Manuel da Silva Passos (5 January 1801 – 16 January 1862) was a Portuguese jurist and politician, one of the most notable personalities of 19th-century Portuguese Liberalism. He is more commonly referred to as Passos Manuel, due to the way he was addressed in Parliament, where members were announced by their surname — "Manuel" being apposed to his surname in order to distinguish him from his brother, José da Silva Passos (Passos José), who was also a member of Parliament.[1]
A declaration of principles written by Passos Manuel became famous: "I am a Minister of the Queen — the Queen is the head of the whole nation. And before I was for the Left, I was for the Fatherland. The Fatherland is my policy."[3]
He married Gervásia Joaquina Farinha de Sousa Falcão on 28 December 1838, and they had two daughters: Beatriz de Passos Manuel, who was granted the title of Viscountess of Passos by King Peter V in 1861 as a reward for her father's services; and Antónia de Passos Manuel, who married Pedro de Sousa Canavarro, grandson of the 1st Baron of Arcossô.
^Torres, João Romano. "Passos (Manuel da Silva)". Portugal – Dicionário Histórico, Corográfico, Heráldico, Biográfico, Bibliográfico, Numismático e Artístico, Volume IV. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
^Soriano, Simão José da Luz (1885). História da Guerra Civil e do Estabelecimento do Governo Parlamentar em Portugal [History of the Civil War and the Establishment of Parliamentary Government in Portugal] (in Portuguese). Vol. Terceira Epocha, Tomo V. Lisbon: Imprensa Nacional. p. 674. Eu sou ministro da rainha — a rainha é o chefe da nação toda. E antes de eu ser da esquerda já era da patria. A patria é a minha politica.