The First Portuguese Republic (; officially: ''República Portuguesa'', Portuguese Republic) spans a complex 16-year period in the

history of Portugal The history of Portugal can be traced from circa 400,000 years ago, when the region of present-day Portugal was inhabited by ''Homo heidelbergensis''. The Roman conquest of the Iberian Peninsula, which lasted almost two centuries, led to the es ...

, between the end of the period of constitutional monarchy marked by the

5 October 1910 revolution 5 October 1910 Revolution () was the overthrow of the centuries-old List of Portuguese monarchs, Portuguese monarchy and its replacement by the First Portuguese Republic. It was the result of a ''coup d'état'' organized by the Portuguese Repub ...

and the 28 May 1926 ''coup d'état''. The latter movement instituted a

military dictatorship A military dictatorship, or a military regime, is a type of dictatorship in which Power (social and political), power is held by one or more military officers. Military dictatorships are led by either a single military dictator, known as a Polit ...

known as '' Ditadura Nacional'' (national dictatorship) that would be followed by the corporatist '' Estado Novo'' (new state) regime of

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 ...

. The sixteen years of the First Republic saw eight presidents and 45 ministries, and were altogether more of a transition between the Kingdom of Portugal and the Estado Novo than they were a coherent period of governance.

Early years of the Republic

After the republican uprising of 5 October 1910 that overthrew King Manuel II, a republican constitution was approved in 1911, inaugurating a parliamentary regime with little power in the hands of the president and a bicameral system. The republic caused important fractures in Portuguese society, especially between the monarchical rural population, the unions and the Catholic Church. Even the ''Republican Party'' was divided. The most conservative sector separated to form the ''

Evolutionist Party The Republican Evolutionist Party (, PRE), commonly known as the Evolutionist Party, was a political party in Portugal led by António José de Almeida. History The party was established on 24 February 1912 as the result of a split in the Port ...

'' and the '' Republican Union Party''. Despite those secessions, the ''Portuguese Republican Party'' (commonly known as '' Democratic Party'' after this split, unlike the previous

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. ...

to the proclamation of the Republic), led by Afonso Costa remained the main political force of the Republic. The opposition forces began to use violence as a method to get closer to power, as there was no truly democratic political and parliamentary tradition, while almost all political factions were fighting for radical transformations that would end the immobility that had characterized the

House of Braganza The Most Serene House of Braganza (), also known as the Brigantine dynasty (''dinastia Brigantina''), is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese people, Portuguese origin which reigned in Europe and the Americas. The hous ...

. The '' Democratic Party'' (officially ''Portuguese Republican Party'') saw in the beginning of the

First World War 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 ...

a unique opportunity to achieve its objectives: an end to the threat of an invasion by Spain and foreign occupation of the colonies, and within the internal level, creating a national consensus around the regime and even around the party. These domestic objectives were not achieved, since participation in the conflict decreed in 1917 was not subject to national consensus and it was not possible to mobilize the population, even more so there was hostility towards entering the war when Portugal had to send a contingent of almost 12,000 soldiers to France and colonial troops from Germany invaded the Portuguese colony of

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

. What happened was the opposite: Portugal's financial difficulties prevented it from forming an adequate contingent for the war, and the armed forces were not prepared for a fight on a European scale, which is why internal criticism of Portugal's entry into the war caused ideological differences to widen. The lack of consensus on Portugal's participation in the war made possible the emergence of two dictatorships, led by Pimenta de Castro (January – May 1915) and

Sidónio Pais Sidónio Bernardino Cardoso da Silva Pais (1 May 1872 – 14 December 1918) nicknamed "the President-King" (), was the 4th president of Portugal, serving in 1918. A Portuguese people, Portuguese politician, Officer (armed forces), militar ...

(1917–1918), called the ''President-King''. President Paes of Portugal

Sidonism, also called ''Dezembrism'' (Spanish ''Diciembrism''), contained certain elements of modernization, but said regime preached some of the political solutions that would be used by the dictatorships totalitarians and

fascists Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social h ...

of the 1920s and 1930s. Sidónio Pais tried to rescue traditional values, especially the ''Pátria'' and tried to govern in a charismatic way. Attempts were made to abolish traditional parties and alter the existing model of national representation in parliament (which was said to exacerbate divisions within the Homeland), through the creation of a corporatist

senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and a single party, the "National Republican Party", as well as the attribution of functions to its leader. The state carried out an economic policy interventionist persecuting unions and labor movements. Sidónio Pais also attempted to restore public order, turning the republic into a more acceptable model for the monarchists and Catholics who still remained a political force. The power vacuum created after the assassination of Sidónio Pais on 14 December 1918 led the country into a brief civil war. In northern Portugal the restoration of the monarchy was proclaimed on 9 January 1919 and four days later a monarchical insurrection took place 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 ...

. A republican coalition, led by José Relvas coordinated the repression of the uprisings using military personnel loyal to the regime and armed civilians. After a series of confrontations with the monarchists, they were definitively defeated in

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 ...

on 13 February 1919. This military victory allowed the ''

'' return to government and emerge triumphant in the elections that took place during that year, winning them by an absolute majority.

Search for stability

It was during this republican restoration that a reform was attempted to provide the regime with greater stability. In August 1918 a conservative President was elected – António José de Almeida (whose ''Evolutionist Party'' had joined during the war with the '' Portuguese Republican Party '', to form the "Sacred Union") – and his government was given the power to dissolve parliament. The relations with the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

that had been restored by

, were preserved. The president used his new power to resolve the government crisis of May 1921, appointing the Liberal Party (the result of the postwar merger between the Evolutionists and the Unionists) to prepare for the next election. The

won again by an absolute majority, but discontent with this situation did not disappear. There were many accusations of political corruption, and the opposition's attacks increased. At the same time, all political parties suffered from infighting, especially the ruling party. The party system was discredited because the government of the ''

'' that had emerged from the polls was not really stable. The presidents' opposition to single-party governments that disagreed with the

and everyone's desire to monopolize power caused the virtual absence of stability in the nation's government. Several different formulas were tried, including single-party governments, coalitions and presidential executives but none of them had any effect, causing the use of force to be considered "the only way" for the opposition to prevail if it wanted to enjoy the fruits of the can. Bernardino Machado

Religion

The First Republic was intensely

anti-clerical Anti-clericalism is opposition to religious authority, typically in social or political matters. Historically, anti-clericalism in Christian traditions has been opposed to the influence of Catholicism. Anti-clericalism is related to secularism, ...

. Historian Stanley Payne points out, "The majority of Republicans took the position that

Catholicism 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 ...

was the number one enemy of individualist middle-class radicalism and must be completely broken as a source of influence in Portugal." Under the leadership of Afonso Costa, the Minister of Justice, the revolution immediately targeted the Catholic Church; the provisional government began devoting its entire attention to an anti-religious policy, in spite of the disastrous economic situation. On 8 October the religious orders in Portugal were expelled, and their property was confiscated. On 10 October – five days after the inauguration of the Republic – the new government decreed that all convents, monasteries and religious orders were to be suppressed. All residents of religious institutions were expelled and their goods were confiscated. The

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

were forced to forfeit their Portuguese citizenship. A series of anti-Catholic laws and decrees followed each other in rapid succession. On 3 November, a law legalizing divorce was passed as well as laws to recognize the legitimacy of children born outside wedlock, authorize cremation, secularize cemeteries, suppress religious teaching in the schools and prohibit the wearing of the

cassock The cassock, or soutane, is a Christian clerical clothing, clerical coat used by the clergy and Consecrated life, male religious of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church, in addition to some clergy in ...

. In addition, the ringing of church bells to signal times of worship was subjected to certain restraints, and the public celebration of religious feasts was suppressed. The government also interfered in the running of seminaries, reserving the right to appoint professors and determine curricula. This whole series of laws authored by Afonso Costa culminated in the law of Separation of Church and State, which was passed on 20 April 1911. The republicans were anticlerical and had a "hostile" approach to the issue of church and state separation, like that of the French Revolution, and the future

Mexican Constitution of 1917 The current Constitution of Mexico, formally the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States (), was drafted in Santiago de Querétaro, in the Querétaro, State of Querétaro, Mexico, by a Constituent assembly, constituent convention d ...

and the

Spanish Constitution of 1931 The Spanish Constitution of 1931 was approved by the Constituent Cortes, Constituent Assembly on 9 December 1931. It was the constitution of the Second Spanish Republic (founded 14 April 1931) and was in force until 1 April 1939. This was the sec ...

. On 24 May 1911,

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X (; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing Modernism in the Catholic Church, modern ...

issued the encyclical '' Iamdudum'' which condemned the anticlericalism of the new republic for its deprivation of religious civil liberties and the "incredible series of excesses and crimes which has been enacted in Portugal for the oppression of the Church."IAMDUDUM: ON THE LAW OF SEPARATION IN PORTUGAL
Papal Encyclicals Online The Republic repelled a royalist attack on Chaves in 1912.

Decline of the Republic

In the mid-1920s the national and international political scene was favorable to the emergence of an authoritarian solution, through which a strengthened government could impose public order and restore the political situation. The armed forces, whose political interest had increased due to the

and whose leaders had not forgotten that the ''

'' had sent them to fight when the military themselves warned that they were not ready to fight, they were approaching the conservative forces, considering the reactionary military as "the last bastion" of order against the chaos that was developing throughout the country. There were links between conservative politicians and military officials, who added their political and corporate demands to the situation. Finally, on 28 May 1926 the Portuguese Revolution of 1926 took place, a coup d'état by the armed forces supported by almost all the political parties that had given up on their plans to establish a stable government and conferred that mission on the army. As had happened with the coup d'état of Sidónio Pais in 1917, the population of

did not try to protect the Republic, and the left parties themselves and their unions refused to resist the coup, allowing authority to pass into the hands of the army. With this began a military dictatorship that would maintain the formal structure of the Republic, but whose authoritarianism would slowly lead to the autocratic regime known as Estado Novo in the year 1932. The ''Estado Novo'' would remain in power without interruptions until 1974, when it would be overthrown by the

Carnation Revolution The Carnation Revolution (), code-named Operation Historic Turn (), also known as the 25 April (), was a military coup by military officers that overthrew the Estado Novo government on 25 April 1974 in Portugal. The coup produced major socia ...

and the Third Portuguese Republic would be established and democracy established in the country.

Heads of state and government

The First Portuguese Republic was an unstable period in the History of Portugal. In a period of 16 years (1910–1926) Portugal had 8 Presidents of the Republic, 1 Provisional Government, 45

Prime Ministers 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 rat ...

and 1 Constitutional ''Junta'': File:Manuel de Arriaga (1911) - Ringelke.png, File:Teófilo Braga - Ilustração Portugueza (7JUN1915).png, File:BernardinoMachado.png, File:Sidónio Pais.png, File:João do Canto e Castro - Ilustração Portuguesa 23DEZ1918.png, File:Presidente António José de Almeida.jpg, File:Retrato oficial de Manuel Teixeira Gomes.png,

Evaluation of the republican experiment and legacy

Most historians have emphasized the failure and collapse of the republican dream by the 1920s. José Miguel Sardica in 2011 summarized the consensus of historians: Sardica, however, also points up the lasting effects of the republican experiment: