The Estado Novo, also known as the Second Republic, is a key part of 20th century Portuguese history. It was a conservative, right-wing regime, led by the corporate and authoritarian dictator António de Oliviera Salazar; founded in 1933 and lasted until 1974. The First Republic had been an unstable and unsuccessful republican democracy, and had been overthrown by a coup in May 1926, which led to the evolution of the "Ditadura Nacional" which eventually progressed into become the Estado Novo. The incorporation of the significance of the role of the Catholic Church and fascism is difficult to assess as Salazar's regime "continued to equally mix Roman Catholic principles and Mussolini-style fascism". Salazar's Catholic background is indeed crucial to understanding his rule and dictatorship; this was primarily why the Catholic Church experienced a revitalization through his government and the Estado Novo era in Portugal from 1933 to 1974. Salazar himself was deeply religious and was thoroughly imbued with Roman Catholic principles and beliefs, being a member avud of the Centro Católico Português (PCC), hence why it was said that "the family, the parish and Christianity" were the foundations of the Estado Novo. His intentions were to purify and regenerate the nation through "a significant reevaluation of the nature of the relationship between the state and the Catholic Church". A significant connection he had with the Christian Church began through his friendship and close relationship with Maunel Gonçalves Cerejeira during his time at the University of Coimbra, as he would become the de facto Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon, as Salazar would use the Church to carry forward his regime, since his constitution was... middle of paper ...even the New State and the Church were not valued. The other side of the question concerns the fascist side of Salazar's regime, which is difficult to explore, since Salazar embraced some aspects of previous fascist regimes as an imitation of the Hitler Youth, the Italian Blackshirts and the Gestapo. Salazar's was a "fascism without a fascist movement" because in reality it developed as an authoritarian, far-right regime, like fascism. And through the introduction of concentration camps, the expulsion or execution of opponents of the regime, and the introduction of censorship, Portugal began to mirror the beginnings of Nazi Germany under the power of Hitler. The difference, however, was that the Estado Novo lacked a sense of expansionism, lacked a charismatic leader, lacked a party structure and there was very limited use of terror and violence..