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Once again, the organisation of the catalogue in its various sections became a primary focus for the BNL's administration. However, a notable innovation during this period was allowing readers direct access to the general catalogue, aligning with new library science orientations. Oliveira Marques, an esteemed scholar in medieval history and the history of the First Republic, had broader and deeper ambitions. He aimed to organise specific catalogues that would facilitate the identification of existing works. To achieve this, he managed to recruit more than twenty scholarship holders supported by the Institute of High Culture.
Reflecting the dominant spirit of citizenship, the National Library hosted an exhibition on elections for Constituent Assemblies during this period. This exhibition, curated by the historical expertise and pedagogical sensitivity of its director, highlighted the significant dates of 1820, 1836, and 1911, thereby drawing attention to other crucial moments in Portugal's history. This initiative fulfilled the stated purpose that "a national library should be a world of cultural activities," and it also aligned with the decentralised aspect of its policy, evidenced by the display of this exhibition in Porto.
The emergence of the Fifth Provisional Government led by Vasco Gonçalves, and the associated political interventions caused significant consternation and dampened the enthusiasm of Oliveira Marques as Director of the National Library (BNL). Consequently, he stepped down in July 1976, although he did not immediately request to be relieved of his duties, thus preventing an immediate replacement which only occurred in 1980. His successor, João Pedro Palma-Ferreira, criticised this delay and emphasised the political nature of the appointment, drawing parallels with the republican Faustino da Fonseca and a more populist vision of the BNL, which he deemed ambitionless and stagnant in problem-solving. Palma-Ferreira contended that the period between 1974 and 1979, which corresponded to the directorship of Oliveira Marques and the Management and Restructuring Commission created by Decree-Law No. 159/78 of 4 July, had left the BNL at the mercy of "internal and external disturbances and indecisions" due to a "lack of direction and organisational capacity." Despite his harsh criticism of Oliveira Marques, Palma-Ferreira acknowledged that the library's failures were structural, stemming from issues such as staff shortages, lack of administrative autonomy, and technical problems related to the poor organisation of catalogues, which hindered the National Library's integration into new trends in computerised library science.
