Gibraltar

Introduction

Gibraltar jĭbrôlˈtər [key], British overseas territory (2015 est. pop. 34,000), 2.5 sq mi (6.5 sq km), on a narrow, rocky peninsula extending into the Mediterranean Sea from SW Spain. Most of the peninsula is occupied by the Rock of Gibraltar (Lat. Calpe), one of the Pillars of Hercules, which guards the northeastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar, linking the Mediterranean with the Atlantic. The town of Gibraltar lies at the northwest end of the Rock of Gibraltar. The peninsula is connected with the mainland by a low sandy area of neutral ground. West of the peninsula is the Bay of Gibraltar, an inlet of the strait. There is a safe enclosed harbor of 440 acres (178 hectares). The rock, of Jurassic limestone, contains caves in which valuable archaeological finds have been made. It is honeycombed by defense works and arsenals, which are largely concealed. A tunnel bisects the rock from east to west.

During the many years that Gibraltar was a British fortress, most of the area was taken up by military installations, and the civilian population was kept small. Many of the laborers lived in the Spanish border town of La Línea. The population now consists of people of Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese, German, and North African descent. More than three quarters of the population is Roman Catholic; there are Protestant, Muslim, and Jewish minorities. English is the official language, and Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese are spoken.

The town is a free port, with some transit trade. Financial services, shipping, and duty-free shopping are economically important, and Gibraltar is also an online gambling center. The climate is mild and pleasant, and tourism is also a significant industry. Gibralter must import most of its fuel, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs. About half the territory's workforce live in Spain.

Gibraltar is governed under the constitution of 1969. The monarch of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, represented by a governor, is the head of state. The chief minister, who is the head of government, is appointed by the governor with the approval of the House of Assembly. Of the 18 members of the unicameral House of Assembly, 15 are elected by popular vote and three are appointed; all serve four-year terms. Gibraltar is largely self-governing.

History

The name Gibraltar derives from the Arabic Jabal-al-Tarik [mount of Tarik], dating from the capture (711) of the peninsula by the Moorish leader Tarik. The Spanish Held the peninsula (1309–33) but did not definitively recover it from the Moors until 1462. The English have maintained possession since 1704 despite continual Spanish claims. The British post was besieged unsuccessfully by the Spanish and French (1704), by the Spanish (1726), and again by the Spanish and French (1779–83).

In World War I, Gibraltar served as a naval station. Many refugees fled there in the Spanish civil war (1936–39). In World War II its fortifications were strengthened, and most of the civilian population was evacuated. It was frequently bombed in 1940–41, but not seriously damaged.

After the war Spain renewed claims to Gibraltar, which, as a British strategic air and naval base, continued to be a major source of friction between Britain and Spain. The residents affirmed (1967) their ties with Britain in a UN-supervised referendum, and in 1981 all residents were granted full British citizenship. From 1969 to 1985, Spain closed its border with Gibraltar, although pedestrian traffic was again permitted across beginning in 1982.

In 1991, Britain removed its military forces from Gibraltar, while retaining it as a dependency. Tensions between Spain and Gibraltar continued through the 1990s, however, as Spain accused Gibraltar of being a hotbed of drug trafficking, tobacco smuggling, money laundering, and tax evasion. A 1997 Spanish proposal for joint British-Spanish sovereignty was rejected by the Gibraltarian government, and a referendum in 2002 on shared British-Spanish sovereignty almost unanimously approved of that rejection.

In 2006 Gibraltar, Spain, and Britain signed an agreement intended to ease crossing the Spanish border and traveling by air to Gibraltar and to improve telephone service in Gibraltar. The same year a new constitution for the colony was approved that increased its government's autonomy. A dispute over fishing grounds led to new tensions with Spain in 2013. Following the 2016 British vote against remaining in the European Union (Gibraltan voters overwhelmingly approved remaining), Spain again called for joint British-Spanish sovereignty over Gibraltar. An agreement reached in Dec., 2020, called for Gibraltar to be integrated by treaty into the EU's Schengen area (see Schengen Agreement) after Britain fully quit the EU at the end of 2020.

Bibliography

See studies by H. S. Levie (1983) and G. J. Shields (1987).

See more Encyclopedia articles on: Spanish and Portuguese Political Geography