1873 Royal Revolt

The Royal Revolt of 1873 was an uprising led by King Pedro V of Portugal following the abolition of the monarchy by the liberal parliament. On July 1st, 1873, the parliament passed the Republican Act, officially proclaiming the Portuguese Republic. Just a week later, Pedro V and his supporters rose up against the new government, founding a state called the Monarchy of the North, or Regio de Portugal. The capital lay in Porto, and promptly, Pedro passed an act July 9th establishing the Royal Liberation Portuguese Army. The revolt was crushed in less than a year, with Pedro fleeing to Spain to appeal for assistance in retaking his country.

Background
The 1870s for Portugal can simply be described as politically turbulent. Pedro V in the years preceding the monarch's abolition, was forced to establish a parliament due to a popular revolt in the capital. The stress put on the nation's economy due to the 2nd Anglo-Spanish war led to a massive decline in living standards, along with a breakdown of international trade. Liberalism spread to the country from Argentina and California, which furthered the turmoil. From 1866 to 1873, 9 different parties ruled in parliament. In December of 1872, the local administration of Brazil was overthrown in an event called the Natal Revolução, which established an independent federal Brazilian Republic with José Paranhos elected president of the new state. The frenzy caused by the loss of Brazil in Portugal led to blame being placed on the king, leading parliament to abolish the throne on July 1st of 1872.

Pedro V fled Lisbon and established a new kingdom in Porto with his supporters on July 8th, called the Monarchy of the North, and officially the Kingdom of Portugal. The next day he enacted the Proclamation of the Establishment of the Royal Armed Forces, establishing the Royal Armed Forces of the kingdom of 10,000 loyal men, mostly nobles and the aristocracy fighting for their land and titles. This state officially declared war on the Republic of Portugal on July 13th, starting the 1873 Royal Revolt.

The Revolution
The revolution was short, merely lasting a year. The Portuguese Republicans received support from both the French and British, although the Spanish supported the kingdom, but did little to help throughout the war. The Republican army of Portugal was quick to begin operations against the Monarchy of the North, beginning the eastern campaign on August 3rd of 1873. Porto was captured soon after on December 19th in the Battle of Porto, which pitted 17,000 Monarchists against the army of 33,000 Republicans. The Royalists were quickly defeated, and Pedro V fled to Spain to lobby them for support.