How The Portuguese Empire Was Forged

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The Portuguese Empire, 1415-1808: A World on the Move - The Portuguese Empire, 1415-1808: A World on the Move

The Portuguese Empire was composed of the overseas colonies, factories, and later overseas territories, governed by Portugal. It was one of the longest-lived colonial empires in European history, lasting almost six centuries from the conquest of Ceuta in North Africa in 1415, to the transfer of sovereignty over Macau to China in 1999. The empire began in the 15th century, and from the early 16th century it stretched across the globe, with bases in Africa, North America, South America, and various regions of Asia and Oceania.

The Portuguese Empire originated at the beginning of the Age of Discovery, and the power and influence of the Kingdom of Portugal would eventually expand across the globe. In the wake of the Reconquista, Portuguese sailors began exploring the coast of Africa and the Atlantic archipelagos in 1418–1419, using recent developments in navigation, cartography, and maritime technology such as the caravel, with the aim of finding a sea route to the source of the lucrative spice trade. In 1488, Bartolomeu Dias rounded the Cape of Good Hope, and in 1498 Vasco da Gama reached India. In 1500, either by an accidental landfall or by the crown's secret design, Pedro Álvares Cabral reached what would be Brazil.

Over the following decades, Portuguese sailors continued to explore the coasts and islands of East Asia, establishing forts and factories as they went. By 1571, a string of naval outposts connected Lisbon to Nagasaki along the coasts of Africa, the Middle East, India, and South Asia. This commercial network and the colonial trade had a substantial positive impact on Portuguese economic growth (1500–1800) when it accounted for about a fifth of Portugal's per-capita income.

When King Philip II of Spain (Philip I of Portugal) seized the Portuguese crown in 1580, there began a 60-year union between Spain and Portugal known to subsequent historiography as the Iberian Union, although the realms continued to have separate administrations. As the King of Spain was also King of Portugal, Portuguese colonies became the subject of attacks by three rival European powers hostile to Spain: the Dutch Republic, England, and France. With its smaller population, Portugal found itself unable to effectively defend its overstretched network of trading posts, and the empire began a long and gradual decline. Eventually, Brazil became the most valuable colony of the second era of empire (1663–1825), until, as part of the wave of independence movements that swept the Americas during the early 19th century, it broke away in 1822.

The third era of empire covers the final stage of Portuguese colonialism after the independence of Brazil in the 1820s. By then, the colonial possessions had been reduced to forts and plantations along the African coastline (expanded inland during the Scramble for Africa in the late 19th century), Portuguese Timor, and enclaves in India (Portuguese India) and China (Portuguese Macau). The 1890 British Ultimatum led to the contraction of Portuguese ambitions in Africa.

Under António Salazar (in office 1932–1968), the Estado Novo dictatorship made some ill-fated attempts to cling on to its last remaining colonies. Under the ideology of pluricontinentalism, the regime renamed its colonies "overseas provinces" while retaining the system of forced labour, from which only a small indigenous élite was normally exempt. In August 1961, the Dahomey annexed the Fort of São João Baptista de Ajudá, and in December that year India annexed Goa, Daman, and Diu. The Portuguese Colonial War in Africa lasted from 1961 until the final overthrow of the Estado Novo regime in 1974. The Carnation Revolution of April 1974 in Lisbon led to the hasty decolonization of Portuguese Africa and to the 1975 annexation of Portuguese Timor by Indonesia. Decolonization prompted the exodus of nearly all the Portuguese colonial settlers and of many mixed-race people from the colonies. Portugal returned Macau to China in 1999. The only overseas possessions to remain under Portuguese rule, the Azores and Madeira, both had overwhelmingly Portuguese populations, and Lisbon subsequently changed their constitutional status from "overseas provinces" to "autonomous regions". The Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) is the cultural successor of the Empire, analogous to the Commonwealth of Nations for countries formerly part of the British Empire.
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I'm from Portugal and I absolutely love a quote from one of our best poets ever, Fernando Pessoa, and it goes like this: "The sea with an end can be Greek or Roman, but the endless sea is Portuguese"

LeandroMartinho
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I’m Goan(indian) and I’m very proud of Portugal and all its glory. viva Portugal

TheAstonp
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"If God speaks Portuguese, I do not know. But these cannons do!" - Dom Francisco de Almeida

antideus
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Iam Spanish and i recognize the enormous value of Portugal in history ; great navigators ; great empire and laguage talk for 200 million of inhabitants.👍

Benito-lrmz
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I’m Brazilian and I’m very proud of Portugal and all its glory.

marcoscabrinirianidosreis
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Angolan with Portuguese ancestors on both sides of the family.

Viva Angola ❤
Viva Portugal ❤

guleiro
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I'm from Rio de Janeiro, and i'm proud to be a descendant of portugueses, not only by blood but by culture.
🇵🇹💚❤️🇧🇷✝️

FelipeGoncalves-jbrt
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After watching the first episodes of Shogun, I can see why the Japanese looked scared and nervous when Blackthorne mentioned about the extensive global reach that Portugal had, those boys were not messing around, if I was on the japanese side I would be anxious too, knowning so little about the outside world and some foreign is explaining how a superpower controls a whole hemisphere and everything that came across it, no wonder Portuguese is one of the most spoken languages in the world

ApwnWha
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I am a descendant of the Portuguese of the Malacca Straits...My mom is direct descendant...Iam a small part of it...from the De Mello family.

bobteo
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the Portuguese empire started modern day globalization, forever changing the course of human history. for better or for worse, it can't be understated how significant their cultural and historical legacy is across the globe

bconni
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As a portuguese, I can say you guys did a very fine job. Thank you for sharing a part of our long history with us and the world. Best regards.

joaobrandao
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i’m learning portuguese right now. such a cool language to know and be able to travel to all corners of globe and speak the language l!

kevinpace
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I am Portuguese... and proud of my history 🇵🇹

nunop
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This is a fascinating history - so glad others are covering it as well.

FlashPointHx
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I did not know how much of Asia they discovered and traded with before any other European power…beautiful culture 🇺🇸 🇵🇹

Ilyaswashere
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I’m brazilian and I have portuguese ancestry and I’m proud of it.

meninocolgate
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Portugal indomável! Ordem de Cristo! Muito orgulho dos meus antepassados. Milhões de descendentes aqui no Rio de janeiro. Somos o maior legado de Portugal. Um continente de 210 milhões de pessoas." Viva o Brasil. Viva Portugal.

luizoctaviohermesdafonseca
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Cape Verde and São Tomé should had remained Portuguese, but is ironic how Britain, USA, and France were making pressure to Portugal to free its colonies when still today those hypocrites still hold colonies abroad from their territories, France still holds South America territory with French Guyana.

Luzitanium
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A história de Portugal é épica demais. Da seriados e filmes fantásticos! Uma pena não ser tão estudada e aproveitada.

henrysaka
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I'm proud to be Portuguese. A seaman, son of a sailor. I have salt water running in my veins and I'm proud of it. Heróis do mar nobre povo nação valente imortal!❤
🇵🇹❤

fatimadias