He was hailed by both contemporaries and posterity as a key figure who helped spread the liberal ideals that allowed Brazil and Portugal to move from Absolutist regimes to representative forms of government.
Tanto os seus coetáneos coma historiadores posteriores considerárono unha figura chave que axudou a espallar os ideais liberais que permitiron que o Brasil e Portugal pasasen dos réximes absolutistas a outras formas de goberno representativo.