Editing Pedro I of Brazil (section)

== Between Portugal and Brazil ==

=== Endless crises ===
[[File:Emperor Dom Pedro I 1830.jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=Engraved half-length portrait showing a young man with curly hair who is wearing an elaborate brocade military tunic with epaulets, a striped sash of office and medals|Pedro&nbsp;I at age 32, 1830]]
Since the days of the Constituent Assembly in 1823, and with renewed vigor in 1826 with the opening of the [[General Assembly (Brazil)|General Assembly]] (the Brazilian parliament), there had been an ideological struggle over the balance of powers wielded by the emperor and legislature in governance. On one side were those who shared Pedro&nbsp;I's views, politicians who believed that the monarch should be free to choose ministers, national policies and the direction of government. In opposition were those, then known as the Liberal Party, who believed that cabinets should have the power to set the government's course and should consist of deputies drawn from the majority party who were accountable to the parliament.<ref>See:
* {{harvnb|Barman|1988|pp=114, 131, 134, 137–139, 143–146, 150}},
* {{harvnb|Needell|2006|pp=34–35, 39}},
* {{harvnb|Macaulay|1986|pp=195, 234}}.
</ref> Strictly speaking, both the party that supported Pedro&nbsp;I's government and the Liberal Party advocated [[Liberalism]], and thus [[constitutional monarchy]].<ref>See:
* {{harvnb|Macaulay|1986|p=229}},
* {{harvnb|Needell|2006|p=42}},
* {{harvnb|Barman|1988|pp=136–138}}.
</ref>

Regardless of Pedro&nbsp;I's failures as a ruler, he respected the Constitution: he did not tamper with elections or countenance vote rigging, refuse to [[Countersign (legal)|sign]] acts ratified by the government, or impose any restrictions on freedom of speech.{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|pp=x, 193, 195, 219, 229, 221}}{{sfn|Viana|1994|p=445}} Although within his prerogative, he did not [[Dissolution of parliament|dissolve]] the Chamber of Deputies and call for new elections when it disagreed with his aims or postpone seating the legislature.{{sfn|Viana|1994|p=476}} Liberal newspapers and pamphlets seized on Pedro&nbsp;I's Portuguese birth in support of both valid accusations (e.g., that much of his energy was directed toward affairs concerning Portugal){{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=229}} and false charges (e.g., that he was involved in plots to suppress the Constitution and to reunite Brazil and Portugal).{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=244}} To the Liberals, the Emperor's Portuguese-born friends who were part of the Imperial court, including [[Francisco Gomes da Silva]] who was nicknamed "the Buffoon", were part of these conspiracies and formed a "[[Shadow government (conspiracy)|secret cabinet]]".{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=243}}{{sfn|Calmon|1950|pp=155–158}} None of these figures exhibited interest in such issues, and whatever interests they may have shared, there was no palace cabal plotting to abrogate the Constitution or to bring Brazil back under Portugal's control.{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=174}}

Another source of criticism by the Liberals involved Pedro&nbsp;I's abolitionist views.{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|pp=216–217, 246}} The Emperor had indeed conceived a gradual process for eliminating slavery. However, the constitutional power to enact legislation was in the hands of the Assembly, which was dominated by slave-owning landholders who could thus thwart any attempt at abolition.{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=215}}{{sfn|Lustosa|2006|pp=129, 131}} The Emperor opted to try persuasion by moral example, setting up his estate at Santa Cruz as a model by granting land to his freed slaves there.{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=214}}{{sfn|Lustosa|2006|p=131}} Pedro&nbsp;I also professed other advanced ideas. When he declared his intention to remain in Brazil on 9 January 1822 and the populace sought to accord him the honor of unhitching the horses and pulling his carriage themselves, the then-Prince Regent refused. His reply was a simultaneous denunciation of the [[divine right of kings]], of nobility's supposedly superior blood and of racism: "It grieves me to see my fellow humans giving a man tributes appropriate for the divinity, I know that my blood is the same color as that of the Negroes."{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=108}}{{sfn|Lustosa|2006|pp=128–129}}

=== Abdication ===
{{Main|Abdication of Pedro I of Brazil}}
[[File:Abdicacao Pedro I do Brasil.jpg|thumb|left|300px|alt=A painting showing a crowded room in which a uniformed man hands a sheaf of papers to another uniformed man while in the background a weeping woman sits in an armchair holding a young boy before whom a woman kneels|Pedro&nbsp;I delivers his abdication letter on 7 April 1831, painting by {{ill|Aurélio de Figueiredo|pt}}]]
The Emperor's efforts to appease the Liberal Party resulted in very important changes. He supported an 1827 law that established [[ministerial responsibility]].{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=195}} On 19 March 1831, he named a cabinet formed by politicians drawn from the opposition, allowing a greater role for the parliament in the government.{{sfn|Barman|1988|p=159}} Lastly, he offered positions in Europe to Francisco Gomes and another Portuguese-born friend to extinguish rumors of a "secret cabinet".{{sfn|Barman|1988|p=156}}{{sfn|Sousa 1972, Vol 3|p=44}} To his dismay, his palliative measures did not stop the continuous attacks from the Liberal side upon his government and his foreign birth. Frustrated by their intransigence, he became unwilling to deal with his deteriorating political situation.{{sfn|Barman|1988|p=156}}

Meanwhile, Portuguese exiles campaigned to convince him to give up on Brazil and instead devote his energies to the fight for his daughter's claim to Portugal's crown.{{sfn|Barman|1988|p=157}} According to Roderick J. Barman, "[in] an emergency the Emperor's abilities shone forth—he became cool in nerve, resourceful and steadfast in action. Life as a constitutional monarch, full of tedium, caution, and conciliation, ran against the essence of his character."{{sfn|Barman|1988|p=138}} On the other hand, the historian remarked, he "found in his daughter's case everything that appealed most to his character. By going to Portugal he could champion the oppressed, display his chivalry and self-denial, uphold constitutional rule, and enjoy the freedom of action he craved."{{sfn|Barman|1988|p=157}}

The idea of abdicating and returning to Portugal took root in his mind, and, beginning in early 1829, he talked about it frequently.<ref>See:
* {{harvnb|Viana|1966|p=24}},
* {{harvnb|Barman|1988|p=154}},
* {{harvnb|Sousa 1972, Vol 3|p=127}}.
</ref> An opportunity soon appeared to act upon the notion. Radicals within the Liberal Party rallied street gangs to harass the Portuguese community in Rio de Janeiro. On 11 March 1831, in what became known as the [[Night of the Bottle Fight]] ({{langx|pt|Noite das Garrafadas}}), the Portuguese retaliated and turmoil gripped the streets of the national capital.{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|pp=246–247}}{{sfn|Barman|1988|p=158}} On 5 April, Pedro&nbsp;I fired the Liberal cabinet, which had only been in power since 19 March, for its incompetence in restoring order.{{sfn|Barman|1988|p=159}}{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=250}} A large crowd, incited by the radicals, gathered in Rio de Janeiro downtown on the afternoon of 6 April and demanded the immediate restoration of the fallen cabinet.<ref>See:
* {{harvnb|Sousa 1972, Vol 3|p=108}},
* {{harvnb|Barman|1988|p=159}},
* {{harvnb|Macaulay|1986|p=251}}.
</ref> The Emperor's reply was: "I will do everything for the people and nothing [compelled] by the people."<ref>See:
* {{harvnb|Barman|1988|p=159}},
* {{harvnb|Macaulay|1986|p=251}},
* {{harvnb|Sousa 1972, Vol 3|p=110}}.
</ref> Sometime after nightfall, army troops, including his guard, deserted him and joined the protests. Only then did he realize how isolated and detached from Brazilian affairs he had become, and to everyone's surprise, he abdicated at approximately 03:00 on 7 April.<ref>See:
* {{harvnb|Barman|1988|p=159}},
* {{harvnb|Calmon|1950|pp=192–193}},
* {{harvnb|Macaulay|1986|p=252}}.
</ref> Upon delivering the abdication document to a messenger, he said: "Here you have my act of abdication, I'm returning to Europe and leaving a country that I loved very much, and still love."{{sfn|Macaulay|1986|p=252}}{{sfn|Sousa 1972, Vol 3|p=114}}