The Battle of Cova da Piedade, or Battle of Cacilhas or Battle of Almada, fought on 23 July 1833, was a battle of the

Portuguese Civil War The Liberal Wars (), also known as the Portuguese Civil War (), the War of the Two Brothers () or Miguelite War (), was a war between liberal constitutionalists and conservative absolutists in Portugal over royal succession that lasted from 1 ...

between the Liberal forces of Dom Pedro, ex-Emperor of Brazil and Regent for his daughter Maria da Glória, and the Absolutist army of his brother the King Dom Miguel. The Liberal forces were victorious and occupied Lisbon the next day.

The battle

In June 1833, the Liberal forces had been bottled up and besieged in Porto for a year, while the Absolutists remained in control of the rest of Portugal. So it was decided to send a force commanded by the

Duke of Terceira The title duke of Terceira, ''de juro e herdade'' (meaning "forever granted") was created by decree of King Pedro I of Brazil, Pedro IV of Portugal, on 8 November 1832. António José de Souza Manoel de Menezes Severim de Noronha, 7th Count of Vila ...

over the sea to the

Algarve The Algarve (, , ; from ) is the southernmost NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities ( ''concelhos'' or ''municípios'' in Portuguese). The region has it ...

. This force was escorted by a naval squadron commanded by Charles Napier. The Duke of Terceira landed near Faro and marched north through the

Alentejo Alentejo ( , ) is a geographical, historical, and cultural region of south–central and southern Portugal. In Portuguese, its name means "beyond () the Tagus river" (''Tejo''). Alentejo includes the regions of Alto Alentejo and Baixo Alent ...

The Absolutists hastily gathered some forces to stop his advance towards the capital. Both armies clashed at

Cova da Piedade Cova da Piedade is a former civil parish in the municipality of Almada, Lisbon metropolitan area, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Almada, Cova da Piedade, Pragal e Cacilhas. The population in 2011 was 19,904, in an area of ...

, near

Cacilhas Cacilhas is a former civil parish in the municipality of Almada, Lisbon metropolitan area, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Almada, Cova da Piedade, Pragal e Cacilhas. The population in 2011 was 6,017, in an area of 1.09&nb ...

. The Liberal army was able to push back the Absolutists, which entrenched themselves in the Castle of Almada.
The next day, the castle was taken by the Liberals and the leader of the Absolutists, General Teles Jordão, was killed. The way to Lisbon now lay open for the Liberal army and they occupied the city without any further opposition.

Sources

Almada virtual museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cova da Piedade,Battle of

1833 in Portugal Battles of the Liberal Wars July 1833 events