The Courier

Lisbon, Praça do Municipio (Municipal Square).

© Hegel Goutier

History of Portugal. The gateway of the Algarve

Portugal is one of Europe’s oldest countries, possibly the oldest to be established as a nation-state, and has hardly changed at all in territorial terms since its creation in 1143 AD. In reality, the country has had its own identity for a great deal longer than that.

Already in 139 BC, Roman occupiers called it ‘Lusitania’, acknowledging the primacy of the Lusitanians in the region who lived in the western part of the country when the Phoenicians arrived. They were followed by the Greeks (between the 9th and 7th centuries BC) and they remained for six centuries. Each of these occupiers (Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans) arrived through the Algarve. Later the Greeks were usurped by the Visigoths, who in turn were defeated by the Moors in 711 AD.

The Moorish kingdom had as its capital Silves (Xelb in Arabic), known today as Faro. The region was called ‘al-Gharb-al-Andalus’ (to the west of Andalusia), which was later pronounced as ‘Algarve’. This period was marked by prosperity, a vibrant culture considerable religious and political tolerance. As Clara Borja, current spokesperson of the EU Presidency, stresses to The Courier, contemporary Portuguese society continues to live up to and celebrate these open-minded principles that are a symbol of the country's sense of self-restraint.

Marriage to the daughter of Alfonso VI – then king of León and Castile -- enabled a French knight, Henry of Burgundy (who was engaged in the Crusades), to succeed in becoming the Count of Portugal in 1095 (this involved some political and courtly intrigue). His heir, Alfonso-Henry, who had pursued the campaign against the Moors, proclaimed himself King of Portugal in 1143 creating, along with a new nation, the beginnings of the Burgundy dynasty. The final Moorish bastions, those in the Algarve, succumbed in 1249. A few years later in 1254 AD, Alfonso III abandoned part of eastern Portugal, including the Algarve, to Castile and the country's borders have remained virtually unchanged ever since.

The arrival of the Avis dynasty in the late 14th century was the signal for almost 200 years of exploration and discovery. This was a truly golden age for this tiny country, whose population at the time did not exceed 2 million, but succeeded in creating an empire that spanned five continents on which sun never set. Owing to the drastic shortage of manpower, the Portuguese authorities sought to govern by a combination of understanding, attentiveness, creativity and diplomacy, while employing their new subjects to enforce their policies.

This immense enterprise got underway in 1385 AD when the first Avis, John I, hero of the war of liberation against Castile, came to the throne – first in 1415 AD with the conquest of Ceuta and then at sea, with John's son, Prince Henry the Navigator, at the helm. In 1417 AD Henry gathered together the most learned people of the time in Sagres, in the Algarve, where they considered the feasibility of sending expeditions beyond the southern parts of the Atlantic. This resulted in expeditions to Madeira, the Azores and the Cape Verde islands, and after John II came to the throne in 1481, Portuguese seafarers reached as far as Namibia and Angola (1487). Then in 1488 the Portuguese succeeded in rounding the Cape of Storms, which was subsequently named the Cape of Good Hope.

Not all was good news. In 1492 Portugal lost a major struggle with Spain to claim America. Ironically, Christopher Columbus had first approached the Portuguese with his proposal but they rejected the plan. However, they quickly recovered from this setback, settling in Brazil, parts of the Indian Ocean, Kenya, Ceylon, Ormuz, Goa and Macao.

But Portugal's golden age was drawing to a close. Within a short period the population declined from 2 million to less than a million and the risk-fraught adventures of the Crusaders dealt the final blow. By 1580, Spain had achieved supremacy over its great rival and was to dominate Portugal for the next 60 years.

Finally shaking off the Spanish brace in 1640, Portugal sought a safer long term solution and signed a treaty of friendship with England (regarded today as the longest lasting treaty in history), and reflected (to cite just one example) by the English names of port wines. Napoleon made Portugal pay for this alliance in the early 19th century when he forced the Portuguese king to seek exile in Brazil. In the meantime, the 18th century was marked by the earthquake of 1755 and the dreadful tsunami that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives. The death toll was particularly heavy in the Algarve (located near the epicentre), along the coast and in Lisbon. The 18th century was marked by the Portuguese baroque period which dominated the arts, theatre, music and architecture. The 20th century saw the emergence of a military dictatorship led by António de Oliveria Salazar and his successor Marcelo Caetano.

Then in 1974 came the Carnation Revolution and hopes of democracy began to be rekindled to the sound of Jose Alfonso's popular song Grandóla Vila Morena, which was banned during the dictatorship. The song gave the signal to revolutionary members of the armed forces to take to the streets, closely followed by the civilian population who put carnations in the barrel’s of the soldiers' guns. A bloodless revolution was won in Portugal and its colonies within one day. Freedom!

What then ensued was the return of many exiles and various periods of uncertainly – only to be expected after such an upheaval. But it concluded with the consolidation of democracy and, 12 years after the revolution, EU membership.

Territory

The country is 560 km long and 220 km wide, sharing a land border with just one country -Spain. The river Tagus is divided into two separate parts for quite a distance from north to south-west, where it runs into the sea at Lisbon. The mountains in the North are the source of the Tagus and the country's two other major rivers, the Douro and the Guadiana. The Serra de Estrela mountains reach almost 2,000 metres. To the south of the Tagus is the start of the Alentejo plateau buttressed in the south with the mountain foothills of the Algarve. The North is more heavily populated and is the main area for cereal crops, vegetables and vineyards. The arid centre and south are known for their olive trees, almond trees, citrus fruits and figs, not forgetting that revered tree, the cork oak that provides a riot of colours during its spring flowering season.

Beautiful scenery is enhanced by a wide variety of flowers and fragrant plants: white iris, the lemon tree, the carob tree and the palm. There is also a wide range of fauna in this region, providing a seemingly endless variety of birds.

There are numerous national parks, like the splendid Ria Formosa in the Algarve or Sintra Forest near Lisbon, which the English poet Lord Byron described as "Glorious Eden".

The Beautiful Algarve

The idea that the Algarve being cemented over to cater for the mass tourism industry is certainly a gross exaggeration. You can see this for yourself by taking a stroll along the heavenly Ria Formosa beaches near the regional capital Faro or visiting the Romantic Moorish town of Tavira. Tiny townships, like Olhão on the coast or Monchique in the hills, are packed with charm and surprise. Even in the most popular areas of the south-west, the new developments bear no comparison with the “bunkers” along the Belgian coast or large parts of Spanish Mediterranean.

The region is focusing more and more on resort-based tourism, in new small or medium-sized luxury developments, where retired people from northern Europe can live within walking distance of their boats or golf clubs. One example is Villamoura, where middle-class retirees can rub shoulders with show business personalities or royalty from Spain.Faro at night is like an operatic setting where people can walk around in complete safety -- strolling down one alleyway after another, from one square to another surrounded by Baroque, Moorish, Art Nouveau or Neo-Classical ambience. The countryside is idyllic and the natural parks are enchanting.

Culture glossary

Azulejo: Portugal has turned ordinariness into rich treasures with tiled roofs and pavements becoming genuine works of art. These tiles, Azulejos, were introduced by the Moors and were ideal for the local people's need for cleanliness. They were then taken up by inspired artists who turned them into exciting creations. A must visit is the Palacio dos Necessidades, which houses the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Lisbon -- if you manage to get an invitation, that is.

Bacalhau: the Portuguese name for [dried] cod, the national dish that often forms the basis for long, drawn-out mealtime discussions among family and friends about art and life.

Luis de Camoes: poet and adventurer (circa 1524 -1580), the author of Lusiades, an epic poem, which the Portuguese believe is one of the cornerstones of their culture and character.

Fado: if you can define this you must let us know! Songs that feature the moods and lament of Portuguese sailors as they travelled to Brazil, Macao, Mozambique and all the old feitorias of the Portuguese colonies. You should make a point of listening to the best of the Fado interpreters: Amália Rodrigues, Mariza, Misia, Carlos Paredes and Madredeus.
Feitorias: Portugal’s former trading posts established across five continents – melting pots of trade and cultural exchange.

Futebal: an expression that may be inserted into even the most intellectual of conversations. Other words in this context are: Selecção Nacional, worshipped, semi-final of the World Cup in 2006; Luis Figo, captain of the team at the time; Eusebio, an icon; Benfica, in the Guinness Book of Records for largest number of fans for one football club.

The Gulbenkian Foundation: Created in Lisbon in 1956 by the multimillionaire entrepreneur and a wonderful museum of art and culture.

Antonio Lobo Antunes: a writer with a fond regard about dry subjects and much appreciated by the Portuguese. His works include Fado Alexandrino (1983) examining the situation 20 years after the Carnation Revolution; The splendour of Portugal (1997) about the fondness and otherwise between Portugal and Africa.

Manuel de Oliveira: who is symbolic of Portuguese filmmaking, little noise, lots of brilliance and a great deal of affection from cinema-goers in return.
Manuélin (art): Portuguese Baroque, at the height of its glory in the 19th century, symbolised in particular by the typical twisted columns.

Mosteiro dos Jerónimos (Hieronymites Monastery): a monastery listed as a World Heritage Site. See also the Alcobaça and Batalia monasteries, among many others.

Fernando Pessoa (1888–1935): an intricate universe of his very own, several individuals and several characters in a single being, each with their own psychology, their own artistic and literary aspirations, all located in the context of a so-called “heteronymy”. A textbook case studied everywhere in the world. For Alexander Search, Alberto Caeiro, Ricardo Reis, Álvaro de Campos, Raphael Baldaya, see Fernando Pessoa or vice versa.

José Saramago: Nobel Prize for Literature in 1998.

Vinho: See the following classification: Verde, do Dão, do Douro, do Alantejo, da Barraida and so on. But in the case of Port or Madeira try an English glossary. It was, after all, originally created for the British palate.

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