“O ambiente para o fascismo existe no nosso país”: os comunistas e o ascenso da ditadura em Portugal, 1921-1927

Abstract

Abstract: This article examines the analysis of the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) of the crisis of the First Republic and the rise of fascism and dictatorship in 1921-1927. The communists predicted the collapse of democracy, shaken by the post-war crisis. The right-wing would try to use the army to impose an authoritarian regime, which would make the workers pay for the crisis. The PCP, however, hesitated to call this counter-revolution fascist, due to its narrow social base and the limited mobilization of the petty bourgeoisie. This study calls into question the historiographical trend to dismiss the early PCP as a “confused” and “immature” organization, as the party was able to develop a sophisticated analysis of Portuguese society. At the same time, the article intervenes in debates on the autonomy of national parties vis-à-vis Moscow in the Communist International.