The International Conference. The Revolution of 1820 and the Constitution of 1822: 200 Years of Liberalism and Constitutionalism in Portugal aims to reflect, in the light of a triple perspective - legal, historical and philosophical - on one of the most significant milestones of national history, with roots and repercussions in other time(s) and space(s).
The bubbling over of ideas and aspirations that characterized the 18th and early 19th centuries and the sources of inspiration from other legal systems would overflow in the emotions revealed in Porto on the morning of 24 August 1820 and in Lisbon on 15 September of the same year. The Portuguese liberal revolution was to be projected onto the political plane, but also - and very densely - into the legal and constitutional domain.
The emergence of the Constitution of 1822 was the most visible result of the revolution. On 9th March 1821, the Cortes General and Extraordinary approved the Bases of the Constitution, establishing a set of "principles", "as being the most appropriate to ensure the individual rights of the Citizen, and to establish the organization and limits of the Political Powers of the State".