Current Version
| Region | Portugal |
| Issue | Homosexual activity |
| Status | Illegal (imprisonment as punishment) |
| Start Date | Jan 1, 1886 |
| End Date | Mar 18, 1933 |
| Description | Between 1886 and 1933, homosexuality in Portugal was criminalized under laws against “offenses against modesty” and, after 1912, explicitly under the law against “vices against nature.” Punishments included imprisonment or, in some cases, forced labor or re-education in correctional institutions. Enforcement was selective, often targeting lower-class men, while discreet members of the upper classes were rarely prosecuted. Socially, homosexuals faced strong stigma, shaped by conservative Catholic morality. There was no organized state surveillance or systematic persecution during this period, but the legal framework laid the groundwork for the intensified repression that would follow under the Estado Novo dictatorship in 1933. |
| Sources | https://setentaequatro.pt/investigacao-74/quando-ser-gay-era-doenca-em-portugal-de-lobotomias-choques-eletricos |
Revision History (1)
created by Johnny_bjs
Helpful?
0 | Original entry | |
|---|---|
| Status | Illegal (imprisonment as punishment) |
| Start Date | Jan 1, 1886 |
| End Date | Mar 18, 1933 |
| Description | Between 1886 and 1933, homosexuality in Portugal was criminalized under laws against “offenses against modesty” and, after 1912, explicitly under the law against “vices against nature.” Punishments included imprisonment or, in some cases, forced labor or re-education in correctional institutions. Enforcement was selective, often targeting lower-class men, while discreet members of the upper classes were rarely prosecuted. Socially, homosexuals faced strong stigma, shaped by conservative Catholic morality. There was no organized state surveillance or systematic persecution during this period, but the legal framework laid the groundwork for the intensified repression that would follow under the Estado Novo dictatorship in 1933. |
| Sources | https://setentaequatro.pt/investigacao-74/quando-ser-gay-era-doenca-em-portugal-de-lobotomias-choques-eletricos |