Vilafrancada was an uprising led by prince Miguel I of Portugal in Vila Franca de Xira on 27 May 1823.
The liberal regime established in Portugal by the Liberal Revolution of 1820 did not enjoy the confidence of more traditional elements of society, which demanded the return of absolutism. At the head of this tendency stood Queen Carlota Joaquina, wife of João VI of Portugal, who had been exiled to Queluz after refusing to swear allegiance to the Constitution of 1822 and her third son, Prince Miguel.
The year 1823 gave the absolutists the opportunity they sought to end the liberal regime in Portugal. In that year the Holy Alliance authorised a French invasion of Spain to bring down the liberal government in Madrid and restore Fernando VII of Spain. This encouraged an absolutist uprising by the count of Amarante in the north of Portugal and led the party of the Queen to open revolt, confident of French support. [1] On 23 May Prince Miguel went to Vila Franca where he was joined by the 23rd Regiment of Infantry that had been sent to Almeida to reinforce the frontier town against being taken by the rebels. [2] [3]
With the Queen and Prince Miguel prepared to force him to abdicate if necessary, João VI eventually decided to take command of the revolt himself, encouraged by the rising of the 18th Infantry Regiment which presented itself at Bemposta Palace to acclaim him as absolute ruler. He left for Vila Franca, obliged Prince Miguel to submit, and returned to Lisbon in triumph.
The Cortes disbanded and various liberal politicians went into exile as the absolutist regime was restored. [1] The King managed to prevent the ultra-reactionary faction from coming to power, but the Queen’s party continued its intrigues, and less than a year later a new absolutist rebellion broke out, the April Revolt, which ended with Prince Miguel going into exile.
On 27 May 1823, at the beginning of the uprising, Prince Miguel issued the following proclamation from Vila Franca:
To commemorate the uprising a "Medal of Loyalty to King and Country" was instituted, humorously referred to by Liberals as the “medal of dust.” The medal was intended to honour those who had joined João VI at Vila Franca or Prince Miguel At Santarém, or who had joined the forces of Manuel da Silveira Pinto da Fonseca Teixeira, Count of Amarante, later made marquês de Chaves. [5]
Dom John VI, nicknamed "the Clement", was King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves from 1816 to 1825. Although the United Kingdom of Portugal ceased to exist de facto beginning in 1822, he remained its monarch de jure between 1822 and 1825. After the recognition of the independence of Brazil under the Treaty of Rio de Janeiro of 1825, he continued as King of Portugal until his death in 1826. Under the same treaty, he also became titular Emperor of Brazil for life, while his son, Emperor Dom Pedro I, was both de facto and de jure the monarch of the newly independent country.
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DomMiguel I, nicknamed "the Absolutist", "the Traditionalist" and "the Usurper", was the King of Portugal between 1828 and 1834, the seventh child and third son of King John VI and his queen, Carlota Joaquina of Spain.
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The military history of Portugal is as long as the history of the country, from before the emergence of the independent Portuguese state.
Vila Franca de Xira is a city and municipality in the Lisbon District in Portugal. The population in 2021 was 137,659, in an area of 318.19 km2.
José Lúcio Travassos Valdez, only Baron and first Count of Bonfim, was a Portuguese soldier and statesman.
This is a historical timeline of Portugal.
Infanta Isabel Maria of Braganza ; Queluz, 4 July 1801 – Benfica, then Belém, 22 April 1876 was a Portuguese infanta (princess) and fourth daughter of King John VI of Portugal and his wife Carlota Joaquina of Spain. She acted as regent for her brother Pedro IV and for her niece Maria II in 1826-1828.
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Luís Vaz Pereira Pinto Guedes, 2nd Viscount of Montalegre, was a Portuguese soldier, who served on the absolutist side in Portugal's Liberal Wars.
Luís da Silva Mouzinho de Albuquerque was a Portuguese military officer, engineer, poet, scientist and politician, who distinguished himself during the Liberal Wars and in the conflicts that marked Portugal's history in the first half of the 19th century. He served as the Minister of the Kingdom during the liberal regency of Pedro of Braganza. This was the most prominent post inside the government at that time, which made him the Prime Minister of Portugal in all but name. He was also several times minister and deputy minister during the Constitutional Monarchical period. Among other offices, he served as Chief of the National Mint, captain-general and governor of Madeira, and inspector-general of public works. He was the grandfather of Joaquim Augusto Mouzinho de Albuquerque, a military officer and colonial administrator.
Manuel Vieira de Albuquerque Touvar was a Portuguese nobleman who served first as Captain General in the colony of Brazil, but ultimately as the 9th Captain General of the archipelago of the Azores.
Francisco de Borja Garção Stockler, 1st Baron of Vila da Praia, was a lieutenant general and the 8th Captain General of the Azores, politician, and mathematician.
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Luís do Rego Barreto, Viscount Geraz Lima, better known as General Luis Rego, was a Portuguese military officer and colonial administrator who distinguished himself in the fight against the French invasion of Portugal.
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