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Arriaga, Manuel José de

Manuel José de Arriaga Brum da Silveira e Peyrelongue

b. 8 Jul 1840, Horta, Faial Island, Azores
d. 5 Mar 1917, Lisbon

Title: Presidente da República (President of the Republic)
Term: 24 Aug 1911 - 29 May 1915
Chronology: 24 Aug 1911, elected, session of the Assembleia Nacional Constituinte (National Constituent Assembly), Palácio da Assembleia Nacional (São Bento), Lisbon [1]
  24 Aug 1911, made an affirmation required by law at the ceremony of installation as President of the Republic, session of the National Constituent Assembly, Palácio da Assembleia Nacional (São Bento), Lisbon [2]
  29 May 1915, letter of resignation (dated 26 May 1915) submitted and accepted by the Congresso da República (Congress of the Republic) [3]
Biography:

A descendant of Azorean noble family; was educated as lawyer in the University of Coimbra (1860-1865); taught history and practiced law at Lisbon (from 1866); made a reputation as a lawyer and advocate, being counsel for the defense in many important trials, including that of António José de Almeida (1890); affiliated himself with the Portuguese Republican Party (Partido Republicano Português, PRP); member of the PRP Board; published anti-monarchial article against King Carlos I; elected deputy of the Cortes, representing the district of Madeira (1882-1892); appointed prosecutor general of the Republic (1910-1911); elected first Constitutional President of the Republic (24 Aug 1911 - 29 May 1915); pursued non-interventionist policies; was unable to prevent disintegration of the republican movement; did not favor Portugal's participation in the First World War on the side of the Allies; under the pressure of the military, appointed pro-German General Joaquim Pereira Pimenta de Castro as President of the Ministry (28 Jan 1915 - 14 May 1915), who assumed dictatorial powers; following the coup (14 May 1915), which succeeded in toppling the regime of General Pimenta de Castro, tendered a formal petition renouncing the presidency to the Government (27 May 1915), which passed it to the Senado and to the Câmara dos Deputados (Chamber of Deputies); a joint session of the Congress of the Republic (29 May 1915) accepted the resignation. Biography source: [4] [5]

Elections:

Candidate Vote (24 Aug 1911)
Manuel José de Arriaga Brum da Silveira 121
Bernardino Luís Machado Guimarães 86
Duarte Leite Pereira da Silva 4
Sebastião de Magalhães Lima 1
Augusto Manuel Alves da Veiga 1
blank
4
total votes cast 217
Election results: [1]

[1] Diario da Assembleia Nacional Constituinte. Sessão N.° 59 de 24 de Agosto de 1911. P. 4.
[2] Diario da Assembleia Nacional Constituinte. Sessão N.° 59 de 24 de Agosto de 1911. P. 5.
[3] Diário das Sessões do Congresso. Sessão de 29 de Maio de 1915. P. 6.
[4] "Os presidentes e os governos da república no século XX", by Alberto Laplaine Guimarães... [et al.] (Lisboa: Caixa Geral de Depósitos, Imprensa Nacional - Casa da Moeda, 2000)
[5] "Os Presidentes da República Portuguesa", coord. by António Costa Pinto and Maria Inácia Rezola (Lisboa: Temas & Debates, 2001)