João do Canto e Castro

João do Canto e Castro da Silva Antunes (19 May 1862; Lisbon – 14 March 1934; Lisbon), commonly known simply as João do Canto e Castro was a Portuguese Navy officer and the fifth President of Portugal, during the First Portuguese Republic. He also briefly served as 67th Prime Minister of Portugal.[1]

His Excellency João do Canto e Castro
Portrait by Henrique Medina, 1933.
President of Portugal
In office December 16, 1918 – October 5, 1919
Prime Minister	João Tamagnini Barbosa José Relvas Domingos Pereira Alfredo de Sá Cardoso
Preceded by	Sidónio Pais
Succeeded by	António José de Almeida
Prime Minister of Portugal
In office December 15, 1918 – December 23, 1918
Preceded by	Sidónio Pais
Succeeded by	João Tamagnini Barbosa
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office December 4, 1918 – December 15, 1918
President	Sidónio Pais
Preceded by	António Egas Moniz
Succeeded by	António Egas Moniz
Minister of the Navy
In office September 7, 1918 – December 15, 1918
President	Sidónio Pais
Preceded by	Alfredo Magalhães
Succeeded by	Alfredo Magalhães
Personal details
Born	João do Canto e Castro da Silva Antunes May 19, 1862 Lisbon, Portugal
Died	March 14, 1934 (aged 71) Lisbon, Portugal
Political party	National Republican Party ("Sidonist Party")
Spouse(s)	Mariana de Aboim
Children	2 daughters and 1 son
Occupation	Naval officer
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	Kingdom of Portugal (to 1910) First Portuguese Republic
Branch/service	Portuguese Navy
Rank	Admiral

Early life

He was the son of General José Ricardo da Costa da Silva Antunes (Lisbon, 7 February 1831 – 7 August 1906) and wife (m. 1860) Maria da Conceição do Canto e Castro Mascarenhas Valdez (24 October 1825 – Lisbon, 20 April 1892).

In 1891 he married Mariana de Santo António Moreira Freire Correia Manoel Torres de Aboim (Lisbon, 13 June 1865 – 18 January 1946), sister of the 1st Viscount da Idanha and niece of the 1st Viscount de Vila Boim, and had issue.

Career

He occupied the post of Navy Minister, to which he had been appointed by Sidónio Pais, the "President-King" on September 9, 1918, and succeeded Pais after his murder on December 14, 1918.

During his rule there were two attempts to carry out a revolution. The first one, in Santarém, in December 1918, was led by the republicans Francisco da Cunha Leal and Álvaro Xavier de Castro. The second one was monarchist and was perpetrated in January 1919 and organized by Paiva Couceiro, who for some time managed to control the northern part of the country in what was called the Monarchy of the North. Although Canto e Castro was a monarchist, as President of the Republic he had to fight against a movement that defended his own ideals.

See also

• List of Presidents of Portugal
• Portuguese First Republic
• History of Portugal
• Timeline of Portuguese history
• Politics of Portugal

References

1. "Canto e Castro". presidencia.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 3 November 2020.