Manuel José de Arriaga Brum da Silveira e Peyrelongue (8 July 1840 – 5 March 1917) was a
Portuguese lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
who served as the first
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 1911 to 1915. Manuel de Arriaga also served as the first
attorney-general
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
, following the deposition of King
Manuel II in 1910, and a Republican Provisional Government headed by
Teófilo Braga
Joaquim Teófilo Fernandes Braga (February 24, 1843January 28, 1924) was the 2nd president of Portugal, serving in 1915. A Portuguese writer, playwright, politician he became the leader of the Republican Provisional Government after the overthro ...
he became president of the
First Portuguese Republic
The First Portuguese Republic (; officially: ''República Portuguesa'', Portuguese Republic) spans a complex 16-year period in the history of Portugal, between the end of the History of Portugal (1834-1910), period of constitutional monarchy ma ...
.
Biography
Of his early life details are brief: Arriaga was born to an aristocratic family; son of Sebastião José de Arriaga Brum da Silveira (c. 1810 –
Setúbal
Setúbal ( , , ; ), officially the City of Setúbal (), is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the entire municipality in 2014 was 118,166, occupying an area of . The city itself had 89,303 inhabitants in 2001. It lies withi ...
, 18 October 1881) and his wife, whom he married on 24 December 1834, Maria Cristina Pardal Ramos Caldeira (c. 1815 – ?). Arriaga's father was a rich merchant in the city, only son, and property-owner, whose heritage traced his lineage to the
Fleming Joss van Aard, one of the original settlers of the island of
Faial (of the male line to a
Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
family of small nobility) and whose second cousin was
Bernardo de Sá Nogueira de Figueiredo, 1st Marquess of Sá da Bandeira. The young Manuel was also the grandson of General
Sebastião José de Arriaga Brum da Silveira, who distinguished himself in the Peninsular Wars, and grand-nephew of the Judge of the Supreme Court, who between 1821 and 1822 was also a representative for the Azores in the Constituent Courts.
The Arriaga family included six children, of these the following siblings: Maria Cristina, the oldest (a poet, referred by
Vitorino Nemésio
Vitorino Nemésio Mendes Pinheiro da Silva (19 December 1901 – 20 February 1978) was a Portuguese poet, author and intellectual from Terceira, Azores, best known for his novel ''Mau Tempo No Canal (literally, ''Bad Weather in the Channel'' bu ...
in his obra-prima ''Mau Tempo no Canal''); José de Arriaga, a historian (known for ''História da Revolução Portuguesa de 1820'', published in 1889 and ''Os Últimos 60 anos da Monarquia'', published in 1911); Sebastião Arriaga Brum da Silveira Júnior, agricultural engineer (after studying abroad, he worked on land recuperation projects in the
Alentejo
Alentejo ( , , ) is a geographical, historical, and cultural region of south–central and southern Portugal. In Portuguese, its name means "beyond the Tagus" ().
Alentejo includes the regions of Alto Alentejo Province, Alto Alentejo and Bai ...
); and Manuel, the fourth in line of succession (who decided early on to concentrate on politics).
Education
Arriaga had his primary education in his native city of
Horta.
Around the age of 18, he moved with his younger brother (José de Arriaga) to
Coimbra
Coimbra (, also , , or ), officially the City of Coimbra (), is a city and a concelho, municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2021 census was 140,796, in an area of .
The fourth-largest agglomerated urban area in Po ...
to study at the
University of Coimbra
The University of Coimbra (UC; , ) is a Public university, public research university in Coimbra, Portugal. First established in Lisbon in 1290, it went through a number of relocations until moving permanently to Coimbra in 1537. The university ...
in the Faculty of Law (from 1860 to 1865), where he distinguished himself for his brilliant mind and notable oratory.
During this time he adhered to philosophical
positivism
Positivism is a philosophical school that holds that all genuine knowledge is either true by definition or positivemeaning '' a posteriori'' facts derived by reason and logic from sensory experience.John J. Macionis, Linda M. Gerber, ''Soci ...
and
republican democracy
A democratic republic is a form of government operating on principles adopted from a republic and a democracy. As a cross between two similar systems, democratic republics may function on principles shared by both republics and democracies.
Whil ...
, where he frequently joined others is discussions on philosophy and politics, showing a capacity for argument and imagination. His republican idealism, considered subversive, caused a rift between him and his conservative monarchist-leaning father (a supporter of the traditionalist
King D. Miguel); his father would break-off ties with his sons (for those subverse ideals), forcing the older Manuel to work as a private teacher to support his and his brother's studies.
After finishing his studies in 1865, Manuel worked as a lawyer in
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 ...
, but, desiring to be a teacher, he competed for the 10th chair at the ''Escola Politécnica'' (Polytechnical school) in 1866, as well as the chair in History in the department of Letters. Unsuccessful, in 1875 he ended up working in Lisbon both as an English teacher at the local secondary school, and as a lawyer.
Later, he established a legal practice, and quickly developed a clientele, which permitted him the financial security to assist his brother in completing his studies. Between many of the causes he defended while a lawyer, in 1890, he was the advocate for
António José de Almeida, after he wrote "''Bragança, o último''" an article against
King D. Carlos in the academic journal ''O Ultimatum''.
On 26 August 1876, he joined the ''Comissão para a Reforma da Instrução Secundária'' ("Commission on the Reform on Secondary School Instruction").
Politics
A member of the
Portuguese Republican Party
The Portuguese Republican Party (, ) was a Portuguese political party formed during the late years of the constitutional monarchy that proposed and later brought about the replacement of the monarchy with the Portuguese First Republic. ...
(before the
31 January 1891 revolt
The 31 January 1891 revolt was the first attempt by republicans to overthrow the Kingdom of Portugal, monarchy in Portugal. The revolt took place in the form of a military uprising in the country's second city of Porto.
The causes
The immediate ...
), alongside
Jacinto Nunes,
Azevedo e Silva,
Bernardino Pinheiro,
Teófilo Braga
Joaquim Teófilo Fernandes Braga (February 24, 1843January 28, 1924) was the 2nd president of Portugal, serving in 1915. A Portuguese writer, playwright, politician he became the leader of the Republican Provisional Government after the overthro ...
and
Francisco Homem Cristo, he was an active parliamentarian during the constitutional monarchy of King
Luís I; he was involved in the debates on the reform of education, the penal code and prisons, in addition to electoral reform. By this time doctrinaire republicans had, by that time, been replaced by others in the party affiliated with
masonry
Masonry is the craft of building a structure with brick, stone, or similar material, including mortar plastering which are often laid in, bound, and pasted together by mortar (masonry), mortar. The term ''masonry'' can also refer to the buildin ...
or the nascente
Carbonari
The Carbonari () was an informal network of Secret society, secret revolutionary societies active in Italy from about 1800 to 1831. The Carbonari may have further influenced other revolutionary groups in France, Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Urugua ...
associations. He was also elected deputy for
Funchal
Funchal () officially Funchal City (), is the capital, largest city and a Municipality (Portugal), municipality in Portugal's Madeira, Autonomous Region of Madeira, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean. The city has a population of 105,795, making it ...
(1883–84) in the minority Republican government and later Lisbon (1890–92). A pragmatist, he actively promoted the Republican cause, while maintaining good relations with the
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
, unlike some of his contemporaries in the Republican movement. But, at the same time, he was combative and critical of what he saw as the "lethargy of monarchical governments, the
eneralwastes and luxuries of the royal family. Yet, he ardently denounced irregularities in his own government, especially when some Ministers transferred funds from the government coffers into private hands.
Following the establishment of the Republic (5 October 1910), young Republican students in Coimbra entered the installations of the Senate, and vandalized the Hall and furniture used in Doctoral ceremonies and damaged paintings of the last Portuguese kings. In order "to impede other depravities Dr. António José de Almeida (Republican from the first hour) invited Dr. Manuel de Arriaga to be rector of the old University and gave him leave on 17 October of 1910 in a ceremony without academic ceremonies, which was enough to curb student enthusiasm".
During the period of the Provisional Government, he became the Attorney-General of the Republic premièring in that way as a paladin of Republican propaganda and as one of the more caustic Portuguese.
As one of the older figures of the Republican regime (he was 71), he was elected President on 24 August 1911; he did not campaign for the position, and noted that it was a heavy burden, which he believed he was personally incapable of fulfilling its duties, but accepted it "for the good of the Republic". The other candidate was Dr.
Bernardino Machado
Bernardino Luíz Machado Guimarães (March 28, 1851April 29, 1944) was the 3th and 8th president of Portugal, serving from 1915 to 1917 and again from 1925 to 1926.
In 1917, Sidónio Pais, who was at the head of a military junta, dissolved Co ...
(who would also become President later), but it was
António José de Almeida who had suggested Manuel de Arriaga at the end of
Teófilo Braga
Joaquim Teófilo Fernandes Braga (February 24, 1843January 28, 1924) was the 2nd president of Portugal, serving in 1915. A Portuguese writer, playwright, politician he became the leader of the Republican Provisional Government after the overthro ...
's Provisional Government. As Almeida had believed Arriaga "was one of the few if not the only man in the Party who worked well with everyone and whom the Lord Christ didn't speak ill".
The Presidency was itself not an enviable or prestigious position; although the elected person, for a time, occupied a large home in Horta Seca, they were required to furnish the home at their own cost, pay rent and had no transport budget, nor personal secretary (Arriaga would ask his own son to help him in this role). Later, the first President lived in the Palace of Belém, but not in the main building, but rather an annex off of the Pátio das Damas. This occurred in a period when personal divisions between different factions had splintered the Republican cause;
António José de Almeida would form the Evolutionist Party,
Brito Camacho the Republican Union, while
Afonso Costa
Afonso Augusto da Costa, GCTE, GCL (; 6 March 1871 – 11 May 1937) was a Portuguese lawyer, professor and republican politician.
Political career
Costa was the leader of the Portuguese Republican Party and he was one of the major figures ...
would continue to front the main Republican Party (renamed the Democratic Party). Manuel de Arriaga, for his part, would select the politician and journalist
João Chagas
João is a given name of Portuguese origin. It is equivalent to the given name John. The diminutive is Joãozinho and the feminine is Joana. It is widespread in Portuguese-speaking countries. Notable people with the name are enumerated in the s ...
to head his first government. In his personal autobiography, Arriaga recounted how he hoped that he would not be another factor to divide Republicans, especially in a time where there existed a need to work together; it was a difficult period historically, due to the exasperation of the "religious question", constant social agitation and political party instability (associated with "Machiavellian strategies" of some politicians) that fermented during the infancy of the First Republic. Frequently, Arriaga was unable to contain these tensions and often had to deal with counter-revolutionary revolts, such as the
Royalist attack on Chaves
The attack on Chaves, which occurred on 8 July, 1912, was a military action performed by supporters of the monarchy of Portugal in opposition to the Portuguese First Republic, which had been proclaimed two years prior.
The attack was led by H ...
led by Captain
Paiva Couceiro. During his mandate, several governments fell; there were eight changes in the Prime Minister's office, disorder in the streets, violent reactions against the church, as well as counter-revolutionary monarchist movements. Finally, he invited Dr. António José de Almeida to lead the government, but he refused, and opted for the Republican
Afonso Costa
Afonso Augusto da Costa, GCTE, GCL (; 6 March 1871 – 11 May 1937) was a Portuguese lawyer, professor and republican politician.
Political career
Costa was the leader of the Portuguese Republican Party and he was one of the major figures ...
, who would govern off-and-on until 1917. Hated, but feared, he governed and even sought to restore some order and economy to the public accounts. Although Afonso Costa was able to reduce the deficit, the instability and conflict between Parties persisted, made more critical by internal politics and growing international tensions in 1914 (that would eventually begin
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
).
Arriaga deplored the circumstances, going so far as to announcing his intent to resign unless a coalition or non-party government could be installed that resolved the outstanding issues of amnesty and separation of church and state. But, subsequent governments would not resolve the issue immediately; on 22 February 1914 an amnesty was conceded for those not accused of violent actions, and eleven leaders of subversive groups were released, but the Law of Separation remained unrevised.
Revolt to resignation
Continuing political intrigues inevitably forced the first Republic down the path towards dictatorship. At the onset of the First World War, there was also pressure from the Portuguese colonies in Africa, principally Angola and Mozambique and the National Assembly had decided, while remaining initially neutral in the conflict, to send troops to those colonies which fronted German possessions.
The new Republic was now increasingly unmanageable, and further, there were divergences developing between the government and the army. At one point, a military contingent in Oporto attempted a coup d'état in Lisbon, which was suppressed. The government suggested disbanding the regiments involved, but their leaders appealed to General
Pimenta de Castro
Joaquim Pereira Pimenta de Castro (5 November 1846, in Pias, Monção – 14 May 1918, in Lisbon; ) was a Portuguese army officer and politician. He was a career military officer reaching the position of General, also graduated in mathematics b ...
. In an attempt to mitigate these problems, Manuel de Arriaga wrote to the three party leaders (Camacho, Afonso Costa and António José de Almeida) in order to come to an accord and form a unity government, but
Afonso Costa
Afonso Augusto da Costa, GCTE, GCL (; 6 March 1871 – 11 May 1937) was a Portuguese lawyer, professor and republican politician.
Political career
Costa was the leader of the Portuguese Republican Party and he was one of the major figures ...
did not react well to the proposal. The President then withdrew his support for the government, then-presided by
Vítor Hugo de Azevedo, and to calm the Army called on General
Joaquim Pimenta de Castro (who had been the Minister of War under João Chagas) to form a government. Arriaga had known and placed his confidence in Castro. But, Joaquim Pereira Pimenta de Castro selected for his ministers, seven military officers, who did not permit the re-opening of Parliament, and provided an amnesty for convicted monarchists involved in the Attack on Chaves He made changes to electoral law and began governing as a dictator, which was only supported by the
Evolutionist Party (Portugal) and the group led by Machado dos Santos on the political right of the Republicans.
What had started as an attempt to eliminate an inevitable conflict between the armed forces and the political class, eventually resulted in a bloody conflict. The parliamentarians, meeting secretly on 4 May 1915 in the Palácio da Mitra, declared Arriaga and Pimenta de Castro outside the law, their acts undemocratic and essentially void. Then, on 14 May, in a
revolt
Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...
instigated by members of the Democratic Party, elements of civil reactionary groups and supported by elements of the Navy began what was
essentially a civil war; there were many deaths and injuries on both sides. The well-intentioned and pacifist Arriaga had only one option; twelve days following the start of the uprising, he resigned from the Presidency. In his resignation letter, he stated that the deaths during the revolt were needless, that Pimenta de Castro's regime was less a dictatorship then earlier governments and that 1914–15 laws had given future governments unusual war powers.
He paid heavily for his political naivety; as the author
Raul Brandão noted the man, "although profoundly altruistic and magnanimous, good-natured and honorable", had rapidly turned into a ''political criminal'' and accused of duplicity with the dictatorial and violent Pimenta de Castro. In his resignation (to his ministers and Party) he defended himself against these unjust accusations and declared his well-intentioned loyalty to the Republican cause, which he had supported throughout his life (but which had abandoned him disillusioned). The parliamentarian, writer and journalist, Augusto de Castro later recounted a conversation with the former President, shortly before his death (in 1917):
:"The man, an admirable magistrate, with an aristocratic comportment and a romantic look, who once was one of the most handsome boys of his time, had transformed himself, in half-a-dozen months, into an old, curved and pathetic man...Arriaga recounted to me one of his unique pleasures during his exile...his flowers, garden and poetry...in that afternoon, seated in his garden, seated in the warmth of the sun's rays, I told the old man my predictions. That politics was not made for idealists nor poets, like him...Arriaga listened silently, forcing a smile respectively. Eventually, tears covered his eyes...And while making small patterns in the carpet with his cane, he told me, with an irony...'I am a political criminal, my friend'...I wanted to comfort him, and remembered his sense of pride in popular sentiment and justice, that yet remained in his soul...the people that you had esteemed, continue to respect and love you. That much is true. There are few in the theater, in public, who caricature you..."
But Augusto de Castro ended his story by noting that upon leaving the ex-President's home he purchased a newspaper that referred to Arriaga as a renegade and traitor, and thought, "never, like that afternoon, did politics seem so cruel and a sinister thing".
[João Medina, 1993, p.258]
Manuel de Arriaga was replaced as President by Professor
Teófilo Braga
Joaquim Teófilo Fernandes Braga (February 24, 1843January 28, 1924) was the 2nd president of Portugal, serving in 1915. A Portuguese writer, playwright, politician he became the leader of the Republican Provisional Government after the overthro ...
in 1915, who had led the provisional government following the abdication and exile of King
Manuel II.
Later life
In 1874, Arriaga had married
Lucrécia Augusta de Brito de Berredo Furtado de Melo (
Foz do Douro
Foz do Douro (; meaning "Mouth of the Douro") is a former civil parish in the municipality of Porto, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Aldoar, Foz do Douro e Nevogilde. The population in 2011 was 10,997, in an area of 1.88& ...
,
Porto
Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
, 13 November 1844 –
Parede,
Oeiras, 14 October 1927), from a family friendly to the Arriagas (from the island of
Pico
Pico may refer to:
Places The Moon
* Mons Pico, a lunar mountain in the northern part of the Mare Imbrium basin
Portugal
* Pico, a civil parish in the municipality of Vila Verde
* Pico da Pedra, a civil parish in the municipality of Ribe ...
).
The ceremony occurred in a chapel near Valença do Minho, where her father was General and Governor. For a few years the couple lived in Coimbra, where Manuel de Arriaga flourished in his law practice. Six children were born, two boys and four girls, and the family regularly spent their holidays in Buarcos.
Following his resignation, Manuel de Arriaga died in Lisbon two years later on 5 March 1917.
His home, near Rua da Janelas Verdes, overlooked the boats in the
Tejo, and in the room where he died there were photographs of the two men he most admired,
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo, vicomte Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romanticism, Romantic author, poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, human rights activist and politician.
His most famous works are the novels ''The Hunchbac ...
and
Alexandre Herculano
Alexandre Herculano de Carvalho e Araújo (; 28 March 181013 September 1877) was a Portuguese novelist and historian.
Early life
Herculano's family had humble origins. One of his grandfathers was a foreman stonemason in the royal employ. Hercu ...
, while above his bed, an image of Christ. In the end, former-President Arriaga's image was rehabilitated by the Portuguese media for his "intelligence, patriotism, benevolence and his honor for the manner in which he exercised his functions". This was further enhanced by his public papers and documents, as well as the work of several intellectuals.
Arriaga was buried in the
Prazeres Cemetery
Prazeres Cemetery () is one of the largest cemeteries in Lisbon, Portugal; it is located in the ''freguesia'' (civil parish) of Estrela, in western Lisbon (formerly, within the parish of Prazeres). It is considered to be one of the most beauti ...
the day after his death.
In 2004, by decision of the
Assembly of the Republic, his body was moved to the
National Pantheon.
Published works
Although a distinguished lawyer and orator, most of Arraiga's works were presented to the public, but also included published:
* O Partido Republicano e o Congresso (''The Republican Party and the Congress''), presented at the Clube Henriques Nogueira (11 December 1887);
* A Questão da Lunda (''A Question of Lunda''), represented in the Chamber of Deputies (1891);
* Descaracterização da Nacionalidade Portuguesa no regime monárquico (''The De-characterization of Portuguese Nationality in the Monarchical Regime'') presented in the Chamber of Deputies (1897);
* Começo de liquidação final (''Beginning the Final Liquidation'')
* Sobre a Unidade da Família Humana debaixo do Ponto de Vista Económico (''About the Unity of the Human Family under the Economic View'')
* A irresponsabilidade do poder executivo no regime monárquico liberal (''The Irresponsibility of Executive Power in the Liberal Monarchical Regime'')
* Contos Sagrados (''Sacred Stories'')
* Irradiações (''Diffusion'')
* Harmonia Social (''Social Harmony'')
Notes
References
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Arriaga, Manuel De
1840 births
1917 deaths
People from Faial Island
Presidents of Portugal
19th-century Portuguese lawyers
Portuguese republicans
Portuguese Republican Party politicians
Portuguese people of Basque descent
Portuguese people of French descent
Portuguese people of Flemish descent
Democratic Party (Portugal) politicians
Azorean politicians
University of Coimbra alumni
Azorean jurists
20th-century Portuguese politicians
20th-century presidents in Europe