It might surprise some English people to discover how much history we share with our new Portuguese neighbours. The history of Portugal - our oldest and longest serving ally, is entwined with the history of our country. We provided Portugal with the means to ensure their independence from Spain. In return, they provided us with a strategically placed ally, to check the power of Spain. Both sides also benefited from trade agreements protected by treaty. This relationship lasted for centuries.

England and Portugal are both situated on the Atlantic Seaboard of Western Europe, both are disposed towards a sea-faring and trading status.

Both regions were previously hosts to 'celtic culture' in late prehistory. Later still, both regions were for centuries, provinces of the Roman Empire. Contact between the British lowlands (England) and Western Iberia (Portugal) must have been frequent during this period. Both later experienced a Dark Age and the invasion of Germanic peoples.

However, while the people of Portugal adopted a local vulgar Latin from the Roman Empire as their language, the English adopted a combination of Germanic dialects, later influenced by Norman-French and Scandinavian-Germanic, as their language.

England came into being as a result of a number of alliances, marriages, and conflicts between earlier Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, and Scandinavian kingdoms, during the 10th to 11th Centuries. The kingdom was reinforced by the Normans. Portugal as a nation-state emerged following the Reconqista during the 12th to 13th centuries. Anglo-Norman knights were often involved as crusaders in the Reconquista of Portugal, against the Moors. Both countries could therefore justifiably claim to be amongst the older nation-states of Europe.

Whereas England was the dominant country of the British Isles, Portugal was forever threatened by the existence of a richer, larger neighbour on the Iberian Peninsula. During the 14th century, aggression from Leon and Castille (Spain), lead the Portuguese to forge an alliance with England. The Treaty of Alliance was signed between England and Portugal in 1373. The alliance was reinforced by the Treaty of Windsor between Portugal and England in May 1386. The Portuguese Crown was able to solicit archers from England and Wales. The English also secured contracts under treaty to trade with Portugal. This support ensured the survival of Portugal as an independent country.

Portugalia A small café, delicatessen, and shop on White Hart Street, Thetford. Although rather small, good coffee is served, and many Portuguese goods are on sale.

Portugal went on to produce great navigators, explorers, and traders during a great Age of Discovery, during which Portuguese-speaking colonies were founded in Brazil, Madeira, Azores, Angola, Mozambique, China, India, and East Timor. England went on to forge colonies in North America, Africa, India, China, New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific. The two countries often acted as allies in opposition to Spain and France.

During the 16th Century, the English experienced the English Reformation during which England separated from the Roman-Catholic Church. This left the English unpopular and with enemies across Western Europe and the Roman-Catholic World. The English crown needed allies. In 1580, Spain invaded Portugal, and within a year, Portugal was forced into a Union with Spain that was to last 60 years. This period saw a Spanish ruled Portugal losing control of many of her former dominions. In 1640 the Duke of Bragança made a fresh challenge for the Portuguese crown. The Bragança's lacked the support of the Pope. The Duke then turned towards the English for help. A fresh military treaty was signed between England and Portugal in 1661. This was cemented by the marriage of Catherine of Braganza to King Charles II of England. The alliance defeated the Spanish, and guaranteed future Portuguese independence from Spain.

In the early 18th century France declared War against England, and demanded that Portugal closed its Ports to the English. But Portugal responded by joining the British and the Netherlands in an alliance against Spain and France. The war with France deprived British of their favourite source of wine. Wine traders turned to Portugal to replace this source. English merchants operating in North Portugal started adding brandy to barrels of wine, to help stabilise them, and Port, the fortified wine produced specifically for English tastes, was born. The Methuen Treaty, was signed in December 1703, that protected the trade of wine from Portugal to Britain. Throughout the 18th Century the Alliance continued to hold strong and the two countries supported each other against France and Spain

The French Revolution of 1789 was to have repercussions in Portugal throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, as ideas of democracy and republicanism slowly took root in Portuguese society. In 1807, Napoleon delivered an ultimatum to Portugal, that they declare war against Britain and close its ports to British shipping; or his troops would invade. Portugal refused to break its treaties with Britain. The Portuguese Royal Family, aware of the consequences of their decision, fled to Brazil. Napoleon and his French army invaded, and captured Lisbon. The British came to their aid in 1808, and the Peninsular War against the French ensued for two years and culminated with the defeat of Napoleon. However, the British occupation of Portugal was marked by the first signs of any breakdown in friendship between the two countries, with some Portuguese feeling that the relationship was becoming uneven, with the British exercising too much control over Portugal, and its colonies. Republicanism was also on the increase in Portugal.

The politics of Portugal were complex during the 19th Century, with struggles between Republicans and the Crown, and between different members of the Portuguese and Brazilian Royal Family. Britain continued to exercise control over Portugal's foreign interests, and there clashes of interest between the two old allies over territories in Africa. The 19th Century ended with the bankruptcy of Portugal, and the Republicans preparing to take power.

In 1910, Portugal became a Republic, and abandoned its monarchy. In 1916, Portugal joined Britain and the Allies in World War I. In 1928, Portugal fell under the long dictatorship of the fascist António Salazar. The relationship between the two countries faded, as a result of the isolationist policies of Salazar. However, although Portugal continued to trade with Nazi Germany, they also allowed the Allies to use bases in the Azores Islands. Salazar focused much of his efforts into retaining the African colonies including Mozambique and Angola. Immigration from Portugal to these colonies was heavy during his period of control. African liberation movements developed in both countries as a result of heavy-handedness by the Salazar Regime, and of the neglect and exploitation of native Africans in these colonies. Long and bloody civil wars were fought in the African colonies during the 20th Century, and many Portuguese conscripts lost their lives, or returned home traumatised.

Salazar died in 1970, but his regime continued until the 25th April 1974, when a Revolution was initiated by a 'young officers' coupe in Lisbon. Negotiations were quickly held with African Nationalists, and in 1975, Angola and Mozambique and several other colonies were granted independence. This sparked a wave of panic in the colonies, and the Portuguese evacuated Africa almost overnight. Portugal saw the sudden return of a half million colonists. By 1982, democracy had been fully restored. Portugal had become the poorest country in Western Europe, and had to work hard to try and catch up with the prosperous economies of its neighbours. In 1986, it joined Britain in the European Community. By 1997, its economy was strong enough to qualify for Portugal to join the Single Currency. The Portuguese Escudo has been officially replaced by the Euro. Unlike Britain, there has been little national resistance to European integration.

The 20th Century was a century of political, economic, and social turmoil for the Portuguese peoples. The fascist dictatorship of Salazar, the African Wars, the Revolution, and above all, the poverty of the Country drove millions to emigrate. Portuguese emigrés went everywhere - Germany, USA, Canada, London, Paris, South Africa, even the British Channel Isles. The irony of the arrival of so many Portuguese speakers in rural Eastern England today, is that the Portuguese economy, although still much poorer than the UK's, is now strong enough to attract migrant workers to Portugal! Immigration to Portugal from both Africa and Eastern Europe, is growing. Therefore it is important to understand that the arrival of Portuguese speakers to our area, is part of a global phenomena of human migration, which includes movement into Portugal itself.