The Subsídio Literário tax. Continuity or break?

Abstract

This paper is part of the study carried out on education in the liberal period based on the minutes of the sessions of the Cortes. The analysis of parliamentary activity - the political debate and the consequent legislative action – indicates the importance paid to Instruction and Education matters with the aim of meeting the needs of the Liberal State. Based on the subsídio literário tax created by the Marquis of Pombal on 10 November 1772, nineteenthcentury society claimed the right to promote primary education, basing its claim on the fulfilment of tax duties. The continuity of Pombal’s political action embodied the interests and will of the liberal nation. However, the ideological demand of liberalism demanded its extinction in the parliamentary debate. The oscillation between continuity or break marked the political-economic views on the subsídio literário in the 1800s.