Napoleonic Era and Aftermath

In 1801 France and Spain invaded Portugal in the War of the Oranges (named for oranges sent by the Spanish commander to his queen). In 1807 a French army occupied Portugal, and the royal family fled to Brazil. The Peninsular War started the next year. British forces landed in Portugal and defeated the French, who withdrew. The French invaded again in 1809, but were repelled by the British.

Portugal adopted a constitution in 1820, and the king, John VI, returned from Brazil to rule as a constitutional monarch. Brazil, under his son Dom Pedro, declared itself independent. Another son, Miguel, started a civil war in Portugal to restore absolute monarchy. Dom Pedro succeeded his father to the Portuguese throne in 1826, but abdicated in favor of his infant daughter, Maria. In 1828 Miguel, then regent, seized the throne and abolished the constitution. Dom Pedro, with the aid of England, France, and Spain, defeated him in 1834.