Lisbon History
Torre of Belem, built in 1519, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site; credit Alvesgaspar/Wiki Commons
Lisbon history revolves around its strategic geographical position at the mouth of the Tagus River on the Iberian Peninsula. That history stretches back to its original settlement by the indigenous Iberians, the Celts, Phoenicians and Greeks over 800–600 BC, followed by successive occupations in the city of various peoples including the Carthaginians, Romans, Suebi, Visigoths, and Moors.
Roman armies entered the Iberian peninsula in 219 BC after winning the Second Punic War against the Carthaginians. When the Roman Empire collapsed, waves of Germanic tribes invaded the peninsula, and by 500 AD, the Visigothic Kingdom controlled most of Hispania.
In 711 AD, Muslims invaded the Christian Iberian Peninsula and conquered Lisbon in 714. Despite attempts to seize it by the Normans in 844 and by Alfonso VI in 1093, Lisbon remained a Muslim nation.
Lisbon Cathedral has been restored from many earthquakes; credit Diego Delso/Wiki Commons
In 1147, Christian crusaders recaptured the city and Christian rule returned. That same year Lisbon Cathedral, a Roman Catholic cathedral, was built in 1147. The cathedral has survived many earthquakes and has been modified, renovated and restored several times, resulting in a mix of different architectural styles.
In 1256, King Afonso III moved the capital of Portugal from Coimbra to Lisbon, to take advantage of the city’s deep harbor port and its strategic position on the Western edge of Europe to North & West Africa and the Americas.
Lisbon flourished in the 15th and 16th centuries as the centre of a vast empire during the period of the Portuguese discoveries led by Vasco da Gama and others. Its sheltered natural harbor made the city historically an important seaport for trade between the Mediterranean Sea and northern Europe. It has long enjoyed commercial advantages of its geographic proximity to many other nations.
Jeronimos Monastery, another UNESCO World Heritage Site in Belem; (c) Antonio Araujo/UNSPLASH
Lisbon was the centre of a vast Portuguese empire during its “Period of Discoveries.” During that timeframe of intensive maritime exploration, Portugal accumulated great wealth and power by colonizing parts of Africa, Asia, South America, Africa and the Atlantic islands. Dahomey Resistance to their horrific West African colonization is represented in the 2022 movie Woman King, starring Viola Davis and Lashana Lynch.
Evidence of the city’s ancient wealth can be seen today in the magnificent structures built then, including the Jerónimos Monastery and the nearby Tower of Belém, each classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The 1755 Lisbon Earthquake with subsequent fires and a tsunami almost destroyed Lisbon. Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, the 1st Marquis of Pombal, took the lead in ordering the rebuilding of the city. He was responsible for the creation of the elegant financial and commercial district of the Baixa Pombalina (Pombaline Lower Town) that residents and tourists enjoy today.
Napoleon’s forces began a 4-year occupation of the city in December 1807. After the war with France ended, a new constitution was proclaimed in 1814 and Brazil was granted independence from Portugal.
In 1908, King Carlos and his heir was assassinated in the Terreiro do Paço. On 5 October 1910, Republicans organized a coup d’état that overthrew the constitutional monarchy and established the Portuguese Republic. There were 45 changes of government from 1910 through 1926. That was insane for its citizens to deal with.
When Estado Novo regime ruled the country from 1926 to 1974, it suppressed civil liberties during the longest dictatorship of Western Europe. It was finally deposed by the Carnation Revolution with a military coup on 25 April 1974. That led to the restoration of democracy, and the withdrawal of Portugal from its African colonies and East Timor. The iconic Lisbon bridge was rededicated to honor 25 April 1974.
Following the 1974 revolution, there was a huge influx into Lisbon of refugees from Portugal’s former African colonies. Portugal joined the European Community in 1986, a predecessor to the EU. Lisbon received massive funding to spur redevelopment and investment in its Atlantic coast container port.
The Expo 1998 and 2004 European Football Championships signaled a modern take on Lisbon History. Each year since then has brought urban renewal projects throughout the city, which makes it more attractive to tourists as well.