Portugal

Portugal

República Portuguesa

Basic information

Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (Portuguese: República Portuguesa). It is located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula, and is the westernmost country of mainland Europe. Portugal is bordered by Spain to the north and east and by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south. The Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira, are also part of Portugal.

Portugal has witnessed a constant flow of different civilizations during the past 3,100 years, including Greek, Roman, Germanic and others, who all made an imprint on the country's culture, history, language. During the 15th and 16th centuries, its vast transcontinental empire made Portugal one of the world's major economic, political, and cultural powers. Nowadays, Portugal is a developed country, a member of the European Union since 1986 and a Eurozone founding member that launched the single currency in 1999.

History Portugal as an independent nation started on June

24, 1128, when the Count of Portugal, Afonso Henriques proclaimed himself as king. In October 5, 1143, Alfonso VII, King of León and Castile, recognized the independence of the County of Portugal, with Afonso I as its King. Afonso and his successors, pushed southwards to wrest more land from the Moors, as Portugal started with about half its present area. In 1249 the Portuguese Reconquista ended when it reached the southern coast of the Algarve.

In 1373 Portugal made an alliance with England, which is the longest-standing alliance in the world. In the following decades, Portugal spearheaded the exploration of the world and started the Age of Discovery. Prince Henry the Navigator, son of King John I, took on the role of main sponsor and patron of this endeavour. First portuguese flag.

In 1383, the King of Castile claimed the right to the throne of Portugal, as he was married to the daughter of the King of Portugal who had died with no male heir. The ensuing popular revolt led to the 1383-1385 Crisis. A faction of petty noblemen and common folk, led by John of Aviz (later John I) defeated the Castilians on the Battle of Aljubarrota, the most celebrated battle in Portuguese history and still a symbol of the struggle for independence from neighbour Spain.

In 1415, the Portuguese Empire began when a Portuguese fleet conquered Ceuta, a rich Islamic trade centre in North Africa. There followed the first discoveries in the Atlantic: Madeira and the Azores, which led to the first colonization movements.

Padrão dos Descobrimentos, Lisbon

Throughout the 15th century, the Portuguese Explorers sailed down the coast of Africa, establishing trading posts along the way, while they were looking for the route to India, land of the spices, which were very precious in Europe. In 1498, Vasco da Gama finally arrived in India by sea.

In 1500, Pedro Álvares Cabral landed on Brazil and claimed it for the Portuguese Crown. Thus, the Portuguese Empire had the dominion of the commerce in the Indian Ocean and in the South Atlantic.

Vasco da Gama

The independence of Portugal was interrupted from 1580 to 1640. As King Sebastian died in a battle in Morocco leaving no heir, Philip II of Spain claimed the throne and got it, becoming Philip I of Portugal. Although Portugal did not lose its formal indepence as a kingdom, the fact is that it was governed by the same king that governed Spain, forming a Union of Kingdoms; but not for long: In 1640, John IV spearheaded a rebellious uprising backed by disgruntled Portuguese nobles, and was acclaimed King, starting the long-lasting dynasty of Braganza. By this time, however, the Portuguese Empire was already under severe attack from the ambitions of other countries, specifically Britain and the Netherlands, and Portugal began a slow but inexorable decline until the 20th century. This decline was hastened by the independence in 1822 of the country's largest colonial possession, Brazil which contributed to a period of political chaos and civil wars.

In 1910, a republican revolution deposed the Portuguese monarchy. But the chaos continued and considerable economic problems aggravated by a disastrous military intervention in the First World War led to a military coup d'état in 1926. This led to the establishment of the right-wing dictatorship of António de Oliveira Salazar. In the early 1960s, independence movements in the colonies of Angola, Mozambique and Portuguese Guinea resulted in the Portuguese Colonial War, weakening the regime. In 1974, a bloodless left-wing military coup led the way for the democratic regime of today. Membership in the European Union was achieved in 1986 and since then Portugal has been engaged in a process of convergence with its EU counterparts.

Government and Politics

Portugal is a democratic republic ruled by the Constitution of 1976.The four main organs of Portuguese politics are the President of the

Republic, the Assembly of the Republic, the Government, and the Courts.

The President of the Republic, which is elected to a five year term by universal suffrage, has a supervising, non-executive role. The Assembly of the Republic is composed of 230 deputies elected by universal suffrage for four year terms.

The Government is headed by the Prime Minister, who chooses his Council of Ministers, made of Ministers and their assistants, the Secretaries of State. The national and regional governments are dominated by two political parties, the Socialist Party and the Social Democratic Party.

Foreign Relations and Military Portugal is a member of NATO since

1949, of the European Union since 1986. There is a friendship alliance and dual citizenship treaty with Brazil. Portugal also has very good relations with the USA, UK, China, as well as the other European Union countries, and centuries-old diplomatic ties with Morocco.

The Portuguese Armed Forces are divided into three branches: Army, Navy, and Air Force. In the 20th century, Portugal engaged in two major military interventions: the First Great War and the Colonial war (1961-1974). Portugal has participated in several peacekeeping missions abroad, namely East Timor, Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq.

Geography and Climate

Continental Portugal is split in two by its main river, the Tagus (Tejo). Northern landscape is mountainous in the interior areas. The South area between the Tejo and the Algarve (the Alentejo) features mostly rolling plains with a climate somewhat warmer and drier than the cooler and rainier north. The Algarve, separated from the Alentejo by mountains, enjoys a Mediterranean climate comparable with Morocco or Southern Spain.

The islands of the Azores and Madeira are located in the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Some of these islands have had recent volcanic activity, as recently as 1957. Portugal's highest point is Mount Pico in Pico Island, an ancient volcano, at 2,351 metres.

Portugal's climate can be classified as Mediterranean. One of the warmest European countries, yearly temperature averages in Mainland Portugal are 15 °C in the north and 18 °C in the south. Madeira and Azores have a narrower temperature range. Spring and summer months are sunny, autumns and winters are rainy and windy.

Economy

Portugal joined the European Union in 1986 and started a process of modernization in a very stable environment. It achieved a healthy level of growth in terms of modernization. Portugal was one of the founding countries of the euro in 1999.

Major industries include oil refineries, automotive, cement production, pulp and paper industry, textile, footwear, furniture, and cork (the world’s leading producer). Agriculture no longer represents most of the economy but the Portuguese wines, namely Port Wine and Madeira Wine are still exported worldwide.

Tourism is also an important activity, specially in the Algarve (south) and Madeira Islands regions.

Education

The education system of Portugal is divided into Pre-schooling (children until the age of six), Basic Education (nine years in three stages and compulsory), Secondary Education (three years) and Higher Education (University and Polytechnic).

Portuguese Universities exist since 1290. They are divided into faculties. The Bologna process is being adopted to become effective before 2011.

Law

The Portuguese legal system is part of the continental family of legal systems based on civil law. Up to the end of the 19th century French law was the main influence, but since then the major influence has been German law.

Portuguese law applied in the former colonies and territories and continues to be the major influence. This includes for example the legal system of Macau.

Religion

Religion in Portugal is profoundly Roman Catholic. According to common saying, "to be Portuguese is to be Catholic," and approximately 97 percent of the population consider themselves Roman Catholic - the highest percentage in Western Europe.

Culture

Portugal has developed a specific culture while being influenced by the various civilizations that crossed the Mediterranean and those that were discovered during the Age of Discovery.

Portuguese literature is one of the earliest Western literatures, developed through texts and songs. Until 1350, the Portuguese-Galician troubadours spread their literary influence to most of the Iberian Peninsula . Gil Vicente (c.1465 - c.1536) was one of the founders of both Portuguese and Spanish dramatic traditions. Adventurer and poet Luís de Camões (c.1524 - 1580) wrote the epic poem The Lusiads, with Virgil's Aeneid as main model. Modern Portuguese poetry is essentially rooted in neo-classic and contemporary styles, as execplified by Fernando Pessoa (1888 – 1935). Modern literature became internationally known through the works of, among others, Almeida Garrett, Camilo Castelo Branco, Eça de Queirós, Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, António Lobo Antunes, and 1998 Nobel prize winner, José Saramago.

Music & Architecture

Portuguese music encompasses a wide variety of genres. The most renowned is Fado, a melancholic urban music, usually associated to the Portuguese guitar and to saudade, the feeling of missing someone. Some of its most internationally notable performers are Amália Rodrigues, Mariza, Mísia, and Madredeus. Apart from these acts, one of the most notable Portuguese acts outside, specially in Germany, is the gothic-metal band Moonspell, even though the genre is not very common in Portugal as it is on other European countries. Despite fado and folk, Portuguese youngsters seem to enjoy rock, pop and other modern types of music. The Portuguese organize every year several festivals like Zambujeira do Mar, Paredes de Coura, Rock in Rio Lisboa, MTV Europe Music Awards in 2005 among many others.

Portuguese traditional architecture is distinct due to the variety of influences that it features. Modern Portugal has given the world renowned architects Eduardo Souto de Moura and Álvaro Siza Vieira. Prominent international figures in visual arts include painters Vieira da Silva and Paula Rego.

Since the 1990s, Portugal has increased the number of public cultural facitilies, in addition to the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation established in 1956. These include the Belém Cultural Center in Lisbon, Serralves Foundation and the House of Music, both in Oporto.

Festivals and Holidays

Festivals play a major role in Portugal's summers. Almost every city, town and village has its own festivals. The summer festivities are very popular. Among these festivities are the June festivities dedicated to three saints known as Santos Populares (popular saints) that take place all over Portugal. Why the population associated the saints with these pagan festivities is not known. The practice is possibly related to Roman or local deities before Christianity spread into the region. The three saints are Saint Anthony, Saint John and Saint Peter. A common denominator in these festivities generally includes the wine and água-pé (a watered kind of wine), traditional bread along with grilled sardines, pimba music, traditional street dances, fireworks, religious processions and celebration.

Cuisine

Portuguese cuisine is particularly diverse; various recipes of rice, potatoes, bread, meat, sea-food, and fish are the staple foods in the country. The Portuguese have a reputation for loving cod dishes (bacalhau in Portuguese), for which it is said that there are 365 ways (one for each day of the year) of cooking it: Pastéis de Bacalhau, Bacalhau à Brás and Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá are some of the most popular ones. Other fish recipes are popular like the grilled sardines and Caldeirada. The art of pastry, having its origins in old and rich conventual pastry recipes, is very popular across the entire country. Desserts and cakes, such as Lisbon's Pastéis de Nata (best eaten with a strong coffee), Aveiro's Ovos-Moles, and many other, are very appreciated. Portugal has its own adaptation of fast-food; one of the most popular is Porto's Francesinha. Other recipes include the Feijoada, made with pieces of meat, sausages and beans served with white and dry rice, the Cozido à Portuguesa, made with various kinds of meat, rice, potatoes and other vegetables, all boiled, and the Espetadas.

Wines

Portuguese wines have been exported since Roman times. The Romans associated Portugal with Bacchus, their god of Winery and Feast. Today the country is known by wine lovers, and its wines have won several international prizes. Many famous Portuguese wines are known as some of the world's best: Vinho Verde, Vinho Alvarinho, Vinho do Douro, Vinho do Alentejo, Vinho do Dão, Vinho da Bairrada and the sweet: Port Wine, Madeira wine and the Moscatels of Setúbal and Favaios (Douro). Porto Wine is widely exported, followed by Vinho Verde. Exports of Vinho Verde are increasing rapidly, in response to the growing international demand.

Sports and games

Football is the most known, loved and practiced sport in Portugal. Luís Figo was one of the world's top players, but the legendary Eusébio is still a major symbol of Portuguese football.

The Portuguese national team, or Selecção Nacional, has won two FIFA World Youth Championships and several other UEFA youth championships. After a third place in the 1966 FIFA World Cup, they finished in fourth place at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, losing to Germany in the third-place match. In addition, they finished second in Euro 2004, their best ever result in this competition.

Portuguese Football

FC Porto, SL Benfica and Sporting Clube de Portugal are the main clubs, often known as "os três grandes" ("the big three"). While Benfica has played in the UEFA Champions League final (then the UEFA Champions Cup) seven times and has two titles, FC Porto has two titles from two finals (1987 and 2004) in that competition alongside two Intercontinental Cups, a UEFA Super Cup (1987), and is the only Portuguese team to have won a UEFA Cup (2003). Although Benfica was the most popular and successful Portuguese club in Europe in the past, FC Porto's success in the European competitions has put them in the Top 10 World Clubs. By dominating the national competition since the late 1980s, FC Porto is the only Portuguese team to ever achieve five Portuguese Football Championship titles in a row (1995-1999). Sporting Clube de Portugal has won a European Cup Winners' Cup.

Portugal is probably best known for its rink hockey team, with 15 world titles. The most important Portuguese hockey clubs in the European championships are SL Benfica, FC Porto, UD Oliveirense and Óquei de Barcelos.

Quiz time

1. Which is the correct ensign of Portugal?

correct

2. Which is the correct national anthem of Portugal?

2. Which is the correct national anthem of Portugal?

2. Which is the correct national anthem of Portugal?

correct

3. Where is Portugal located?

correct

4. Who was the first to arrive in Indie by sea?

• Ferdynand Magellan

• Christopher Columbus

• Vasco da Gama correct

5. Name the number of Portugese Political organs?

• 3

• 5

• 4 correct

Obregado

Thank you