João Carlos Gregório Domingos Vicente Francisco de Saldanha Oliveira e Daun, 1st Duke of Saldanha, (17 November 1790 – 20 November 1876; ) was a Portuguese

marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

and statesman.

Early life and schooling

Saldanha was born on 17 November 1790, in Azinhaga. He was a grandson of

Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal and 1st Count of Oeiras (13 May 1699 – 8 May 1782), known as the Marquis of Pombal (''Marquês de Pombal''; ), was a Portuguese statesman and diplomat who effectively ruled the Port ...

, the Secretary of the State of the Kingdom of Portugal and the Algarves to King

Joseph I of Portugal Dom Joseph I ( pt, José Francisco António Inácio Norberto Agostinho, ; 6 June 1714 – 24 February 1777), known as the Reformer (Portuguese: ''o Reformador''), was King of Portugal from 31 July 1750 until his death in 1777. Among other activ ...

. Saldanha studied at

Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2011 census was 143,397, in an area of . The fourth-largest urban area in Portugal after Lisbon, Porto Metropolitan Area, Porto, and Bra ...

, served against the French, and was made a prisoner in 1810. On his release he went to Brazil, where he was employed in the military and diplomatic services. He returned to Portugal after the declaration of the independence of Brazil.

Liberal Wars

The

Duke of Saldanha Duke of Saldanha (in Portuguese ''Duque de Saldanha'') is a Portuguese title granted by royal decree of Queen Maria II of Portugal, dated from November 4, 1846, to João Carlos Saldanha de Oliveira Daun, 1st Duke of Saldanha, João Carlos Saldanha ...

, as he is commonly known, was one of the most dominating personalities of war and politics in Portugal, from the revolution of 1820 to his death in 1876. During that period he led no less than seven coups d'état. He played an important part in the struggle between brothers

Pedro IV of Portugal Dom Pedro I (English: Peter I; 12 October 1798 – 24 September 1834), nicknamed "the Liberator", was the founder and first ruler of the Empire of Brazil. As King Dom Pedro IV, he reigned briefly over Portugal, where he also became ...

(I of Brazil) and Miguel of Portugal during the

Liberal Wars 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 18 ...

. Saldanha became Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1825 and was governor of

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

in 1826–27. He joined Dom Pedro against the usurper Dom Miguel. He fought in the

Belfastada Belfastada is the name given to the military uprising against the Miguelist regime in Portugal as part of the Liberal Wars, that was triggered off in June and July 1828 in Porto, with the landing of a group of liberal exiles coming in from England a ...

, the

Siege of Porto The siege of Porto is considered the period between July 1832 and August 1833 in which the troops of Dom Pedro remained besieged by the forces of Dom Miguel I of Portugal. The resistance of the city of Porto and the troops of Dom Pedro made t ...

and

Battle of Almoster A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

. In 1833, he was rewarded with the title of Marshal of Portugal and one year later, he concluded the

Concession of Evoramonte The Concession of Evoramonte, also known as the Convention of Evoramonte,Smith, p. 398 was a document signed on 26 May 1834, in Evoramonte, in Alentejo, between the Constitutionalists and the Miguelites, that ended the period of civil war (1828� ...

with the defeated usurper Dom Miguel.
In 1835 he was made Minister of War and President of the Council but resigned the same year. After the revolution of 1836, which he had instigated he went into exile until recalled in 1846.

Later life

After his return from exile in 1846 Saldanha was made

, and formed a Ministry which fell in 1849. In 1851 he organized a new revolt and became chief Minister as the leader of a coalition party formed of Septembrists and dissatisfied Chartists. He remained in power until the accession of Pedro V. in 1856. and was subsequently Minister to Rome (1862–64 and 1866–69). He became

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

once more for a few months in 1870 (May–August), and was sent in 1871 to London as Ambassador, where he died.

Assessment

Terence Hughes wrote a character sketch of Saldanha in 1846:

Works

Saldanha was an accomplished linguist (he spoke English, French, and German with perfect fluency) and a general scholar. He wrote ''On the Connexion between true Sciences and Revealed Religion'' which was published in Berlin.

Early life and schooling

Liberal Wars

Later life

Assessment

Works

Family

See also

Notes

References

Further reading