page_title: Belém Palace
section_title: Republic
hierarchical_section_title: Belém Palace / History / Republic
caption_attribution_description: English: The Portuguese President of the Republic, Bernardino Machado (centre), receives the "Government of the Sacred Union" (so called because of the political truce of the two largest parties, due to World War One).Português: O Presidente da República Portuguesa, Bernardino Machado (ao centro), recebe o "Ministério da União Sagrada" (assim chamado, devido à trégua política entre os dois maiores partidos, devido à Primeira Guerra Mundial). Almeida, António José de. Fl. 1916-1917, presidente do Conselho de Ministros / Matos, José Maria Norton de. Fl. 1915-1917, ministro da Guerra / Costa, Afonso. Fl. 1915-1917, ministro das Finanças / Martins, Joaquim Pedro. Fl. 1916-1917, ministro da Instrução Pública / Carvalho, Luís Augusto Pinto Mesquita de. Fl. 1916-1917, ministro da Justiça / Coutinho, Vitor Hugo de Azevedo. Fl. 1916-1917, ministro da Marinha / Reis, António Maria da Silva Pereira. Fl. 1916, ministro do Interior / Soares, Augusto Vieira. 1915-1917, ministro dos Negócios Estrangeiros / Machado, Bernardino. Fl. 1915-1917, presidente da República
context_page_description: The Belém Palace, formally the National Palace of Belém, is the current official residence of the President of the Portuguese Republic, the head of state of Portugal. Located in the Belém District of Lisbon, the palace's main façade fronts the Praça Afonso de Albuquerque, facing the Tagus River. A former residence of the Portuguese Royal Family, the Belém Palace complex is made up of various buildings, wings, courtyards, and gardens, built variously from the 18th to 21st centuries.
context_section_description: Following the 5 October 1910 Revolution, the Secretaria-Geral da Presidência da República (Secretary-General of the Presidency) moved into the palace on 24 August 1911, as article 45 of the Constitution prohibited the Chief of State from occupying a residence on properties held by the State.  A loophole in the document allowed the authorization on 28 June 1912 of a government edict to rent an annex alongside the Palace for 100,000 réis per month to house the first President Manuel de Arriaga, who eventually preferred to live in his local residence and work at the palace.  This policy of renting the space continued throughout the period of the First Republic.
  After the assassination of President Sidónio Pais in 1918 at the Rossio railway station, the ex-President's body lay in state in the Sala Luís XV (Luís XV Hall) until his burial.
  The official residency law for the President of the Republic was promulgated on 24 March 1928. It specified that the President and his family would be permitted to reside in one of the national palaces.  At the time of the promulgation, General Óscar Carmona decided to reside in the Citadel of Cascais, leaving the Palace of Belém for ceremonial affairs, official meetings, receptions and other formal occasions.  In anticipation of the projected visit of the King of Spain, the Palace underwent several renovations, although the visit did not materialize.  In 1936, the main staircase was expanded by António Lino and finished by Cristino da Silva.
  During the term of General Francisco Craveiro Lopes (1951–1952) the Arrábida wing was remodelled to serve as the residence of the President of the Republic.
  In 1967, the property was finally classified as a IIP - Imóvel de Interesse Público (Property of Public Interest), by decree 47-508, published in the Diário do Governo on 24 January 1967. The Palace was closed in 1969 to repair damage from the earthquake of that year.
  After the Carnation Revolution, the palace was made the headquarters of the Junta de Salvação Nacional (National Salvation Junta). It also experienced the traumas of the new democracy with the counter-revolutionary attempts by António Spínola and Francisco da Costa Gomes. As in previous administrations, Belém Palace underwent new renovations in the Arrábida wing in order to accommodate the demands of the President and his family. While some Presidents resided in Belém, others such as Mário Soares, Jorge Sampaio, Aníbal Cavaco Silva and the current President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa) used it merely as a workplace, living in their private residences during their terms.
  Between 1980 and 1985, the main dining hall was used to exhibit gifts received by the Chief of State. In 1998, the construction of the Centro de Documentação e Informação (Documentation and Information Centre), was begun by architect João Luís Carrilho da Graça, winner of a public competition promoted by the Secretary-General of the Presidency.
  President Jorge Sampaio commissioned painter Paula Rego for a series of paintings to decorate the walls of the Palace chapel in 2002. The painter eventually gave her works entitled "Ciclo da Vida da Virgem Maria e da Paixão de Jesus Cristo" (Cycle of Life of the Virgin Mary and the Passion of Jesus Christ".  The early exhibitions and Presidential initiatives would lead to the inauguration on 5 October 2004 of the Presidential Museum (Portuguese: Museu da Presidência da República).  Similarly, the King D. Luís I Painting Gallery was the setting for the 2005 exposition, Do Palácio de Belém, which presented the history of the palace and its architecture, as well as an overview of artistic works that have been displayed there.
  On 10 March 2006, a Ministry of Culture dispatch reclassified the Palace as a National Monument to include the palace, gardens, Museum of the Presidency and other annexes.
caption: President Bernardino Machado receiving the Sacred Union Government in the Billiards Room, 1916.
exif: {}