Marcello Caetano and the Portuguese New State

Prime Minister Marcello Caetano was the successor of Antonio de Oliveira Salazar. Considered the second most important figure of the Portuguese dictatorship (the Estado Novo regime, 1933-1974), Caetano has generated considerable disagreement amongst scholars with regard to his persona and politics; some consider him more authoritarian than his predecessor, others more liberal. After providing background on his childhood and entry to university, the author explains his growing activism...
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Prime Minister Marcello Caetano was the successor of Antonio de Oliveira Salazar. Considered the second most important figure of the Portuguese dictatorship (the Estado Novo regime, 1933-1974), Caetano has generated considerable disagreement amongst scholars with regard to his persona and politics; some consider him more authoritarian than his predecessor, others more liberal. After providing background on his childhood and entry to university, the author explains his growing activism in the Integralismo Lusitano and in the Catholic Church; his monarchist and nationalist ideology. Caetano's decision to support the Salazar Regime coincided with publications in the mainstream media on corporatism, colonialism, European politics and the relationship between Brazil and Portugal. His role in the office of General Secretary of Mocidade Portuguesa (MP), an organization of Portuguese youth similar to the fascist youth organizations in Italy or Germany, was at odds with his neutrality policy in the Second Wo