Restoration of Independence Date: December 1
Restoration of Independence is a public holiday in Portugal.
The Restoration of Independence is the name given to the revolt started in December 1, 1640 against the the Spanish Filipine dynasty in Portugal. This revolt gave way to the beginning of the Portuguese Dynasty of the House of Braganca and the restoration of the Independence of Portugal from the Spanish kings. This event is celebrated every year in Portugal on December 1.
History of Restoration of Independence
Portugal didn’t have its own king from 1581 to 1640. When the previous king, D. Sebastiao, died, D. Henrique took the throne, but he had no possibilities of having any descendents. He called all the legitimate hopefuls to the throne to decide to whom he should leave the crown, but D. Henrique died before making a decision. From all the hopefuls, D. Filipe of Spain tried to take the throne by force as he was at that time the most powerful monarch of all Europe. The people of Portugal didn’t like this and stayed by the side of D. Antonio while the nobles of Portugal supported D. Catarina of the House of Braganca.
Portugal was a country under severe economic difficulties and had recently been defeated in the north of Africa, a defeat that had taken away the patriotic spirit out of its people. Filipe II of Spain then brought his armies into Portugal and later was recognized as King of Portugal and Spain. During this period, the kings of Spain had to struggle to defend the Portuguese territories in the north of Africa and they did so by increasing the taxes over the Portuguese territory, creating a high level of discontent among the people.
In 1637, there were popular revolts in Evora, a city in the south of Portugal. Seeing that the people were against the Spanish king and wanted Portugal to be independent again, several nobles in Portugal started a revolution to restore the independence. Spain was at war with several nations in Europe (in what was called the Thirty Years’ War) and at arms with revolts in Cataluna in the northern part of Spain. Portugal fought against the Spaniards for 28 years, and finally, in 1668, Spain recognized the independence of Portugal once again.
Restoration of Independence Traditions, Customs and Activities
On this day there is no work in Portugal. However, the significance of the day is losing importance among the Portuguese. There are several cultural events promoted by the local governments, and the majority of Portuguese remember on this day honor their historical heritage from monarchic times when Portugal used to be one of the most important countries in the world. It’s also a day used by monarchic sectors in Portugal to remember the monarchic history of the country and the importance that they had in the building of the Portuguese nation.
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