Manuel II of Portugal

What people wore

Saving shoes for long journeys

During the week, laborers often traveled barefoot to save their shoes for longer journeys, carrying their footwear tied to a walking stick over their shoulder.

Getting around

Slow and noisy ox carts

In rural areas, ox-drawn carts made a loud, shriek-like noise, earning them the name chilreada, and traveled at a slow pace of only 1.5 miles per hour.

At the table

Broa as a daily staple for families

Ordinary rural families relied on 'broa' (corn bread) as a staple, often eating it with olives, fried bacon, or canned sardines, while wheat bread was reserved for special occasions.

Music

Music in the home and theater

Influential families regularly organized private dinner parties and concerts at home, while urban centers saw a boom in theater construction throughout the late nineteenth century.

Daily life

Primary education and schoolhouses

Primary schooling for children aged six to twelve was compulsory, though the lack of dedicated schoolhouses was a major challenge. Schools were often domestic in nature, sometimes with the teacher's residence attached to or part of the same building as the classroom.