Second rise and fall of Costa Cabral (1847-1851)

Abstract

This article retraces the principal episodes that led to the definitive ousting of Costa Cabral and the coup d'état of Saldanha, which in turn gave rise to the Regeneration movement. The article cites the reasons for Costa Cabral's return to power in 1849 and the reasons why this return, which was inopportune in both the European and domestic contexts, was doomed to failure. Particular importance is given to the military situation, without which Saldanha's triumph would not have been possible, and the article also explains what was new in the Regeneration movement's coup d'état that distinguishes it from the military's previous interventions in political life. Finally, the article identifies the fundamental steps in the reorganisation of the political forces that made the political compromise of the Regeneration possible.