| Abstract: | The period of Portuguese authoritarian government, followingupon the heels of economic and social decline which the countrylived through after the installation of the republic in 1910,was bolstered politically, culturally, and economically by theexperience of the country during these 64 years. Economic andcultural changes after 1945, including development of the media,worker migrations, tourism, and the decolonialization movements,gave rise to attitudes and behavior of increasingly wide groupswho rejected authoritarianism and the monolithic political system.Various factors paved the way for the downfall of this regime,among them Oliveira Salazar's physical incapacity and his replacementby the more liberal but less prestigious Marcelo Caetano, theunease in public opinion caused by the sending of troops tothe colonies in Africa, and international and political andcultural pressures. Public opinion was in favor of the new politicalsystem, and, gradually consolidated its hold with the supportof the Western international community, and, in particular,the countries of the EEC. The political parties contributedto the development of the political attitudes of the Portuguesepopulation and ensured that the regime maintained itself withina liberal democratic framework. |
