- published: 23 May 2016
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Portugal i/ˈpɔrtʃʉɡəl/ (Portuguese: Portugal, IPA: [puɾtuˈɣaɫ]), officially the Portuguese Republic (Portuguese: República Portuguesa) is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula . Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira are part of Portugal. The country is named after its second largest city, Porto, whose Latin name was Portus Cale.
The land within the borders of the current Portuguese Republic has been continuously settled since prehistoric times: occupied by Celts like the Gallaeci and the Lusitanians, integrated into the Roman Republic and later settled by Germanic peoples such as the Suebi, Swabians, Vandals and the Visigoths. In the 8th century most of the Iberian Peninsula was conquered by Moorish invaders professing Islam, which were later expelled by the Knights Templar under the Order of Christ. During the Christian Reconquista, Portugal established itself as an independent kingdom from León in 1139, claiming to be the oldest European nation state.
The Kingdom of Portugal (Portuguese: Reino de Portugal, Latin: Regnum Portugalliae), or the Kingdom of Portugal and the Algarves (Portuguese: Reino de Portugal e dos Algarves,Latin: Regnum Portugalliae et Algarbia), was Portugal's general designation under the monarchy. The kingdom was located in the west of the Iberian Peninsula, Europe and existed from 1139 to 1910. It was replaced by the Portuguese First Republic after the 5 October 1910 revolution.
The Kingdom of Portugal finds its origins in the County of Portugal (1093–1139). The Portuguese County was a semi-autonomous county of the Kingdom of Leon. Independence from Leon took place in three stages:
Once Portugal was independent, D. Afonso I's descendants, members of the Portuguese House of Burgundy, would rule Portugal until 1383. Even after the change in royal houses, all the monarchs of Portugal were descended from Afonso I, one way or another, through both legitimate and illegitimate links.
With the turn of the twentieth century, republicanism would grow in numbers and support. This height of support for the republican cause would lead to the Lisbon Regicide on February 1, 1908. When returning from the Ducal Palace at Vila Viçosa, King Carlos I and the Prince Royal Luis Filipe were killed in the Terreiro do Paço, in Lisbon. With the death of the king and his heir, Carlos I's second son would become king as King Manuel II of Portugal. Manuel's reign, however, would be short and would end with the 5 October 1910 revolution, which sent Manuel into exile in England and would start the Portuguese First Republic.