Assess the Social, Economic and Political Consequences of the Napoleonic wars in Portugal

The involvement of Portugal in the Napoleonic war was due to its refusal to close its ports to the British, as it had declared a ‘position of inviolable neutrality’ regarding the war. This led to the occupation of Lisbon by the French army on the 1st December 1807. The royal family, the government and members of the royal court all fled to Brazil causing a profound shift in the traditional balance of power between Brazil and Portugal. The status of Brazil was raised until it made a separate kingdom equal to Portugal, diminishing the status of Portugal since the power base was now in Brazil.

Initially, Portugal was able to capitalise on its neutral status as trade routes were becoming relatively limited. In 1803 Portuguese exports to England were worth more than 10 million escudos, and the average worth of exports per year between 1800 and 1807 was 8 million escudos. Imports were also high, and part of these imports was sold to France and Spain.

In 1810 a treaty was signed which opened the ports of Brazil to trade with Britain. Portugal was therefore cut out of the ‘trade triangle’ that it had previously monopolised. This meant that Portugal no longer distributed Brazilian goods, and also ceased to supply Brazil to the same extent. The economy suffered greatly because of this, for example Portuguese exports of cotton fell to less than a tenth of the levels previously exported. A gradual shift towards Brazilian independence from Portugal was started, although it did not happen for many years.

When Spain and Portugal decided to revolt against Napoleon and his army (despite being told by the king to give them a peaceful reception), Britain saw an opportunity to control and influence Portugal. General William Beresford was then appointed head of the Portuguese army, and the combined British and Portuguese forces expelled the French. To defeat them, a tactic known as ‘scorched earth’ was used. This involves burning agricultural land in order to prevent the French from living off the land and finding food in the surrounding countryside. Although ultimately effective, this would cause problems in the years to come. After the British expelled the French from Lisbon, the royal family chose to remain in Brazil. This meant that there was a power vacuum in Portugal, which was filled by British Generals taking advantage of this by assuming powerful positions. The king ruled Portugal via a council of regency, appointing Beresford, as his viceroy. This appointment of Beresford was largely unpopular with the people. As Beresford was British, it was felt that he would represent British interests as opposed to Portuguese interests, so it was believed that a Portuguese person should hold this post

At this time, other than the lack of usable agricultural land, the technology in Portugal was far behind that of the rest of Europe where the industrial revolution had improved things greatly. The infrastructure that had been so improved during the time in Pombal was badly damaged. The treaty allowing Brazil and England to trade directly meant that Portugal was a lot poorer than in previous years. The lack of available money meant that it was very difficult to do the repairs and improvements that the infrastructure of the country so badly needed.

The peasants were deeply affected, because the ...

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The peasants were deeply affected, because the lack of the usable land. They were traditionally conservative, and would look to the old feudal lords and king for guidance, so the fact that they were in Brazil (with no signs of returning) led to great unrest and resentment. After the reign of Pombal, Portugal’s economy had been quite stable, and improving constantly. The level of imports had been falling, since the production of goods in Portugal had been increasing. After the war, with the royal family and government still in Brazil, there was nobody to initiate the improvements that the country needed so much.

The political situation before the war was also reasonably stable. The previous monarchs had ruled the country without summoning the Cortes at all, in an absolutist style of government. This means that the monarch has absolute power and control over the country. Liberal groups wanting reform started to group together by the late 18th century for example the freemasons. Although the Peninsular war certainly initiated reform, it is hard to judge the extent to which changes to the style of governing Portugal would have inevitably occurred anyway. At this time, all over Europe liberalism was beginning to spread, and so even without the following events, Portugal may well have eventually adopted these ideals anyway.

The council of regency was opposed by a liberal organisation, which sought not only to remove Beresford from his post, but also to achieve a representative, constitutional government. At this time, the Portuguese army was essentially the only active national organisation, and so when their support was given to this movement, its success was assured.

Liberals started to stir up unrest against the monarchy, to which officials reacted by arresting large numbers of people. In 1817 General Andrade and 11 accomplices were arrested for treason and were eventually hung. Beresford became even more unpopular after this occurred, and was universally blamed for the harsh sentences.

In 1820 the Sinédrio, an underground movement that started in Oporto but spread very quickly to the rest of the country, started a revolution. At this time, Beresford went to Brazil to ask the king to return. Whilst he was away, liberal influences in the army grew.

On August 24, 1820, there was a revolution in which a provisional junta was established to govern temporarily until a Cortes could be invoked. They wanted to summon a Cortes to write a constitution, for the government, monarchy and people to adhere to. When Beresford returned to Portugal having been unsuccessful at persuading the king to return, he was prevented from entering the country. In December 1820 indirect elections were held to decide who should be members of the Cortes, which then convened for the first time in January 1821.A Cortes hadn’t been summoned for almost 125 years, so this was a pivotal moment in Portuguese history.

In 1821 the Cortes summoned the king back to Portugal, and, fearing the loss of his throne he returned after an absence of almost 14 years. Previously, only the king was able to summon/assemble the Cortes. The king had to swear an oath agreeing to accept the new constitution. At this time, the old absolutist style of governing Portugal (in which king has absolute power, was replaced by constitutionalism, which constrained his powers somewhat. One of the key features of the constitution was that sovereignty rested with the people, rather than with the king. Unlike before, the king no longer had the power to dissolve the Cortes, and no representation within it.

The extent to which people supported the movement can be attributed to many reasons. The exiled king, with apparently no plans to return would have been a factor, as would the state of the economy. Republican sentiments spread due to general discontent. One chamber of the Cortes was to be directly elected by all free, literate males which is a suprisingly democratic concept for this time.

The constitution of 1822 listed rights and duties of individual people, as well as outlined the powers of governing bodies i.e the legislation, executive and judiciary. The constitution limited the power of the king greatly, it prevented him from summarily dismissing laws that he did not agree with. He instead had the power of ‘suspensive veto’ which means if he disagreed with a law, he could return to the Cortes and outline the reasons he disagreed with it. This constitution did not last very long, as the clergy, nobles and king was unsatisfied with it. The lack of success of this constitution can be attributed to the fact that it gained as much opposition towards it, as it did support. After the king’s brother Miguel was made a Generalissimo of the army, he would later lead a revolt to restore absolutism (he had previously refused to swear to uphold the constitution). This proved to be unsuccessful and led to his exile in France. The constitution was eventually suspended, and João ruled in the old absolutist style (although perhaps more moderately than before) until he died in 1826.

In conclusion the period of time following the Napoleonic Wars was one of great turmoil. The war left Portugal’s land damaged, the economy unstable and the people restless. If the treaty allowing trade with Brazil had not been signed, then it is feasible that Portugal could have recovered much more quickly. As it was, however, the loss of income at a time when Portugal needed money most desperately, was a serious blow. If the wars had not occurred, and the royal family had not fled to Brazil, then the style of absolutist governing would have lasted much longer, though the shift to constitutionalism may have eventually occurred anyway.