First Lady of Portugal
| First Lady of Portugal | |
|---|---|
| Primeira-dama de Portugal | |
Coat of Arms of the Portuguese Republic | |
since 9 March 2026 | |
| Residence | Belém Palace |
| Term length | 5 years (10 years if the President wins re-election) |
| Inaugural holder | Lucrécia de Arriaga |
| Formation | 24 August 1911 |
| Website | Presidency of the Portuguese Republic - First Lady (defunct) |
First Lady of Portugal (Portuguese: primeira-dama) is the unofficial title attributed to the wife or Partner of the president of Portugal. To date, there has been no first gentleman of Portugal. The position is occupied by Margarida Maldonado Freitas since the presidential inauguration of António José Seguro in 2026.
History
The inaugural first lady of Portugal was Lucrécia de Arriaga (1911–1915), wife of the first president of the First Portuguese Republic, Manuel de Arriaga.[1]
Maria Joana Queiroga de Almeida, Portugal's first lady from 1919 to 1923 and the wife of President António José de Almeida, was one of the country's first first ladies to take on public, ceremonial roles.[1] She took on a very public role in 1920 as the hostess during the official state visit of Leopold III of Belgium, the then-heir to the Belgian throne, in 1920.[1] By contrast, Almeida's successor, Belmira das Neves, first lady from 1923 to 1925, largely avoided the public spotlight, but played a supporting role to her husband, Manuel Teixeira Gomes, behind the scenes.[1]
Role and duties
The role of the Portuguese president's spouse, be it "First Lady" or "First Gentleman", is not an official office and, as such, they are not given a salary or official duties. The first ladies have played a mere protocol role during official ceremonies and state visits. However, since 1996, under the presidency of Jorge Sampaio, the president's spouse has the right to a workplace and a three-people staff incorporated in the President's Office.[2][3] In addition, according to the Portuguese State Protocol's order of precedence, the spouse of any high-ranking office holder is given the same rank as theirs, as long as the spouse is also invited to the ceremony.[4]
With current president's spouse refusing to use the president's spouse workplace,[5] the only two first ladies to have used it were Jorge Sampaio and Aníbal Cavaco Silva's wives: Maria José Ritta and Maria Cavaco Silva.[2][3]
List of first ladies of Portugal
First Portuguese Republic (1910–1926)
| Portrait | Name (Lifespan) |
Term of office | President | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start | End | |||
| Lucrécia de Arriaga (1844–1927) |
24 August 1911 |
26 May 1915 |
Manuel de Arriaga | |
| Vacant | 26 May 1915 |
5 October 1915 |
Teófilo Braga | |
| Elzira Dantas Machado (1865–1942) |
5 October 1915 |
5 December 1917 |
Bernardino Machado | |
| Maria dos Prazeres Bessa Pais (1867–1945) |
9 May 1918[6] |
14 December 1918 |
Sidónio Pais | |
| Mariana do Canto e Castro (1866–1946) |
16 December 1918 |
5 October 1919 |
João do Canto e Castro | |
| Maria Joana Queiroga (1885–1965) |
5 October 1919 |
5 October 1923 |
António José de Almeida | |
| Belmira das Neves (1885–1967) |
5 October 1923[6] |
11 December 1925 |
Manuel Teixeira Gomes | |
| Elzira Dantas Machado (1865–1942) |
11 December 1925 |
31 May 1926 |
Bernardino Machado | |
National Dictatorship / New State (1926–1974)
| Portrait | Name (Lifespan) |
Term of office | President | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start | End | |||
| Maria das Dores Cabeçadas (1878–1949) |
31 May 1926 |
17 June 1926[6] |
José Mendes Cabeçadas | |
| Henriqueta Gomes da Costa (1863–1936) |
29 June 1926[6] |
9 July 1926 |
Manuel Gomes da Costa | |
| Maria do Carmo Carmona (1878–1956) |
16 November 1926[6] |
18 April 1951 |
António Óscar Carmona | |
| Berta Craveiro Lopes (1899–1958) |
21 July 1951[6] |
5 July 1958 |
Francisco Craveiro Lopes | |
| Vacant | 5 July 1958 |
9 August 1958 | ||
| Gertrudes Rodrigues (1894–1991) |
9 August 1958 |
25 April 1974 |
Américo Tomás | |
Third Portuguese Republic (1974–Present)
| Portrait | Name (Lifespan) |
Term of office | President | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start | End | |||
| Maria Helena Spínola (1913–2002) |
15 May 1974 |
30 September 1974 |
António de Spínola | |
| Estela Costa Gomes (1927–2013) |
30 September 1974 |
14 July 1976 |
Francisco da Costa Gomes | |
| Manuela Ramalho Eanes (born 1938) |
14 July 1976 |
9 March 1986 |
António Ramalho Eanes | |
| Maria Barroso (1925–2015) |
9 March 1986 |
9 March 1996 |
Mário Soares | |
| Maria José Ritta (born 1941) |
9 March 1996 |
9 March 2006 |
Jorge Sampaio | |
| Maria Cavaco Silva (born 1938) |
9 March 2006 |
9 March 2016 |
Aníbal Cavaco Silva | |
| Vacant | 9 March 2016 |
9 March 2026 |
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa | |
| Margarida Maldonado Freitas (born 1971) |
9 March 2026 |
Incumbent | António José Seguro | |
In popular culture
In 2005, an exhibit on the history of Portugal's first ladies, called Primeiras-Damas da Republica Portuguesa 1910-2005 (Portuguese First Ladies Exhibition 1910-2005), opened at the IADE Cultural Centre in Lisbon.[1] The exhibition, which encompassed two entire floors of the IADE's cultural centre, included documents, clothing, gowns, jewelry, and letters once owned by Portugal's first ladies.[1]
Items on display included former first lady Maria Helena de Barros Spinola's black evening gown and 1920s-era clothing, fans and furs worn by Maria das Dores Cabeçadas, the first lady in 1926.[1] Pieces from Maria José Ritta, who was the first lady at the time of the 2005 exhibition, included a lemon yellow Dior-style suit worn during her employment at TAP Portugal during the 1970s, as well as clothing and dresses worn during state visits to Brazil and other nations.[1]
In 2011, journalist Alberta Marques Fernandes published her book As Primeiras-Damas ("The First Ladies") about the wives of the presidents of the Third Portuguese Republic.[7][8]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Portugal's first ladies – the glamour and the glitz". Portugal Resident. 2005-10-28. Archived from the original on 2015-07-10. Retrieved 2015-07-09.
- ^ a b Falcão, Catarina (27 December 2015). "Primeira-dama. A tradição já não é o que era" [First Lady: the tradition is not what it used to be]. Observador (in Portuguese). Retrieved 24 May 2018.
- ^ a b Henriques, João Pedro; et al. (15 January 2016). "Primeira-dama. Uma cortesia com fim à vista" [First Lady. A courtesy about to end]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 24 May 2018.
- ^ "Lei n.º 40/2006 - Lei das precedências do Protocolo do Estado Português" [Law no. 40 of 2006 - Law of the precedences of the Portuguese State Protocol]. Diário da República (in Portuguese). 164/2006: 6185–6190. 25 August 2006 – via Diário da República Eletrónico.
- ^ "Mulher farmacêutica de Seguro não quer ser primeira-dama" [Seguro's pharmacist wife doesn't want to be first lady.]. Correio da Manhã (in Portuguese). 9 February 2026. Retrieved 13 March 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f Braga, Paulo Drumond (2010). "Os Presidentes da República Portuguesa: sociologia de uma função". Archived from the original on 2021-07-25. Retrieved 2024-10-01.
- ^ "Lançado o livro sobre "As primeiras damas"" [Published the book about the First Ladies] (Video and text). RTP Notícias (in Portuguese). 13 April 2011. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
- ^ Fonseca, Catarina Reis da (26 March 2011). "Histórias de quem fez a história de Belém" [Stories of who made Belém's history]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 24 May 2018.