D. Carlos was born in Lisbon, Portugal, the son of King Luis. Carlos became King on October 19, 1889. An intelligent but vastly extravagant man, Carlos’s policies, misperceived wastefulness and extramarital affairs effectively sealed the fate of the Portuguese monarchy.Colonial treaties with the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (one signed in August 1890 that defined their African borders along the Zambezi and Congo rivers and another signed on October 14, 1899, that confirmed colonial treaties of the 17th Century) stabilised the situation in Africa. Domestically, Portugal was twice declared bankrupt – on June 14, 1892, and again on May 10, 1902 – causing industrial disturbances, socialist and republican antagonism and press criticism of the monarchy. Carlos responded by appointing João Franco as prime minister and subsequently accepting parliament’s dissolution.
On February 1, 1908 the royal family was returning to the royal palace in Lisbon, shots were fired from the crowd. The king died immediately, his heir Luis Filipe was mortally wounded, and Prince Manuel was hit in the arm. The assassins were shot at the spot by members of the bodyguard and later recognized as members of the Republican Party. Prince Manuel was acclaimed king of Portugal, the last one of the Braganza dynasty.
The values indicated below are a fair quotation to be used as reference for coin collectors. They do not represent any selling price.
VF (Very Fine): A coin where all the fine detail is present, but not the 'minute' detail and signs of wear and tear to its higher points make it obvious that it has been in circulation but only minimally.
