Álvaro Cunhal
Encyclopedia
Álvaro Barreirinhas Cunhal, who used the name Álvaro Cunhal (ˈaɫvɐɾu kuˈɲaɫ; Sé Nova, Coimbra
, 10 November 1913 — Lisbon
, 13 June 2005), was a Portuguese
politician. He was one of the major opponents of the dictatorial regime of Estado Novo
. He served as secretary-general of the Portuguese Communist Party
(PCP) from 1961 to 1992. He was one of the most pro-Soviet of all western Europe
communist leaders, often supporting USSR world policies, including the intervention in Czechoslovakia
in 1968. He also initially supported the failed coup of August 1991 in Soviet Union
. He remained a steadfast supporter of most, if not all Marxist-Leninist nations during his life and in one of his last texts, in 2002, restated his support for these nations.
, the third child of Avelino Henriques da Costa Cunhal (Seia
, Seia, October 28, 1887 – Coimbra
, Sé Nova, December 19, 1966) and wife (m. Coimbra
, Sé Nova, August 22, 1908) Mercedes Simões Ferreira Barreirinhas (Coimbra
, Sé Nova, May 5, 1888 – Lisbon
, September 12, 1971). His father was a lawyer
in Coimbra
and Seia
, and later on in Lisbon
, and came from a family of rural bourgeoisie, related to a rich and more aristocratic family, the Cunhal Patrício. His mother was a devout Catholic
who wished her son had also become one. He also studied Law
at the University of Lisbon, where he joined the PCP, then an illegal organization, in 1931. The deaths of his younger sister Maria Mansueta Barrerinhas Cunhal (Coimbra
– Seia
, January 13, 1921) and of his older brother António José Barreirinhas Cunhal (Coimbra
, 1910 – Lisbon
, 1932) struck the grief of both his parents and brothers, but specially of his mother and Álvaro, of whom they had always been close. He visited the Soviet Union
for the first time in 1935 to attend the Seventh World Congress of the Comintern
in Moscow
. He joined the Central Committee of the PCP in 1936 at the age of 24. His first arrest occurred in 1937.
While in jail, Cunhal submitted his final thesis on the topic of abortion
and obtained his law degree (the jury included the future prime minister Marcello Caetano). In the thesis, he also supported the illegality of abortion in USSR, claiming it wasn't practised anymore there. He then taught for some months at the Colégio Moderno, in Lisbon. Among his pupils was the future President of Portugal, Mário Soares
, who would be one of his great political rivals after the revolution of 1974.
From 1941 to 1949 Cunhal was underground and became the de facto leader of the PCP. Arrested in 1949, he remained in jail until he made a spectacular escape from the Peniche prison in 1960. This escape had a wide impact. The government of António Salazar claimed that a Soviet submarine was near the Peniche coast waiting for Cunhal. In 1961, he was elected secretary-general of the PCP, following the death of Bento Gonçalves
in the political prisoners colony of Tarrafal
in Cape Verde
. Cunhal lived in exile in Moscow
, where his daughter by Isaura Maria Moreira named Ana Cunhal was born on December 25, 1960, now married with three sons, and Paris
until the Carnation Revolution
of April 1974.
Back in Portugal, Cunhal took charge of the newly legalised PCP and led the party through the political upheavals which followed the revolution. He was minister without portfolio in several of the provisional governments which followed the revolution. A faction of army officers seen as aligned with the PCP dominated the post-revolutionary provisional governments, with pro-communist prime-minister Vasco Gonçalves
, leading four provisional governments, leading to accusations that the PCP was attempting to take power via the military. Cunhal, was largely responsible for the PCP's hardline attitude, particularly its hostility towards the Portuguese Socialist Party
led by Soares, which prevented the formation of a united left.
Cunhal left his office in 1992, being succeeded by Carlos Carvalhas
. Nevertheless, his voice remained important in the following years, and he consistently sided with the most orthodox wing of the PCP. He also revealed that under the pseudonym
Manuel Tiago he had been the author of several neo-realistic novels. His drawings, made while in prison, were published, revealing his sensibility for the arts, as was also shown by his translation of King Lear
by Shakespeare
(edited in his last years, and originally written under the female pseudonym Maria Manuela Serpa).
Álvaro Cunhal died in Lisbon in 2005, after several years away from public eye. His funeral, on June 15, took place in Lisbon
and was attended by about 250,000 people.
His only remaining sister Maria Eugénia Barreirinhas Cunhal (b. Lisbon
, January 17, 1927) has also been for her entire life a militant of the PCP. She married in Lisbon
on May 21, 1949 medical doctor Fernando Manuel da Rocha de Medina (Lisbon
, March 15, 1924 – Lisbon
, September 9, 1965), half-cousin of Ambassador
Rui Eduardo Barbosa de Medina, and has four children.
]
Manuel Tiago, which he recognized as his own only in 1995. He also made the drawings for the original edition of Soeiro Pereira Gomes
' book Esteiros. He published the following books under the pseudonym of Manuel Tiago:
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
, 10 November 1913 — Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, 13 June 2005), was a Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
politician. He was one of the major opponents of the dictatorial regime of Estado Novo
Estado Novo
There have been two regimes known as Estado Novo :*Estado Novo , the period from 1937 to 1945, under the leadership of Getúlio Vargas...
. He served as secretary-general of the Portuguese Communist Party
Portuguese Communist Party
The Portuguese Communist Party is a major left-wing political party in Portugal. It is a Marxist-Leninist party, and its organization is based upon democratic centralism. The party also considers itself to be patriotic and internationalist....
(PCP) from 1961 to 1992. He was one of the most pro-Soviet of all western Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
communist leaders, often supporting USSR world policies, including the intervention in Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
in 1968. He also initially supported the failed coup of August 1991 in Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. He remained a steadfast supporter of most, if not all Marxist-Leninist nations during his life and in one of his last texts, in 2002, restated his support for these nations.
Life
Cunhal was born in CoimbraCoimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
, the third child of Avelino Henriques da Costa Cunhal (Seia
Seia
Seia Municipality is located in Guarda District in Portugal. It has a total area of 435.7 km² and a total population of 27,574 inhabitants. Its urban population is about 7,000...
, Seia, October 28, 1887 – Coimbra
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
, Sé Nova, December 19, 1966) and wife (m. Coimbra
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
, Sé Nova, August 22, 1908) Mercedes Simões Ferreira Barreirinhas (Coimbra
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
, Sé Nova, May 5, 1888 – Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, September 12, 1971). His father was a lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
in Coimbra
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
and Seia
Seia
Seia Municipality is located in Guarda District in Portugal. It has a total area of 435.7 km² and a total population of 27,574 inhabitants. Its urban population is about 7,000...
, and later on in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, and came from a family of rural bourgeoisie, related to a rich and more aristocratic family, the Cunhal Patrício. His mother was a devout Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
who wished her son had also become one. He also studied Law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
at the University of Lisbon, where he joined the PCP, then an illegal organization, in 1931. The deaths of his younger sister Maria Mansueta Barrerinhas Cunhal (Coimbra
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
– Seia
Seia
Seia Municipality is located in Guarda District in Portugal. It has a total area of 435.7 km² and a total population of 27,574 inhabitants. Its urban population is about 7,000...
, January 13, 1921) and of his older brother António José Barreirinhas Cunhal (Coimbra
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
, 1910 – Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, 1932) struck the grief of both his parents and brothers, but specially of his mother and Álvaro, of whom they had always been close. He visited the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
for the first time in 1935 to attend the Seventh World Congress of the Comintern
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. He joined the Central Committee of the PCP in 1936 at the age of 24. His first arrest occurred in 1937.
While in jail, Cunhal submitted his final thesis on the topic of abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
and obtained his law degree (the jury included the future prime minister Marcello Caetano). In the thesis, he also supported the illegality of abortion in USSR, claiming it wasn't practised anymore there. He then taught for some months at the Colégio Moderno, in Lisbon. Among his pupils was the future President of Portugal, Mário Soares
Mário Soares
Mário Alberto Nobre Lopes Soares, GColTE, GCC, GColL, KE , Portuguese politician, served as Prime Minister of Portugal from 1976 to 1978 and from 1983 to 1985, and subsequently as the 17th President of Portugal from 1986 to 1996.-Family:...
, who would be one of his great political rivals after the revolution of 1974.
Bento António Gonçalves
Bento António Gonçalves, GOL was the second Secretary General of the Portuguese Communist Party. He was born in Montalegre, Vila Real District, in the North of Portugal. Not much is known about his childhood. In 1915 he became an apprentice mechanical turner in Lisbon...
in the political prisoners colony of Tarrafal
Tarrafal camp
Tarrafal was a prison camp in Cape Verde, then a Portuguese colony, set up by the dictator António de Oliveira Salazar after the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War , where opponents of his right-wing authoritarian regime were sent...
in Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
. Cunhal lived in exile in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, where his daughter by Isaura Maria Moreira named Ana Cunhal was born on December 25, 1960, now married with three sons, and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
until the Carnation Revolution
Carnation Revolution
The Carnation Revolution , also referred to as the 25 de Abril , was a military coup started on 25 April 1974, in Lisbon, Portugal, coupled with an unanticipated and extensive campaign of civil resistance...
of April 1974.
Back in Portugal, Cunhal took charge of the newly legalised PCP and led the party through the political upheavals which followed the revolution. He was minister without portfolio in several of the provisional governments which followed the revolution. A faction of army officers seen as aligned with the PCP dominated the post-revolutionary provisional governments, with pro-communist prime-minister Vasco Gonçalves
Vasco Gonçalves
General Vasco dos Santos Gonçalves was a Portuguese army officer in the Engineering Corps who took part in the Carnation Revolution and later served as the 104th Prime Minister from 18 July 1974 to 19 September 1975....
, leading four provisional governments, leading to accusations that the PCP was attempting to take power via the military. Cunhal, was largely responsible for the PCP's hardline attitude, particularly its hostility towards the Portuguese Socialist Party
Portuguese Socialist Party
The Portuguese Socialist Party was a political party in Portugal.The party was founded in 1875. During its initial phase the party was heavily influenced by Proudhonism, and rejected revolutionary Marxism. The party suffered constant factional struggles...
led by Soares, which prevented the formation of a united left.
Cunhal left his office in 1992, being succeeded by Carlos Carvalhas
Carlos Carvalhas
Carlos Alberto do Vale Gomes Carvalhas, GCC is a Portuguese politician and former Secretary-General of the Portuguese Communist Party , succeeding the historical leader Álvaro Cunhal....
. Nevertheless, his voice remained important in the following years, and he consistently sided with the most orthodox wing of the PCP. He also revealed that under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Manuel Tiago he had been the author of several neo-realistic novels. His drawings, made while in prison, were published, revealing his sensibility for the arts, as was also shown by his translation of King Lear
King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The title character descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological...
by Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
(edited in his last years, and originally written under the female pseudonym Maria Manuela Serpa).
Álvaro Cunhal died in Lisbon in 2005, after several years away from public eye. His funeral, on June 15, took place in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
and was attended by about 250,000 people.
His only remaining sister Maria Eugénia Barreirinhas Cunhal (b. Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, January 17, 1927) has also been for her entire life a militant of the PCP. She married in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
on May 21, 1949 medical doctor Fernando Manuel da Rocha de Medina (Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, March 15, 1924 – Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, September 9, 1965), half-cousin of Ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
Rui Eduardo Barbosa de Medina, and has four children.
Works
- IV Congresso do Partido Comunista Português — O Caminho Para o Derrubamento do Fascismo.
- Duas intervenções numa reunião de quadros.
- Rumo à Vitória - As Tarefas do Partido na Revolução Democrática e Nacional.
- A Verdade e a Mentira sobre a Revolução de Abril.
- Acção Revolucionária, Capitulação e Aventura.
- O Partido Com Paredes de Vidro.
- A Revolução Portuguesa - O Passado e o Futuro.
- Fracasso e Derrota do Governo de Direita do PSD/Cavaco Silva.
- O 1º Governo PSD e a Resistência Democrática.
- Falência da Política de Direita do PS (1983–1985).
- Os Chamados Governos de Iniciativa Presidencial.
Manuel Tiago
Cunhal was also a fiction writer, with several novels under the pseudonymPseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Manuel Tiago, which he recognized as his own only in 1995. He also made the drawings for the original edition of Soeiro Pereira Gomes
Soeiro Pereira Gomes
Joaquim Soeiro Pereira Gomes was a Portuguese writer of realist influence and became one of the major names of Portuguese literature of the 20th century. Pereira Gomes is, along with Alves Redol, the biggest name of the Portuguese neo-realist movement...
' book Esteiros. He published the following books under the pseudonym of Manuel Tiago:
- Até Amanhã, Camaradas (adapted to television series in 2005).
- Cinco Dias, Cinco Noites (adapted to film in 1996).
- A Estrela de Seis Pontas.
- A Casa de Eulália.
- Lutas e Vidas. Um conto.
- Os Corrécios e outros Contos.
- Um Risco na Areia.
- Fronteiras.
Further reading
- Portuguese Comunist Party - Álvaro Cunhal.
- José Pacheco PereiraJosé Pacheco PereiraJosé Álvaro Machado Pacheco Pereira, GCL is a Portuguese political analyst, historian and politician, a member of PSD .- Biography :He was born in Porto and graduated in Philosophy from the University of Porto...
, Álvaro Cunhal — Uma biografia política, Temas & Debates, Lisbon, 1999, ISBN 972-759-150-7. - The Guardian - Obituary.