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Even though the Spanish did indeed invade
Portugal on several occasions, Portugal has
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never been fully conquered by Spain.
This may seem a little puzzling,
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considering how enthusiastically Spain
went about acquiring new colonies.
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And, at the height of its powers, Spain was
unquestionably more mighty than Portugal,
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both in terms of military
power and population size.
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Portugal was even technically under Spanish
rule for a 60-year period, but conquered? Never.
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In the 1500s, Spain was flexing its military
muscle and snapping up new territories almost at
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will. Mexico, the Caribbean, the Philippines,
and South America fell to Spanish rule,
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making Spain seriously rich in the process.
And all the while, a smaller, less-populated
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country lay unconquered, right on Spain’s
doorstep and surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean.
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To understand why, it’s important to
first look at how each country took shape.
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The Iberian Peninsula – today’s
Spain and Portugal – has seen
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its fair share of rulers over the years…
The Romans claimed Iberia in around 218 BC,
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where it remained a Roman territory for
the next six hundred or so years until
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the Visigoths came onto the scene.
In the year 418 AD, the Visigoths
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stormed into Iberia, seizing it from the Romans
and assuming control for the next three centuries.
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Iberia was very much a Visigoth stronghold but
fell to the Umayyad Caliphate in the 8th century
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AD. The Umayyads brought an army of Moors
from North Africa and imposed Muslim rule,
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which was fiercely opposed by the Iberians.
There were uprisings and a never-ending
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series of battles, leading to eventual
civil war throughout the whole peninsula.
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This battle against Muslim rule was the start of
The Reconquista – or the “Reconquest” of Iberia,
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later to become Spain and Portugal.
The Moors controlled most of the south,
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while in the north, the Christian kingdoms Aragon,
Castille, Navarre, and Leon were established.
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In the late 9th century, King Alfonso
of the Kingdom of Asturias sent one of
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his noblemen into the northwest of
the peninsula to expel the Moors.
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The nobleman was Vimara Peres
and he rose to the challenge.
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In 868, Peres led his Christian
soldiers to a decisive victory
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against the Moors and reclaimed the
region around the Minho and Douro Rivers,
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including the city of Portus Cale –
from which Portugal was to get its name.
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King Alfonso was delighted and immediately
declared the new region to be the County
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of Portugal, and Peres was named the Count
of Portugal. The Count began building new
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towns in the area, one of which he named
Vimaranes – known today as Guimarães.
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Even though Portugal didn’t officially become
a country until 1143, most Portuguese regard
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Guimaraes as the country’s “cradle
city”, where Portugal was born.
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In 910, the Kingdom of Asturias
was split, but reunited again
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in 924 – this time as the Kingdom of Leon.
Portugal was now a county in the north-western
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Kingdom of Leon, and by the end of the 10th
century, had begun to grow in power. More and
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more people were opting to settle in
Portugal and the cities were growing.
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In the early 12th century, the rulers
of the county of Portugal were Henry of
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Burgundy and his wife Teresa of León.
They had a son, Afonso Henriques,
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and when Henry died in 1112, his wife
Teresa was left to rule Portugal alone.
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But, to the disapproval of many Portuguese,
she soon remarried – to a nobleman from the
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Galicia region. They were suspicious of
Teresa and her new husband’s motives,
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and they backed young Afonso to lead Portugal to
further victories over the southern Moors. Afonso
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was urged to seize control of Portugal, which
meant going into battle against his own mother.
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At the Battle of Sao Mamede in 1128, Afonso’s
soldiers soundly defeated his mother’s army,
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and he became the sole leader of Portugal.
He continued to fight for the Reconquista and
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in 1139, won a famous victory
at the Battle of Ourique.
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The clash took place in the south of
the Iberian Peninsula against the Muslim
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army of Cordoba. Although outnumbered,
Afonso orchestrated a stunning victory
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with cunning tactics and surprise attacks.
After the battle, Afonso was declared to
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be the King of Portugal. This meant that
Portugal was to be now recognized as its
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own independent state, not a county of Leon…
The King of Leon recognized Afonso in 1143 with
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the signing of the Zamora Treaty. This signified
the beginning of Portugal as an independent
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country, and in 1179, the Catholic Church
finally recognized the new Kingdom of Portugal.
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The Portuguese Reconquista became a
reality in 1249 when Christian forces
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marched into Algarve and sent the last
of the Moors packing. Portugal had now
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extended all the way south to the Atlantic Ocean.
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In 1255, Lisbon was named the
Portuguese capital, and in 1297,
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King Denis signed the Treaty of Alcañices,
which formalized Portugal’s border with Leon.
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The borders set up then have
essentially remained the same as today.
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As Portugal entered the 14th century as an
optimistic and outward-looking young country,
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Spain was still fighting its
way towards the Reconquista.
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Progress was slowed due to infighting between
kingdoms, a lack of sturdy leadership, and the
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much greater land mass.
In the early 14th century, Portugal began amassing
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its naval power. In 1325, Afonso the Fourth
commissioned the building of maritime vessels for
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exploration and potential war. The Canary Islands
were discovered in 1341, but Castille – basically
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Spain - disputed the legitimacy of the discovery.
But, in the mid-14th century, the Black Death
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decimated most of Europe, putting the brakes
on any plans for exploration and expansion.
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However, in the latter half of the 1300s,
the European powers began jostling for the
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upper hand. Relations between England and
France were strained, and both countries
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were in the midst of the Hundred Years
War, which dragged out from 1337 to 1453.
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France wanted access to Spain’s formidable
navy, which had one of the largest fleets
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in the world at the time. This would give France a
definite edge at sea against England. So, in 1169,
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an alliance between France and Castille was
drawn up, which made England exceedingly uneasy.
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The English realized that Portugal
was strategically located between
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Spain and the Atlantic Ocean,
and had a well-established navy.
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The two agreed on an alliance, with the
Anglo-Portuguese Treaty of 1373 sealing the deal.
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The Anglo-Portuguese Treaty remains the world’s
oldest existing formal treaty between two nations…
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In the 15th century, Portugal established itself
as a world leader in naval exploration. For the
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first half of the century, Spain
was distracted by its fight for
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the Reconquista, and Portugal led the way.
Under the backing of Henry the Navigator,
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Portugal sent out fleet after fleet with very
clear orders to find and conquer new lands.
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It kicked things off with the conquest
of Cuerta in Morocco, in 1415.
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Then, in 1420, Portugal colonized the
Madeira archipelago off the African
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West Coast, the Azores islands in the North
Atlantic in 1439, and Cape Verde in 1456.
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Spain could only watch on in envy,
as it had its hands full fighting
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the remaining Muslims in the
southern region of Granada.
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The Spanish finally saw off the last of
the Emirate of Granada, but not until 1492.
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The shackles were now off and Spain looked
to start asserting its authority and building
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some serious wealth. Following Portugal’s lead,
the Spanish began planning missions to discover
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and settle new territories overseas.
Later that year, the Spanish government
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commissioned an ambitious explorer from
Genoa called Christopher Columbus to seek
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new lands to the west. 1492 was about
to become a really big year for Spain…
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While Spain had been tied up with its
Reconquista, Portugal had wasted no time
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in establishing several colonies and trading
settlements along the African West Coast.
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This enabled the Portuguese
complete access to gold, silver,
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and the burgeoning slave trade in Africa.
In 1488, Bartolomeu Dias sailed around the
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Cape of Good Hope, proving that the Indian
and Atlantic Oceans could indeed meet up.
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Portugal was rubbing its hands in glee at what
seemed like a monopoly of colonization. But when
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Columbus sailed into the Bahamas in October
1492, things were about to really heat up.
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Europe was blown away to learn of a completely
new land across the Atlantic. The race was
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on to conquer the Americas, with Portugal and
Spain leading the way. Competition was fierce…
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To prevent any likely territorial disputes,
a papal bull was created. In 1494,
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the Treaty of Tordesillas was signed by
Spain and Portugal, essentially splitting
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the world in two. A demarcation line was drawn
vertically down the middle of the Atlantic,
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roughly 500 kilometers west of the Cape
Verde islands. Spain could lay claim to
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anything lying to the west, while Portugal
was entitled to anywhere to the east.
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The treaty meant that Spain had
virtually all of the Americas to itself,
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with the exception of Brazil, which was
jutting out into Portuguese territory.
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With both Iberian countries now victorious
over the Moors, it could have been the prime
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time for Spain to turn its energies to Portugal.
However, the lure of global dominance and overseas
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wealth was far greater. Spain and Portugal ramped
up their efforts to acquire whatever they could.
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In 1498, Vasco De Gama literally put
Portugal on the map when he ventured
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around Cape Horn and made it to India. This
opened up huge new opportunities for Portugal
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as it now had a sea route to trade with Asia.
In 1500, Pedro Álvares Cabral claimed Brazil for
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Portugal. Spain hit back with the conquest
of Cuba in 1511 and then Mexico in 1521.
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This continued throughout much of the 16th
century, with countries amassing huge fortunes
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from the resources in their new colonies.
And then suddenly, Portugal was left
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without an heir to the throne…
In 1578, Portugal’s young King
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Sebastian the First was killed in battle. His
successor was his great uncle Henry the First,
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who also died just two years later.
But as luck would have it, the Spanish
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King Philip the First had Portuguese lineage.
His parents were Charles the Fifth – the Holy
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Roman Emperor – and Isabella of Portugal. He
promptly claimed the Portugese throne somewhat
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confusingly as Philip the Second. Bizarrely, both
countries now shared the same king but were united
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only as kingdoms. Portugal still retained
its independence but with strict limitations
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regarding foreign policy. If ever there was a time
for Spain to conquer Portugal, this was surely it.
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Again though, Spain was too busy in maintaining
and developing its overseas colonies. Besides,
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the Reconquista had exhausted
Spain. An invasion of Portugal
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would have required huge numbers of troops
and resources that simply weren’t available.
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Spain also had other concerns.
It was engaged in the Eighty Years War
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with the Netherlands. This meant dragging
Portugal in, against Portugal’s wishes.
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The awkward alliance with Spain also
meant Portugal’s treaty with England
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became null and void. As Portugal was
drawn into tensions with the Netherlands,
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the Dutch-Portuguese War broke out. From 1595
to 1663, the Dutch raided countless Portuguese
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colonies in Brazil, India, and Africa, and
Portugal bemoaned the lack of English support.
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Meanwhile, nobles in Portugal were incensed
with having to pay extra taxes to support
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Spain. The union of kingdoms was
deemed to be biased towards Spain.
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In 1640, Portugal’s John the Fourth led a
revolt, and full independence was returned
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with the Portuguese Restoration War.
This enabled Portugal to mend its
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relationship with Britain, which proved to
be very useful in the late 18th century.
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The Seven Years' War between England
and France led once again to tensions
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between the former Iberian allies.
The English-backed Portuguese were
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invaded by the French-supported Spanish in
1762. Portuguese guerilla warfare and the
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onslaught of British naval and cavalry power
were too much. Despite the French and Spanish
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throwing thousands of men into the invasion,
they were soundly defeated and withdrew in 1763.
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This was as close as Spain
came to conquering Portugal.
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Spanish forces had entered Portugal
and engaged in conflict. They ran
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into an unforgiving hilly terrain and a
fiercely determined civilian population.
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When the Spanish troops withdrew, it signaled
the final opportunity to conquer Portugal. The
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Spanish were always more concerned with overseas
colonization than with conquering Portugal. That,
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in addition to ongoing conflicts with
the Moors and other European nations,
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meant they simply couldn’t afford to.
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But as the Portuguese showed ever since Vimara
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Peres defeated the Moors – they were
never going to be conquered anyway...
