Senate (Portugal)

For other uses, seeSenate.

Senate Senado
Type
Type	Upper house
History
Founded	1838 (first time), 1911 (second time)
Disbanded	1842 (first time), 1933 (second time)
Preceded by	Chamber of Peers of Portugal
Succeeded by	Corporative Chamber
Meeting place
São Bento Palace Lisbon,Portugal

TheSenate(Portuguese:Senado) was theupper houseof theParliament of Portugalduring the periods of validity of theConstitution of 1838(1838-1842) and of theConstitution of 1911(1911-1933).

First Senate (1838–1842)

TheChamber of Senators(Câmara dos Senadores) orSenatewas the upper house of theCortes Gerais- the legislature of the Portuguese Constitutional Monarchy -, during the period in which the Constitution of 1838 was in force. It replaced the previousChamber of the Peers,which was the upper house during the period of theConstitutional Charter of 1826.When the Constitutional Charter was restored in 1842, the Chamber of Peers was also restored and the Senate disbanded.

Second Senate (1911–1933)

TheSenate of the Republic(Senado da República) was the upper house of theCongress of the Republic,the legislature of theFirst Portuguese Republic.The Senate was elected for a six-year term, but the terms of senators of the Republic were staggered to allow elections every three years (alongside elections to theChamber of Deputies). The first senate was elected by the National Constituent Assembly, but later senates were elected by the people. Initially, the Senate included senators representing Nationwide party lists and other senators representingdistrictsandcolonies.During the erstwhile "New Republic" ofSidónio Paisin 1918, additional senators represented special interests: agriculture, industry, commerce, public services, "liberal professions", arts and sciences. Although the Chamber of Deputies was the dominant house of the Congress, the Senate had the power of approving or rejecting nominations of colonial governors and high commissioners.

Other historic uses in Portugal

The term "senate" was used, in the past, as an alternative designation of the municipal government bodies of some main cities of Portugal and of thePortuguese Empire,otherwise known ascâmaras(chambers, also translated as "municipal councils" ). In 1832, the designation of all municipal councils was standardized ascâmara municipal(municipal chamber). A notable exception was theMunicipal Council of Macau,which was able to maintain its traditional titleLeal Senado(Loyal Senate), bestowed to it in 1810, until thehandoverofMacauto Chinese administration in 1999.

During the 1913-1936 period, a number of councillors of eachcâmara municipalformed an executive commission which constituted the executive body of the municipality, with the plenary of the councillors constituting adeliberative assemblyoccasionally referred to as "municipal senate".