1958 HUMBERTO DELGADO—HISTORIC MAY 10, 1958 LETTER ANNOUNCING HIS CAMPAIGN AGAINST PORTUGAL’S DICTATORSHIP—HITLER, DÖNITZ AND THE RISK OF DEATH
DELGADO, HUMBERTO (1906–1965). Portuguese Air Force general, founder of TAP Air Portugal, opposition presidential candidate, and martyr of the resistance to António de Oliveira Salazar’s Estado Novo dictatorship. Typed Letter Signed, “Humberto Delgado,” one page on his personal aviation letterhead. Lisbon, May 10, 1958. Addressed to American publicist H. Keith Thompson. Signed in Delgado’s characteristic purple ink.
An extraordinary political letter written on the opening day of Humberto Delgado’s historic presidential campaign—the exact date on which his electrifying promise to dismiss dictator António de Oliveira Salazar transformed him into Portugal’s “General without Fear.”
Delgado opens:
“It starts today the campaign for the Presidency of the Republic on which I am a candidate, against the dictatorship which has governed my Country for the last 32 years.”
On that same day, May 10, 1958, Delgado held a press conference at Lisbon’s Chave d’Ouro café. When asked what he would do with Salazar if elected, he made the declaration that became one of the most famous statements in modern Portuguese political history:
“Obviamente, demito-o!”—“Obviously, I’ll dismiss him!”
In the present letter, Delgado forthrightly compares Portugal’s authoritarian government with Nazi Germany:
“It is not a dictatorship as brutal as Hitler’s but anyway one which has only one party, Political Police, etc.”
Delgado then acknowledges the extraordinary personal danger he faced by challenging Salazar:
“Having taken such a decision I run definite risks, since anyone who has the nerves to declare himself against the dictator usually suffers severe consequences.”
The passage is chillingly prophetic. Delgado’s campaign was subjected to government censorship, police intimidation, and electoral manipulation. The official results of the June 8 election awarded victory to Salazar’s candidate, Américo Tomás, but the result was widely regarded as fraudulent. Delgado was subsequently dismissed from military service and forced into exile.
Seven years after writing this letter, Delgado and his secretary were lured to the Spanish-Portuguese frontier by agents of the PIDE secret police. Both were murdered on February 13, 1965. After the restoration of democracy, Delgado was honored as a national hero and his remains were transferred to Portugal’s National Pantheon.
The balance of the letter responds to a question posed by H. Keith Thompson concerning Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz, commander of Nazi Germany’s navy and Hitler’s designated successor. Delgado discusses whether a military officer’s obligation to obey orders may be superseded by a higher duty to the nation:
“Even the German Army, always so disciplined, have thought of liquidating Hitler, the maximum representative of power, putting Germany, their country, above everything else, even the Chancellor.”
Delgado acknowledges that Thompson had advanced an argument supporting “complete obedience from an officer, even of an high rank post,” adding:
“…this may be the case of Admiral Doenitz.”
He declines to offer a final judgment without further study, explaining that the opening of his presidential campaign was consuming all his attention.
The recipient, Harold Keith Thompson, styled himself a journalist and public-relations counsel but was also a prominent participant in postwar American far-right circles. Thompson maintained relationships with former Nazi military figures and campaigned for the release of Dönitz. This background explains his solicitation of Delgado’s opinion concerning military obedience and the imprisoned German admiral.
The letter is remarkable on several levels: it announces the beginning of Delgado’s campaign; openly brands Portugal a one-party police dictatorship; acknowledges the possibility of severe personal consequences; discusses the military duty to resist a dictator; names Hitler and Dönitz; and was written to one of America’s most controversial postwar political activists.
Condition: Typed on Delgado’s personal Lisbon letterhead bearing his name and military aviation wings. General handling creases and wrinkling, light toning, several short marginal tears, minor edge wear, and small corner bends. No significant textual loss. Delgado’s sweeping purple-ink signature is bold, complete, and prominently placed beneath the closing.
A museum-worthy document from one of the defining days in modern Portuguese history, written by the man whose courageous challenge shook the Salazar dictatorship and ultimately cost him his life.
DELGADO, HUMBERTO (1906–1965). Portuguese Air Force general, founder of TAP Air Portugal, opposition presidential candidate, and martyr of the resistance to António de Oliveira Salazar’s Estado Novo dictatorship. Typed Letter Signed, “Humberto Delgado,” one page on his personal aviation letterhead. Lisbon, May 10, 1958. Addressed to American publicist H. Keith Thompson. Signed in Delgado’s characteristic purple ink.
An extraordinary political letter written on the opening day of Humberto Delgado’s historic presidential campaign—the exact date on which his electrifying promise to dismiss dictator António de Oliveira Salazar transformed him into Portugal’s “General without Fear.”
Delgado opens:
“It starts today the campaign for the Presidency of the Republic on which I am a candidate, against the dictatorship which has governed my Country for the last 32 years.”
On that same day, May 10, 1958, Delgado held a press conference at Lisbon’s Chave d’Ouro café. When asked what he would do with Salazar if elected, he made the declaration that became one of the most famous statements in modern Portuguese political history:
“Obviamente, demito-o!”—“Obviously, I’ll dismiss him!”
In the present letter, Delgado forthrightly compares Portugal’s authoritarian government with Nazi Germany:
“It is not a dictatorship as brutal as Hitler’s but anyway one which has only one party, Political Police, etc.”
Delgado then acknowledges the extraordinary personal danger he faced by challenging Salazar:
“Having taken such a decision I run definite risks, since anyone who has the nerves to declare himself against the dictator usually suffers severe consequences.”
The passage is chillingly prophetic. Delgado’s campaign was subjected to government censorship, police intimidation, and electoral manipulation. The official results of the June 8 election awarded victory to Salazar’s candidate, Américo Tomás, but the result was widely regarded as fraudulent. Delgado was subsequently dismissed from military service and forced into exile.
Seven years after writing this letter, Delgado and his secretary were lured to the Spanish-Portuguese frontier by agents of the PIDE secret police. Both were murdered on February 13, 1965. After the restoration of democracy, Delgado was honored as a national hero and his remains were transferred to Portugal’s National Pantheon.
The balance of the letter responds to a question posed by H. Keith Thompson concerning Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz, commander of Nazi Germany’s navy and Hitler’s designated successor. Delgado discusses whether a military officer’s obligation to obey orders may be superseded by a higher duty to the nation:
“Even the German Army, always so disciplined, have thought of liquidating Hitler, the maximum representative of power, putting Germany, their country, above everything else, even the Chancellor.”
Delgado acknowledges that Thompson had advanced an argument supporting “complete obedience from an officer, even of an high rank post,” adding:
“…this may be the case of Admiral Doenitz.”
He declines to offer a final judgment without further study, explaining that the opening of his presidential campaign was consuming all his attention.
The recipient, Harold Keith Thompson, styled himself a journalist and public-relations counsel but was also a prominent participant in postwar American far-right circles. Thompson maintained relationships with former Nazi military figures and campaigned for the release of Dönitz. This background explains his solicitation of Delgado’s opinion concerning military obedience and the imprisoned German admiral.
The letter is remarkable on several levels: it announces the beginning of Delgado’s campaign; openly brands Portugal a one-party police dictatorship; acknowledges the possibility of severe personal consequences; discusses the military duty to resist a dictator; names Hitler and Dönitz; and was written to one of America’s most controversial postwar political activists.
Condition: Typed on Delgado’s personal Lisbon letterhead bearing his name and military aviation wings. General handling creases and wrinkling, light toning, several short marginal tears, minor edge wear, and small corner bends. No significant textual loss. Delgado’s sweeping purple-ink signature is bold, complete, and prominently placed beneath the closing.
A museum-worthy document from one of the defining days in modern Portuguese history, written by the man whose courageous challenge shook the Salazar dictatorship and ultimately cost him his life.
