A prominent member of the Partido Regenerador, he was at various times Mayor of Viseu, Deputy, Peer of the Realm, Minister of Maritime Affairs, Minister of Public Works[2] and Civil Governor of the districts of Braga and Porto.

[citation needed] He was also secretary general of the government of Portuguese India, and ambassador of Portugal in Brazil.

Elected a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences, he was president of the Department of Letters.

He died in Lisbon and was buried in the Cemitério dos Prazeres.

[citation needed] A versatile writer and journalist, Tomás Ribeiro left a vast body of work.