Synopsis
In October 1910 a revolution drove out the king of Portugal and established the Portuguese Republic. In 1926 a military coup overthrew the parliamentary system and led to the authoritarian regime of Salazar, but in April 1974 a revolution led by the military restored the parliamentary republic. In this book edited by Richard Herr (Berkeley) and António Costa Pinto (Lisbon), eighteen Portuguese and American authors present essays in celebration of the centennial of the Portuguese Republic. With a review of its course and needs for the future, they offer an assessment of accomplishments of the two periods of the republic, the nature of republican institutions, the role of women in politics and letters, and the republic’s social, economic, religious, and environmental policies. Much thought has gone into analyzing the two revolutions, the challenge of an authoritarian tradition, and the difficulties posed for establishing a workable parliamentary government with a democratic suffrage.