Res Publica: Citizenship and Political Representation in Portugal, 1820-1926

The term res publica (literally “thing of the people”) was coined by the Romans to translate the Greek word politeia, which, as we know, referred to a political community organised in accordance with certain principles, amongst which the notion of the “good life” (as against exclusively private interests) was paramount. This ideal also came to be known as political virtue. To achieve it, it was necessary to combine the best of each “constitutional” type and avoid their worst aspects (tyranny, oligarchy and ochlocracy). Hence, the term acquired from the Greeks a sense of being a “mixed” and “balanced” system. Anyone that was entitled to citizenship could participate in the governance of the “public thing”. This implied the institutionalization of open debate and confrontation between interested parties as a way of achieving the consensus necessary to ensure that man the political animal, who fought with words and reason, prevailed over his “natural” counterpart. These premises lie at the heart of the project which is now being presented under the title of Res Publica: Citizenship and Political Representation in Portugal, 1820-1926. The fact that it is integrated into the centenary commemorations of the establishment of the Republic in Portugal is significant, as it was the idea of revolution – with its promise of rupture and change – that inspired it. However, it has also sought to explore events that could be considered the precursor of democratization in the history of Portugal, namely the vintista, setembrista and patuleia revolutions. It is true that the republican regime was opposed to the monarchic. However, although the thesis that monarchy would inevitably lead to tyranny had held sway for centuries, it had also been long believed that the monarchic system could be as “politically virtuous” as a republic (in the strict sense of the word) provided that power was not concentrated in the hands of a single individual. Moreover, various historical experiments had shown that republics could also degenerate into Caesarism and different kinds of despotism. Thus, when absolutism began to be overturned in continental Europe in the name of the natural rights of man and the new social pact theories, initiating the difficult process of (written) constitutionalization, the monarchic principle began to be qualified as a “monarchy hedged by republican institutions”, a situation in which not even the king was exempt from isonomy. This context justifies the time frame chosen here, as it captures the various changes and continuities that run through it. Having rejected the imperative mandate and the reinstatement of the model of corporative representation (which did not mean that, in new contexts, this might not be revived, or that the second chamber established by the Constitutional Charter of 1826 might not be given another lease of life), a new power base was convened: national sovereignty, a precept that would be shared by the monarchic constitutions of 1822 and 1838, and by the republican one of 1911. This followed the French example (manifested in the monarchic constitution of 1791 and in the Spanish constitution of 1812), as not even republicans entertained a tradition of republicanism based upon popular sovereignty. This enables us to better understand the rejection of direct democracy and universal suffrage, and also the long incapacitation (concerning voting and standing for office) of the vast body of “passive” citizens, justified by “enlightened”, property- and gender-based criteria. Although the republicans had promised in the propaganda phase to alter this situation, they ultimately failed to do so. Indeed, throughout the whole period under analysis, the realisation of the potential of national sovereignty was mediated above all by the individual citizen through his choice of representatives. However, this representation was indirect and took place at national level, in the hope that action would be motivated not by particular local interests but by the common good, as dictated by reason. This was considered the only way for the law to be virtuous, a requirement that was also manifested in the separation and balance of powers. As sovereignty was postulated as single and indivisible, so would be the nation that gave it soul and the State that embodied it. Although these characteristics were common to foreign paradigms of reference, in Portugal, the constitutionalization process also sought to nationalise the idea of Empire. Indeed, this had been the overriding purpose of the 1822 Constitution, and it persisted, even after the loss of Brazil, until decolonization. Then, the dream of a single nation stretching from the Minho to Timor finally came to an end.

"Where Gen. Brock died. Queenston. Oct. 13, 1812." by Clara Mason

[from back of painting] "The old house faced the river, and the artist has sketched the trees and old fences as they might have been at the time. The remains of the old well were found, and so the path from the house is represented as it probably appeared, together with the old fashioned well cover, common at that period. The artist has suggested a sunset background, in harmony with the evening of life of the old home and the passing of the great General. The house faced the east, so the western glory of the setting sun is most appropriate." The painting was done on paper and the frame is wooden. The artist's signature is located at the lower right. "House where General Brock died, Queenston, Ont."

Sir Isaac Brock Commemorative Half-Penny Token

Half-penny token struck for general circulation in Upper Canada, about 1816. The token is one of a few issues which commemorate Sir Issac Brock. The name Brock is misspelled "Brook" on this token. The other side bears the picture of a sailing vessel and the motto "Success to the Commerce of Upper Canada".

A national monument to Laura Secord : why it should be erected, an appeal to the people of Canada

Bibliography: p. 16. Printed by Imrie, Graham and Co.

Cartographie événementielle de l'Amérique lors de son 500e anniversaire

Thèse numérisée par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Régime d'historicité et historiographie en France et au Québec, 1956-1975. Michel de Certeau, Fernand Dumont et François Furet.

L’historien n’écrit pas de nulle part. Ancré dans son présent et participant à la société, il en épouse – ou critique – les projets, les utopies et les grands récits. Nous proposons dans ce travail d’approfondir cet ancrage à travers une histoire croisée et comparée des expériences du temps de deux historiens français (Michel de Certeau, François Furet) et d’un historien-sociologue québécois (Fernand Dumont). Notre objectif est double : il s’agit d’établir, dans un premier temps, les correspondances entre leurs expériences lors de deux tournants, celui des années 1960 et celui des années 1970. Tout en prenant en compte les contextes des auteurs à l’étude, nous élargirons l’échelle d’analyse afin de cerner la contemporanéité d’expériences du temps qui ne se réduisent pas aux seuls cadres nationaux. Nous pourrons ainsi établir les coordonnées des régimes d’historicité à chaque tournant en contribuant à préciser les différentes combinaisons des modes futuristes et présentistes en jeu. Dans un deuxième temps, nous explorerons les liens entre historiographie et régime d’historicité afin de mettre en évidence les jonctions entre les considérations épistémologiques et l’horizon d’attente des historiens à l’étude. En abordant plus spécifiquement la question du rôle de l’historien dans sa société, nous jaugeons les transformations parallèles de son expérience du temps et de ses pratiques historiographiques. Le passage de l’expérience d’une Histoire en marche au tournant de 1960 à celle d’une histoire bloquée au tournant de 1970 affecte considérablement la place et le statut de l’historien. D’éminent passeur du temps à l’écoute du sens du progrès, l’historien voit son statut contesté et marginalisé, ce qui ne veut pas dire que son rôle est moins important. Qu’il débusque des alternatives passées ou court-circuite des téléologies, il est chargé de maintenir coûte que coûte ouverts les horizons du temps. Nous verrons spécifiquement le sens que prenait cette tâche à un moment où la possibilité d’une « société nouvelle », après Mai 68, pointait à l’horizon des contemporains.

El aparecimiento del saber histórico en Guayaquil: el Centro de Investigaciones Históricas (1930-1962) [Estudios]

El artículo analiza la producción historiográfica guayaquileña aparecida en el Boletín del Centro de Investigaciones Históricas. Primeramente, se realiza un acercamiento al contexto sociocultural de la ciudad-puerto entre 1930 y 1960. Seguidamente, se estudia la creación del Centro de Investigaciones Históricas y el aparecimiento del Boletín, la primera publicación especializada en su ámbito, su contenido y los temas que atrajeron la atención de sus colaboradores. Finalmente se explora la influencia de esta institución en las conmemoraciones locales.

Giosuè Carducci nella cultura primonovecentesca

La tesi indaga la ricezione di Carducci nella cultura italiana ed europea dei primi decenni del XX secolo attraverso lo studio delle commemorazioni, delle memorie, degli articoli e dei saggi dedicati al poeta maremmano, al fine di mettere in luce il complesso ruolo ricoperto dallo scrittore e le strumentalizzazioni di cui è stato vittima.

Los profesores y la transmisión de la historia argentina reciente: entre el currículum y el contexto

El pasado cercano, traumático, doloroso y abierto de los años 70-80, signados por la violencia política y el terrorismo de Estado, se encuentra en la agenda de la transmisión escolar. Como contenido de historia y ciencias sociales y de diversos actos de conmemoración, esta historia reciente interpela a las instituciones escolares y a los profesores. ¿Cómo se construyen las prácticas docentes en torno a esta historia reciente? ¿Qué lecturas y traducciones realizan los profesores de las prescripciones oficiales? ¿Qué lugar ocupa la historia reciente en la enseñanza de la historia argentina del siglo XX? ¿Cómo se materializan las conmemoraciones y clases alusivas acerca del tema? Estas preguntas han guiado nuestra indagación y nuestro diálogo con profesores de Ciudad y Provincia de Buenos Aires (que ejercen en secundaria, EGB3 o Polimodal) A partir de la voz de estos protagonistas, el trabajo pretende reconstruir la trama que participa en la transmisión de la historia reciente; un entramado cruzado, entre otros elementos, por la propia historia de la enseñanza de la historia, las tradiciones escolares y las políticas institucionales.

El aniversario de la II República en Triunfo

Durante la dictadura de Franco, el régimen implementó una política de olvido que se ocupó de borrar del espacio público las conmemoraciones republicanas, asimismo impuso el 1 de abril y el 18 de julio como aniversarios que lo legitimaban. Sin embargo, el recuerdo de los aniversarios republicanos permaneció latente como memoria subterránea en gran parte de la sociedad. Frente a la política de olvido ejercida por el régimen, Triunfo intentó transformar el 14 de abril en un lugar de memoria conmemorándolo en sus páginas.

Una dictadura para los niños : Las conmemoraciones del 24 de marzo en escuelas primarias de la provincia de Buenos Aires y la influencia de las revistas de EDIBA

Este trabajo se ocupa de las conmemoraciones realizadas en escuelas primarias públicas de Malvinas Argentinas, en el Conurbano Bonaerense, para el Día de la Memoria en un lapso que abarca de 2008 a 2013. Se indaga sobre la influencia ejercida sobre esos rituales por las publicaciones de la Editorial Bahiense dirigidas a los docentes y las representaciones que proponen sobre la última dictadura militar