The Monarchy of the North (1919) in the iconographic discourse of the Ilustração Portuguesa

Abstract

On January 19, 1919, rebellious troops proclaimed, in Oporto, the reinstitution of the Monarchy, soon followed by other garrisons in the north of Portugal. Monarchist rule in almost all of the north of the country, particularly in Oporto, had no equivalent in the south. The ensuing confrontation between monarchist insurgents and republican forces led to the end of the Northern Monarchy on February 13. This research aimed to unveil, through a quantiqualitative study, the structure of the iconographic discourse that Ilustração Portuguesa, the only large-circulation contemporary illustrated magazine, built about this episode. It was accepted the starting hypothesis, that the discourse of the Ilustração Portuguesa was aligned with the republican governmental power, which controlled the capital city, Lisbon, where the magazine had its headquarters. The magazine's iconographic narrative glorifies the Republic and its "heroes," transforming the publication into an instrument of “infopropaganda” at the service of the established power in Lisbon.