Portal:Gibraltar

The Gibraltar Portal

Gibraltar (/dʒɪˈbrɔːltər/ jih-BRAWL-tər, Spanish: [xiβɾalˈtaɾ]) is a British Overseas Territory and city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula. It has an area of 6.7 km² (2.6 sq mi) and is bordered to the north by Spain. The landscape is dominated by the Rock of Gibraltar, at the foot of which is a densely populated town area, home to over 32,000 people, primarily Gibraltarians.

In 1704, Anglo-Dutch forces captured Gibraltar from Spain during the War of the Spanish Succession. The territory was ceded to Great Britain in perpetuity under the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. It became an important base for the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars and World War II, as it controlled the narrow entrance and exit to the Mediterranean Sea, the Strait of Gibraltar, which is only 14.3 km (8.9 mi) wide. This choke point remains strategically important, with half the world's seaborne trade passing through it. Gibraltar's economy is based largely on tourism, online gambling, financial services, and bunkering.

The sovereignty of Gibraltar is a point of contention in Anglo-Spanish relations, as Spain asserts a claim to the territory. Gibraltarians overwhelmingly rejected proposals for Spanish sovereignty in a 1967 referendum, and for shared sovereignty in a 2002 referendum. Nevertheless, Gibraltar maintains close economic and cultural links with Spain, with many Gibraltarians speaking Spanish as well as a local dialect known as Llanito. (Full article...)

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Searchlights in the night sky during an air-raid practice on Gibraltar, 20 November 1942

The military history of Gibraltar during World War II exemplifies Gibraltar's position as a British fortress since the early 18th century and as a vital factor in British military strategy, both as a foothold on the continent of Europe, and as a bastion of British sea power. During World War II, Gibraltar served a vital role in both the Atlantic Theatre and the Mediterranean Theatre, controlling virtually all naval traffic into and out of the Mediterranean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean.

In addition to its commanding position, Gibraltar provided a strongly defended harbour from which ships could operate in both the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Force H, under the command of Vice-Admiral James Somerville was based in Gibraltar and had the task of maintaining naval superiority and providing a strong escort for convoys to and from the besieged island of Malta. During the course of the war, Gibraltar came under aerial bombardment from Vichy French aircraft and from aircraft of the Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) based on Sardinia. Additionally, the fortress was the focus of underwater attacks by the Italian Royal Navy (Regia Marina) commando frogman unit (Decima Flottiglia MAS) and their human torpedoes. This Italian unit was based on the interned Italian ship SS Olterra in the nearby Spanish harbour of Algeciras. A number of attacks were also carried out by Spanish and Gibraltarian agents acting on behalf of the German Abwehr. (Full article...)

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Map of Gibraltar

Map credit: Eric Gaba

Situated on a narrow rocky promontory at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula; the Rock of Gibraltar formed one of the Pillars of Hercules.

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“

We shall go forward in the future partnership and in amity for the good Government and sure safe-keeping of Gibraltar.

”

— Queen Elizabeth II during her visit to Gibraltar in May 1954.

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Gibraltar

Gibraltar-related lists

Buildings and structures in Gibraltar

Gibraltarian culture

Economy of Gibraltar

Education in Gibraltar

Environment of Gibraltar

Geography of Gibraltar

Gibraltarians

Government of Gibraltar

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History of Gibraltar

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Selected biography -

Field Marshal Sir Alexander George Woodford, GCB, KCMG (15 June 1782 – 26 August 1870), was a British Army officer. After taking part in the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland, he served in most of the battles of the Napoleonic Wars. During the Hundred Days he commanded the 2nd battalion of the Coldstream Guards at the Battle of Quatre Bras, the Battle of Waterloo and the storming of Cambrai. He went on to become lieutenant governor and brigade commander at Malta, lieutenant governor and brigade commander at Corfu and then commander of the British garrison on the Ionian Islands before being appointed Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Gibraltar. (Full article...)

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Peter Caruana Joe Bossano George Augustus Eliott, 1st Baron Heathfield George Don (British Army officer) Edward Cornwallis Joshua Hassan Bruce Cooper Alfred Holmes Sir William Green, 1st Baronet John Thomas Jones Clive Finlayson Simón Susarte John Mackintosh (philanthropist) John Leake John Vereker, 6th Viscount Gort

Did you know...

... that Dorothy Ellicott was the first woman to be elected to two different Gibraltar Councils and was posthumously awarded the Gibraltar Medallion of Honour on Gibraltar National Day 2008?
... that in 1939, excavations beneath John Mackintosh Square in Gibraltar for the construction of an air-raid shelter revealed no signs of any foundations, suggesting it has always been an open square?
... that capital punishment in Gibraltar was last enforced in 1944 when British hangman Albert Pierrepoint travelled undercover to the territory to hang two young Spanish spies? (25 July 2012, 5,697 views)
... that the Gibraltar Museum houses the remains of a 14th-century Moorish bath house, once the private baths of the Governor of Gibraltar during the Marinid dynasty? (26 July 2012, 2,222 views)
... that the Europa Point Lighthouse at Gibraltar is the only lighthouse operated by Trinity House on continental Europe outside the United Kingdom? (27 July 2012, 4,122 views)
... that Giovanni Battista Calvi was an Italian military engineer who worked on many important Spanish defensive projects in the 1500s, to include those in the now British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar?

General images

The following are images from various Gibraltar-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1A map of Gibraltar and its fortifications, drawn in 1799 by Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 2The Sortie made by the Garrison of Gibraltar in the Morning of 27 November 1781 by John Trumbull, depicting a British attack that occurred during the Great Siege of Gibraltar (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 3Searchlights on the Rock of Gibraltar during an air raid practice on 20 November 1942 (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 4Gibraltar, 1654 by Jan Peeters I (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 5Thousands of Gibraltarians dress in their national colours of red and white and fill Grand Casemates Square during the 2013 Gibraltar National Day celebrations (from Culture of Gibraltar)
Image 6The United States' Great White Fleet visiting Gibraltar harbour in February 1909 (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 7Location of Gibraltar in the far south of the Iberian Peninsula (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 8Castle Street, Gibraltar, by Frederick Leeds Edridge, 1833 (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 9The First Battle of Algeciras (6 July 1801) off Gibraltar, portrayed in Algéciras, 6 Juillet 1801 by Antoine Léon Morel-Fatio (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 10Spanish border pass for Gibraltarian residents, permitting day visits only. (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 11Gibraltar's Moorish Baths, now incorporated into the Gibraltar Museum (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 12Annotated satellite view of the Strait of Gibraltar (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 13Aerial view of Gibraltar as seen in 2011 (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 14Charles V Wall, built by the Spanish to control access to the south side of Gibraltar after the pirate raid of September 1540 (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 15The arms granted to the city of Gibraltar by a Royal Warrant passed in Toledo on 10 July 1502 by Isabella I of Castile (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 16The Gibraltar House of Assembly (now the Gibraltar Parliament), established in 1969. (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 17MV Aurora (2000) berthed adjacent to the Gibraltar Cruise Terminal at the Western Arm of the North Mole (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 18The Explosion of the Spanish Flagship during the Battle of Gibraltar by Cornelis Claesz van Wieringen (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 19Gibraltar's country identifier is GBZ (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 20Calypso Transport open top bus on discontinued route 10 (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 21Gibraltar Bus Company bus routes (right-click to enlarge). (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 22Timetable on a bus shelter (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 23The Pillars of Hercules depicted erroneously as an island on the Tabula Peutingeriana, an ancient Roman map (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 24Gibraltar Airport and border area. Showing runway (Gibraltar) and pier behind (Spain). Officially, any exact line is still disputed (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 25Special passes were required to enter Gibraltar proper at night, whilst the Spanish civil war was raging 1936. (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 26Gibraltar Bus Company Dennis Dart on route 4 at the Both Worlds bus terminus, Sandy Bay. (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 27View across Gibraltar looking north, by Frederick William J. Shore (1883) (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 28Gibraltar's Royal Navy Base (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 29A current Gibraltar rear number plate featuring the country identifier GBZ (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 30The closed gates at the border between Gibraltar and Spain, 1977 (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 31North View of Gibraltar from Spanish Lines by John Mace (1782) (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 32Veüe du d'Estroit de Gibraltar et des Environs, avec les tranchées du Siège mis en 1704, by Louis Boudan (1704) (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 33Traffic drives on the right (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 34Sir George Rooke, the commander of the Anglo-Dutch fleet that conquered Gibraltar in the name of Archduke Charles of Austria (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 35Gibraltar Cable Car (from Transport in Gibraltar)
Image 36The 14th-century Tower of Homage, the largest surviving fragment of Gibraltar's Moorish Castle (from History of Gibraltar)
Image 37Foreign Secretary William Hague and Minister for Europe David Lidington with Chief Minister of Gibraltar Fabian Picardo at a meeting in London, 28 August 2013 (from Culture of Gibraltar)
Image 38"Gibraltar Woman" – a Neanderthal who lived in Gibraltar some 50,000 years ago (from History of Gibraltar)

Topics

Buildings: The Convent | Dudley Ward Tunnel | Garrison Library | Moorish Castle

Communications: .gi | Gibraltar Broadcasting Corporation | Gibraltar Chronicle | Telecom dispute

Symbols: Coat of arms | Flag | Gibraltar Anthem | Other Flags

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European Union	Europe	Spain	United Kingdom

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Cleanup : Economy of Gibraltar, Operation Flavius
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