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{{Short description|Civil war in the Kingdom of Portugal (1828–1834)}}
{{Other uses|Portuguese civil war (disambiguation){{!}}Portuguese civil war}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2014}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Portuguese Civil War
| partof            = 
| campaign          = 
| image             = Battle of Ferreira Bridge.jpg
| image_size        = 300px
| caption           = [[Battle of Ponte Ferreira|Battle of Ferreira Bridge]], 23 July 1832
| date              = 18 May 1828 – 16 May 1834<br/>({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|month1=05|day1=18|year1=1828|month2=05|day2=16|year2=1834}})
| place             = [[Kingdom of Portugal|Portugal]]
| result            = Liberal victory 
*[[Concession of Evoramonte]]
| combatant1        = {{flagdeco|Portugal|1830}} [[Pedro I of Brazil|Liberals]]<hr>
'''Supported by:'''
{{plainlist |
*{{flagdeco|Spain|1785}} [[History of Spain (1810–1873)|Spain]] (1833–1834)
*{{flagdeco|UKGBI}} [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]]
*{{flagdeco|July Monarchy}} [[July Monarchy|France]] (1832–1834)
*{{flagdeco|Belgium}} [[Belgian Legion (Liberal Wars)|Belgian volunteers]] (1832–1834)<ref>{{cite web|title=Belgian Corps 1832–35 in Portugal's Liberal Wars|date=11 June 2006|url=http://balagan.info/belgian-corps-1832-35-in-portugals-liberal-wars|access-date=17 February 2013}}</ref>
}}
| combatant2        = {{flagdeco|Portugal|1707}} [[Miguelites]]<hr>
'''Supported by:'''
{{plainlist |
*{{flagdeco|Spain|1785}} [[History of Spain (1810–1873)|Spain]] (1832–1833)
*{{flagdeco|Russian Empire}} [[Russian Empire|Russian Empire]]
*{{flagicon|Papal States|23px}} [[Papal States|Catholic Church]]
}}
| commander1        = {{plainlist |
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1830}} [[Pedro I of Brazil|Pedro IV]]
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1830}} [[Maria II of Portugal|Maria II]]
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1830}} [[António José Severim de Noronha, 1st Duke of Terceira|Duke of Terceira]]
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1830}} [[João Carlos Saldanha de Oliveira Daun, 1st Duke of Saldanha|Marshal Saldanha]]
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1830}} [[Charles Napier (Royal Navy officer)|Charles Napier]]
}}
| commander2        = {{plainlist |
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1707}} [[Miguel of Portugal|Miguel I]]
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1707}} [[Luís Vaz Pereira Pinto Guedes|Luís Guedes]]
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1707}} [[Manuel Gregório de Sousa Pereira de Sampaio|Manuel de Sousa]]
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1707}} [[Álvaro Xavier da Fonseca Coutinho e Póvoas|Álvaro Póvoas]]
*{{flagdeco|Portugal|1707}} [[Remexido]]{{Executed}}
}}
| strength1         = 
| strength2         = 
| casualties1       = 
| casualties2       = 
| campaignbox       = {{Campaignbox Liberal Wars}}
}}

The '''Liberal Wars''' ({{Langx|pt|Guerras Liberais}}), also known as the '''Portuguese Civil War''' ({{lang|pt|Guerra Civil Portuguesa}}) and the '''War of the Two Brothers''' ({{lang|pt|Guerra dos Dois Irmãos}}) was a [[civil war]] in Portugal that lasted from May 1828 to May 1834, fought between [[liberalism|liberal]] [[Progressivism|progressive]] [[Constitutional monarchy|constitutionalists]] (led by former King [[Pedro IV of Portugal|Pedro IV]]) and [[conservative]] [[Absolutism (European history)|traditionalists]] (led by King [[Miguel I]]) over the country's [[system of government]] and royal succession. Embroiled parties included the [[Kingdom of Portugal]], Portuguese rebels, the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]], [[July Monarchy|France]], the [[Catholic Church]], [[Spain]] and [[Russian Empire|Russia]].

==Roots of the conflict==
[[File:Liberal Wars.jpg|thumb|left|200px|A contemporaneous cartoon, showing the conflict between the ''Two Brothers'', as children, supported and instigated, respectively, by the French King [[Louis Philippe I]], representing the liberal side, and Czar [[Nicholas I of Russia]], representing the anti-liberalist [[Holy Alliance]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Civil war - With fire and Sword |url=https://erario.tcontas.pt/pt/apresenta/expo_vr/modulo02-2.html |publisher=[[Court of Auditors (Portugal)|Portuguese Court of Audits]] |access-date=17 March 2021}}</ref>]]

The death of King [[John VI of Portugal|John VI]] in 1826 created a dispute over royal succession. While Dom [[Pedro I of Brazil|Pedro]], the [[Emperor of Brazil]], was the king's oldest son, his younger brother [[Miguel of Portugal|Miguel]] contended that Pedro had forfeited his claim to the throne by declaring [[Independence of Brazil|Brazilian independence]] and by declaring war on the Kingdom of Portugal, therefore violating the succession rules mentioned in the Fundamental Laws of the Kingdom. Pedro briefly entitled himself King Pedro IV of Portugal. Neither the Portuguese nor the Brazilians wanted a unified monarchy; consequently, in 1826 Pedro revised the [[Portuguese Constitution of 1822|first constitution of Portugal]] granted in 1822 and  abdicated the  throne in favor of his daughter, [[Maria II of Portugal|Maria]], a child of 7, while establishing his sister [[Isabella Maria of Portugal|Isabel Maria]] as regent.

==A new constitution==
In the Portuguese [[Constitutional Charter of 1826|Constitutional Charter]], Pedro attempted to reconcile traditionalists and liberals by allowing both factions a role in the government. Unlike the Constitution of 1822, this new document established four branches of government. The [[Legislature]] was divided into two chambers. The upper chamber, the [[Chamber of Peers (Portugal)|Chamber of Peers]], was composed of life and hereditary peers and clergy appointed by the king. The lower chamber, the [[Chamber of Deputies]], was composed of 111 deputies elected to four-year terms by the indirect vote of local assemblies, which in turn were elected by a [[limited suffrage]] of male tax-paying property owners. Judicial power was exercised by the courts; executive power by the ministers of the government; and moderative power by the king, who held an absolute veto over all legislation.

==Discontent==
[[File:Batalha da Praia da Vitória.jpg|thumb|left|300px|[[Battle of Praia Bay]], 11 August 1829]]
The traditionalist party of the landowners and the [[Roman Catholicism in Portugal|Church]], however, were not satisfied with this compromise, and they continued to regard Miguel as the legitimate successor to the throne on the grounds that according to the Portuguese succession rules (approved by the [[Portuguese Cortes|Cortes]] after the [[Portuguese Restoration War|1640 Restoration]]), Pedro had lost the right to the Portuguese crown, and therefore to choose a successor, when he took possession of a foreign crown ([[Empire of Brazil|Brazil]]). They were alarmed by the liberal reforms that had been initiated in Spain by the detested [[French Revolution|Revolutionary French]] (reforms from which the Portuguese feudal aristocracy had been spared) and took heart at the recent restoration of the autocratic [[Ferdinand VII]] in Spain (1823) who was eradicating all the Napoleonic innovations. In February 1828, Miguel returned to Portugal, ostensibly to take the oath of allegiance to the Charter and assume the regency. He was immediately proclaimed king by his supporters, who pressed him to return to absolutism. A month after his return, Miguel dissolved the Chamber of Deputies and the Chamber of Peers and, in May, summoned the traditional Cortes of the three estates of the realm to proclaim his accession to absolute power.<ref>{{cite web |title=Guerra Civil em Portugal (1832–1834)  |url=https://www.infopedia.pt/apoio/artigos/$guerra-civil-em-portugal-(1832-1834) |website=Infopédia – Porto Editora |access-date=22 May 2022 |language=pt}}</ref> The Cortes of 1828 assented to Miguel's wish, proclaiming him king as [[Miguel I of Portugal]] and nullifying the Constitutional Charter.

==Rebellion==
[[File:Landing of liberal forces in Oporto.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Landing of the liberal forces in Pampelido, north of [[Porto]], 8 July 1832]]
[[File:Morel-Fatio - Batalha Naval do Cabo de São Vicente - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|left|300px|[[Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1833)|Battle of Cape St. Vincent]], 5 July 1833]]
This alleged usurpation did not go unchallenged by the Liberals. On May 18, the garrison in [[Porto]], the center of Portuguese progressives, declared its loyalty to Pedro IV and his daughter Maria II, and the Constitutional Charter. The rebellion against the absolutists spread to other cities. Miguel suppressed these rebellions, and many thousands of Liberals were either arrested or fled to Spain and Britain. There followed five years of repression.

Meanwhile, in Brazil, relations between Pedro and Brazil's agricultural magnates had become strained. In April 1831, Pedro abdicated in Brazil in favor of his son, [[Peter II of Brazil|Pedro II]], and sailed for [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|Britain]]. He organized a military expedition there and then went to [[Terceira island]] in the [[Azores]], which was in the hands of the Liberals, to set up a government in exile. The government of Miguel blockaded the island, but the blockading squadron was attacked by a French squadron during the run-up to the [[Battle of the Tagus (1831)|Battle of the Tagus]], where several [[Miguelist]] ships were captured. (Half of the liberal army consisted of French, British, Spanish and Belgian soldiers).[[File:Monument at Pampelido, Portugal..jpg|250px|thumb|right|Monument north of Porto, to [[Landing at Mindelo|the landing  of the liberal forces]] under the command of the British admiral [[George Sartorius]] on 8 July 1832.]] In July 1832, with the backing of Liberals in Spain and Britain, an expedition led by Pedro landed near Porto, in the [[Landing at Mindelo]], which the Miguelites abandoned and where, after military activities including the [[Battle of Ponte Ferreira]], Pedro and his associates were [[Siege of Porto|besieged]] by Miguelite forces for nearly a year. To protect British interests, a naval squadron under Commander [[William Nugent Glascock]] in [[HMS Orestes (1824)|HMS ''Orestes'']] was stationed in the [[Douro]], where it came under fire from both sides.

In June 1833, the Liberals, still encircled at Porto, sent to the [[Algarve]] a force commanded by the [[António José Severim de Noronha, 1st Duke of Terceira|Duke of Terceira]] supported by a naval squadron commanded by [[Charles Napier (naval officer)|Charles Napier]], using the alias 'Carlos de Ponza'. The Duke of Terceira landed at [[Faro, Portugal|Faro]] and marched north through the [[Alentejo]] to capture Lisbon on July 24. Meanwhile, Napier's squadron encountered the absolutists' fleet near [[Cape Saint Vincent]] (''Cabo São Vicente'') and decisively defeated it at the fourth [[Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1833)|Battle of Cape St. Vincent]]. The Liberals were able to occupy Lisbon, where Pedro moved from Porto and repulsed a Miguelite siege. A stalemate of nine months ensued. Following the death of Ferdinand VII Spain changed sides and started to support the liberals. Towards the end of 1833, Maria da Glória was proclaimed queen, and Pedro was made regent. His first act was to confiscate the property of all who had served under King Miguel. He also suppressed all religious houses and confiscated their property, an act that suspended friendly relations with Rome for nearly eight years, until mid-1841. The absolutists controlled the rural areas, where they were supported by the aristocracy, and by a peasantry that was galvanized by the Church.[[Image:Remexido.jpg|thumb|right|Engraving of [[Remexido]], from ca. 1836, the nickname of José Joaquim de Sousa Reis (Estômbar, 19 October 1796 – Faro, 2 August 1838), a civil servant and wealthy land tenant who became a notorious guerrilla leader of the Algarve in Portugal, defending the rights of King Miguel to the Portuguese throne and the antiliberal absolute monarchy in the Kingdom of Portugal]] The Liberals occupied Portugal's major cities, Lisbon and Porto, where they commanded a sizable following among the middle classes. Operations against the Miguelites began again in earnest in early 1834, a year marked by the end of Spanish support which had changed sides to the liberals in 1833. Meanwhile, the Liberal army had suffered a sound defeat at [[Alcácer do Sal]], which proved that, despite the Duke of Terceira's recent march from Faro to Lisbon, the south was still loyal to the Miguelites. In the southernmost region of [[Continental Portugal]], the region of [[Algarve]], a man known as [[Remexido]], hidden in the mountainous terrain around [[São Marcos da Serra]], became a legend as a guerrilla loyal to the legitimist, antiliberal Miguelites until well after the end of the Liberal Wars.

==Peace==
{{Main|Concession of Evoramonte}}{{See also|1834 Quadruple Alliance}}
The [[Battle of Asseiceira]], fought on May 16, 1834, was the last and decisive engagement of the Portuguese Civil War. The Miguelist army was still formidable (about 18,000 men), but on May 26, 1834, at [[Evoramonte]], to end the bloodbath in the country after six years of civil war<ref>{{cite web |author1=Paulo Sousa Pinto |title=Os Dias da História – A conveção de Évoramonte |url=https://ensina.rtp.pt/artigo/a-convencao-de-evoramonte |website=RTP Ensina |publisher=Antena 2 |access-date=22 May 2022 |language=pt-PT |format=Audio with transcript |date=23 May 2017}}</ref> a peace was declared under a concession by which [[Miguel I of Portugal|Miguel]] formally renounced all claims to the [[throne of Portugal]], was guaranteed an annual pension, and was definitively exiled. [[Pedro IV of Portugal|Pedro]] restored the Constitutional Charter, but he died September 24, 1834. In truth this was the ''official'' peace as Miguellist groups were still in action until the 1840s.

Maria da Glória resumed her interrupted reign as [[Maria II of Portugal]].

==See also==
*[[Liberalism in Portugal]]
*[[Dissolution of the monasteries in Portugal]]
*[[Joaquim António de Aguiar]]
*[[Remexido]]
*[[First Carlist War]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Portuguese Civil War}}

*{{Country study}}

{{Portugal topics}}
{{Portuguese Monarchy Topics}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Liberal Wars| ]]
[[Category:Wars involving France]]
[[Category:Wars involving Portugal]]
[[Category:Wars involving Spain]]
[[Category:Wars involving the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Wars of succession involving the states and peoples of Europe]]
[[Category:19th century in Portugal]]
[[Category:Civil wars involving the states and peoples of Europe]]
[[Category:Liberalism in Portugal]]