Out of the shadows : Portugal from revolution to the present day

"Lisbon and Portugal's best days are behind it" is a common theme put forward by writers who focus their attention on the golden era of Portuguese discoveries, the Empire, and the role of Lisbon as a major Atlantic power. Neill Lochery's book demonstrates that Portugal is not suffering from inevitable decline. __Out of the Shadows__ is a full account of post-authoritarian democratic Portugal following the revolution of April 1974. From the outset it was clear to the author that this was not simply going to be a book about Portugal. One of the major misunderstandings of the post-revolution era has been the over concentration on domestic over international factors in helping to shape its story. The United States regarded the Revolution as a strategic threat to its interests in Europe both in terms of losing Portugal to the Soviet Union and the potential domino effect of this on the rest of Southern and Western Europe. Having emerged from its financial crisis and bail out and thus "out of the shadows," this is a country of great relevance to Europe today. Meticulously researched, based on documentary sources as well as personal accounts of witnesses to the events described, __Out of the Shadows__ makes clear how significant Portugal has been and remains. Lisbon and Portugal's best days are behind them' is a common theme put forward by writers who focus their attention on the golden era of Portuguese discoveries, the Empire and the role of Lisbon as a major Atlantic power. Neill Lochery's book demonstrates that Portugal is not suffering from such inevitable decline. Out of the Shadows is a full account of post-authoritarian democratic Portugal (1974 to Present) following the Carnation Revolution which began on April 25th 1974 and based on documentary sources, personal accounts and unpublished documents from the National Archive in Kew. In 1974 a dramatic overnight coup led to the fall of the 'Estado Novo' dictatorship in Portugal - in Lisbon the events became known as the Carnation Revolution. As the colonies collapsed, the United States helped airlift 13,000 refugees from Angola back to Portugal as US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger maneuvered to advance the moderate side of the government in Lisbon over the radicals and thus guarantee US interests. As Neill Lochery argues, one of the major misunderstandings of the post-revolution era in Portugal has been the concentration on domestic over international factors in helping to shape its story. Having emerged from its twentieth century financial crisis and bail out and thus 'out of the shadows', he argues that Portugal is a country of huge relevance to the present day and of great future significance to the European continent Beginning With Portugal's Carnation Revolution In April 1974 And Charting The Country's Emergence From The Estudo Novo Dictatorship (in Power Since 1933); The New Period Of Democracy; Portugal's Time As Holders Of The Presidency Of The European Union And The Economic Crisis That Hit The Country In 2010, [this Book] Is An Account Of Portugal In The Closing Decades Of The Twentieth Century And The Start Of The Twenty-first.--book Jacket. Neill Lochery. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 311-335) And Index. "Beginning with Portugal's Carnation Revolution in April 1974 and charting the country's emergence from the Estudo Novo dictatorship (in power since 1933); the new period of democracy; Portugal's time as holders of the Presidency of the European Union and the economic crisis that hit the country in 2010, Out of the shadows is an account of Portugal in the closing decades of the twentieth century and the start of the twenty-first."--Jacket