Portugal is an independent nation along the Atlantic Ocean at the southwestern edge of Europe, occupies about one-sixth Iberian Peninsula, which it shares with Spain , its only neighbor. It is one of the oldest nations in the Europe, Portugal became independent of both Moorish and Castilian control in 1143, when Alfonso I was proclaimed King. The original kingdom was located north of the Douro River, but it expanded southward along the coast by driving the Moors from Lisbon and Alentejo and Algarve, south of the Tagus River, by 1252. In the 15th and early 16th centuries Portugal created a large overseas empire. A period of Spanish control (1580-1640) contributed to the subsequent decline of Portugal’s influence and commercial prosperity. A republic from 1910 Portugal was under dictatorial government from the late 1920s until 1974; Antonio de Oliveira was the dominant figure until 1968. With the establishment of he democratic government in 1974, Portugal granted independence to its African colonies. Portugal has a land area of 92, 389 km2 (35, 672 mi2). Lisbon is the capital and it is also the largest city (1991 pop., 681,063). The population in (1996 est.): 9,865,114 its official language is Portuguese and its major religion is Roman Catholicism.
A country like Portugal will succeed and become rich for some reasons. The history is one of the factors, The economic history of Portugal covers the development of the economy throughout the course of Portuguese history. It has its roots prior to nationality, when Roman occupation developed a thriving economy in Hispania, in the provinces of