Portugal–Spain border
| Portugal–Spain border | |
|---|---|
 Guadiana International Bridge, connecting Portugal & Spain | |
| Characteristics | |
| Entities |
 Portugal  Spain |
| Length | 1214 km (Claimed by Portugal) / 1232 km (Claimed by Spain) |
| History | |
| Established | 1143 |
| The victory of king Afonso I of Portugal over his cousin king Alfonso VII of León at the Battle of Valdevez, forced the Kingdom of León to recognise Portugal as a country, thus establishing the northern borders of Portugal. | |
| Treaties | |
The Portugal–Spain border is the international boundary between Portugal and Spain. Referred to as "la Raya" in Spanish and "A Raia" in Portuguese (the stripe), the current demarcation is almost identical to that defined in 1297 by the Treaty of Alcañices. It is one of the oldest borders in the world. The Portugal–Spain border is 1,214 km (754 miles) long and considered the longest uninterrupted border within the European Union. The border is not defined for 18 km (11 miles) between the Caia river and Ribeira de Cuncos, because of the disputed status of Olivenza, which has been disputed between the two countries for two hundred years.
A microstate existed previously on the border called Couto Misto.
Bordering districts and provinces
Districts on the Portuguese side of the border from North to South:
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Provinces on the Spanish side of the border from North to South:
- Province of Pontevedra (
Galicia) - Province of Ourense ( Galicia)
- Province of Zamora (
Castile and León) - Province of Salamanca ( Castile and León)
- Province of Cáceres (
Extremadura) - Province of Badajoz ( Extremadura)
- Province of Huelva (
Andalusia)
Customs and identity checks
Portugal and Spain signed the Schengen Agreement in June 1991 which came into effect on 26 March 1995, making Portugal and Spain part of the Schengen area and thus the border then became an Open border.[1]
Portugal has since reintroduced checks several times along the border with Spain, during the UEFA Euro 2004 championships and when Portugal hosted the NATO 2010 Lisbon summit. Checks were reintroduced on the border from May 10th 2017 to May 14 2017, during Pope Francis's visit to Fátima, Portugal.[2]
Maritime borders
Portugal's maritime borders, also known as the Exclusive economic zone of Portugal is currently disputed by Spain in the Savage Islands area.
Important treaties
- Treaty of Zamora (1143) - The victory of king Afonso I of Portugal over his cousin king Alfonso VII of León at the Battle of Valdevez, forced the Kingdom of León to recognise Portugal as a country, thus establishing the northern borders of Portugal.
- Treaty of Badajoz (1267) - Signed by king Alfonso X of Castile and King Afonso III of Portugal, establishing the Guadiana as roughly the southern border.
- Treaty of Alcañices (1297) - Signed by King Denis of Portugal (grandson of king Alfonso X of Castile) and King Ferdinand IV of Castile, Olivença is ceded to Portugal.
- Treaty of Badajoz (1801) - Olivença is ceded to Spain.
- Congress of Vienna (1815) - Spain promises to return Olivença to Portugal, leaving this area of the border disputed ever since.
- Treaty of Lisbon (1864) - This abolished the Couto Misto microstate.
- Convention of Limits (1926)
Border crossings
Bridges across the border include the Guadiana International Bridge and the Lower Guadiana International bridge.
A zipline across the border exists between Sanlucar de Guadiana in Spain and Alcoutim in Portugal; it is the first and currently only zip line over an international border.[3]
References
- ↑ "The Schengen area - PDF by EU" (PDF). Retrieved 28 April 2017.
- ↑ "Portugal declares Papal holiday". Retrieved 28 April 2017.
- ↑ "Now that's a flying visit! The £12 zipline that whisks you from Spain to Portugal at 50mph (and transports you one hour back in time)". Retrieved 2016-08-19.