Report about Portugal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Report about Portugal - Essay Example By 868, the First County of Portugal with the Kingdom of Leon had been established. Re-conquest of the Christian kingdoms began by the 11th Century, and in the process ‘Portucale’ was declared an independent kingdom by its ruler Afonso Henriques in 1139, and by 1147, Afonso took control of Lisbon. By the 1400’s Portugal had built up a large empire with colonies across the world including Mozambique and Goa (Rough Guides, 2008), and Portugal’s Golden Age reached a peak with the discovery of Brazil in 1500, in which vast amounts of wealth and trade were established in its new colonies. However, by 1580, Spain had invaded Portugal during a succession crisis, and ruled Portugal for the next 60 years. Portugal started to regain independence in 1640, and by 1668 the Spanish vacated the country. Portugal re-established trading routes with Brazil, and its fortunes were restored by the trading in gold from Brazil until 1822, when Brazil declares independence from Po rtugal. Napoleon’s invasion in 1807, combined with the loss of Brazil left Portugal impoverished and divided, until 1910 when a republican revolution overthrew the monarchy. However, the weakness of the economy led to another military coup in 1926 and a long period of dictatorship by Salazar commenced until 1968, in which poverty became widespread and all political opposition was banned. The country became a virtual recluse in the world community until 1974, when the Carnation Revolution ended the dictatorship and restored democracy by 1976. Portugal joined the European Community in 1986 (now known as the European Union (EU)), and enjoyed rapid economic growth and became a key member state in modern Western Europe. In 1999 it was one of the founding countries to adopt the Euro currency. However, the 2008 financial crises resulted in a gross budget deficit in Portugal, and in 2011 it became the third EU country to ask