History of the Algarve

(Courtesy of Wikipedia).

The Conii, influenced by Tartessos, were established by the sixth century BC in the region of the Algarve. They would be strongly influenced by the Celtici. The Phoenicians had established trading ports along the coast circa 1000 BC. The Carthaginians founded Portus Hanibalis — known today as Portimão — in circa 550 BC. The Romans in the 2nd century BC spread through the Iberian Peninsula, and many Roman ruins can still be seen in the region, notably in Lagos. In the 5th century the Visigoths took control of the Algarve until the beginning of the Moorish invasion in 711. When the Moors conquered Lagos in 716 it was called Zawaia. Faro, which the Christian residents had called Santa Maria, was renamed Faraon, which means "the settlement of the Knights." Coat of Arms of the historical Kingdom of the Algarve.Due to the Moorish occupation of Iberia, the region was called "Al-Garb Al-Andalus". As stated above, Al-Garb means "the west"; Al-Andalus, as the greater Iberian region was known, makes reference to the Vandals, a Germanic tribe who had previously occupied the southern part of the peninsula. Arabic has no way of expressing the 'V' sound. A 16th century map of the Kingdom of Portugal, clearly showing the separated status of the Algarve at the time.In the mid-12th century, the Moorish occupation ended: the "Al-Gharb" has been since then the kingdom of Algarve. It was not until the 13th century that the Portuguese finally secured the region against subsequent Moorish attempts to recapture the area - see Reconquista. King John I of Portugal started calling himself King of Portugal and Algarve. Later on, after 1471, with the conquest of territories in Northern Africa (considered as the Algarve of abroad in Africa) the title became with Afonso V of Portugal, King of Portugal and the Algarve's here (in Europe) and abroad in Africa, and it stayed so till the proclamation of the Portuguese Republic in 1910. In the 15th century, Henry the Navigator based himself in Sagres and conducted various maritime expeditions which established Portugal as a colonial power. The Algarve was a semi-autonomous area of Portugal with a governor from 1595 to 1808, as well as a separate taxation system until the end of the 18th century[verification needed]. During this time, to reflect the Algarve's unique status, Portuguese monarchs were known as "King of Portugal and The Algarve's." The 1755 Lisbon earthquake damaged several areas in the Algarve, where a tsunami dismantled some coastal fortresses and, in the lower levels, razed houses. Almost all the coastal towns and villages of the Algarve were heavily damaged, except Faro, which was protected by the sandy banks of Ria Formosa lagoon. In Lagos, the waves reached the top of the city walls. The town of Vila Real de Santo António was destroyed by a wave from the earthquake, and rebuilt many years later in 1774. For many Portuguese coastal regions, including the Algarve, the destructive effects of the tsunami were more disastrous than those of the earthquake proper. In 1807 when Junot was leading the first Napoleonic invasion in the north of Portugal, the Algarve was occupied by the Spanish troops of Manuel Godoy. The Algarve became the first part of Portugal to liberate itself from Spanish occupation, in the rebellion of Olhão in 1808.