, Portugal. It was founded by Marechal António Teixeira Rebello in 1803. History Its initial location was S. Julião da Barra Fort, in Oeiras. ...

studies by 1911, having then entered the Escola Politécnica de Lisboa, in the same year he joined a cavalry regiment. He succeeded his father as the 123rd General Governor of

(1936–1938). Lopez served as the commander of the Portuguese volunteer forces during the Spanish Civil War.

Presidency

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

António de Oliveira Salazar António de Oliveira Salazar (28 April 1889 – 27 July 1970) was a Portuguese statesman, academic, and economist who served as Portugal's President of the Council of Ministers of Portugal, President of the Council of Ministers from 1932 to 1 ...

chose Craveiro Lopes as the regime's presidential candidate in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

to succeed the late

Óscar Carmona António Óscar de Fragoso Carmona (November 24, 1869April 18, 1951) was the 11th president of Portugal, serving from 1926 until his death in 1951. A Portuguese army officer and politician he previously served as prime minister of Portugal from ...

. Initially, he was to run in what would have been only the second contested election of the Estado Novo, when naval officer Manuel Quintão Meireles filed to run against him. However, Quintão Meireles withdrew before election day, and Craveiro Lopes was elected unopposed. Under the Constitution, the president was vested with near-dictatorial powers. In practice, Carmona had mostly turned over the government to Salazar. However, Craveiro Lopes was not willing to give Salazar the free hand that Carmona had given him. Despite this, he did not go as far as to dismiss Salazar; for all intents and purposes, the president's power to sack the prime minister was the only check on Salazar's power. Nevertheless, Salazar picked the seemingly more pliant naval minister,

Américo Tomás Américo de Deus Rodrigues Thomaz (; 19 November 1894 – 18 September 1987) was a Portuguese Navy Officer (armed forces), officer and politician who served as the 13th president of Portugal from 1958 to Carnation Revolution, 1974. He was the ...

, as the regime's candidate in 1958. The Democratic Opposition then invited Craveiro Lopes to be their candidate, but he knew he stood no chance of winning and refused. The regime, however, as compensation promoted him to

Marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used fo ...

. He was involved in the failed military attempt to overthrow Salazar in 1961, led by the Defence Minister Júlio Botelho Moniz. He died in Lisbon on 2 September 1964.

State visits

* List of international presidential trips made by Francisco Craveiro Lopes

National honours

Craveeiro received the following national honours: *: * Sash of the Three Orders *Grand Cross of the Military Order of Aviz *Grand Officer of the Military Order of Aviz *Officer of the Military Order of Aviz * Commander of the Order of Christ *Knight of the

Order of the Tower and Sword The Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of Valour, Loyalty and Merit (), before 1917 the ancient and most noble order of the Tower and of the Sword, of valour, loyalty and merit (), is one of the four former ancient Portuguese milita ...

* Victory Medal * Exemplary Behavior Medal * Medal of Military Merit *

Foreign honours

Craveeiro received the following foreign honours: *: **Grand Collar of the

Order of the Southern Cross The National Order of the Southern Cross () is a Brazilian Orders, decorations, and medals of Brazil, order of chivalry founded by List of monarchs of Brazil, Emperor Pedro I of Brazil, Pedro I on 1 December 1822. The order aimed to commemorate ...

(27 March 1952) **Grand Cross of the Order of Military Merit (16 March 1956) **Grand Cross of the Order of Naval Merit (13 August 1955) **Grand Cross of the Order of Aeronautical Merit (16 March 1956) *: Grand Cross of the

Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella The Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella (''Orden al Mérito de Duarte, Sánchez y Mella'') is the principal order of the Dominican Republic. It was established on 24 February 1931 as the ''Juan Pablo Duarte Order of Merit'' (''Orden al M ...

(20 November 1957) *: Grand Cross of the National Order of Legion of Honour (8 August 1953) *

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: Grand Cross of the

Order of the Redeemer The Order of the Redeemer (), also known as the Order of the Saviour, is an order of merit of Greece. The Order of the Redeemer is the oldest and highest decoration awarded by the modern Greek state. Establishment The establishment of the Orde ...

(1 March 1955) *: Grand Cross of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem (11 August 1953) *: Grand Cross of the

National Order of the Cedar The National Order of the Cedar () is the highest Order (honour), state order of Lebanon, established on 31 December 1936. It is offered in five grades. History The Order was created on the 31 December 1936, but is regulated by the Lebanese C ...

(17 April 1956) *: Grand Cross of the

Order pro Merito Melitensi The Order of Merit (; ) is the order of merit of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, established in 1920. It is awarded to recipients who have brought honour to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, promoted Christian values and for chari ...

(9 March 1954) *: **Grand Collar of the Imperial Order of the Yoke and Arrows (30 December 1953) **Grand Cross of the Order of Cisneros (14 June 1950) *: Honorary Knight Grand Cross (Military Division) of the Most Honourable

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

(20 April 1956)

Family

He married Berta Ribeiro Artur (

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

, Pena, 15 October 1899 –

, Santa Maria de Belém, 5 July 1958), natural daughter of

Engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

Sezinando Ribeiro Artur (

, 1875 –

Lourenço Marques Maputo () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088,449 (as of 2017) distributed ov ...

, 1918) by Maria Clara Pereira, by whom he had four children.

Notes

References

Craveiro Lopes
presidencia.pt {{DEFAULTSORT:Craveiro Lopes, Francisco 1894 births 1964 deaths Politicians from Lisbon Portuguese military officers Presidents of Portugal Recipients of the Order of the Tower and Sword Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Marshals of the air force National Union (Portugal) politicians Governors-general of Portuguese India Field marshals of Portugal 20th-century Portuguese politicians 20th-century presidents in Europe