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Timeline of the history of Gibraltar

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Prehistoric

Evidence of hominid inhabitation of the Rock dates back to the Neanderthals. A Neanderthal skull was discovered in Forbes' Quarry in 1848, indeed prior to the "original" discovery in the Neander Valley. In 1926, the skull of a Neanderthal child was found in Devil's Tower.

Ancient

The Phoenicians are known to have visited the Rock circa 950 BC and named the Rock Calpe. The Carthaginians also visited, however neither group appears to have settled permanently. Plato refers to Gibraltar as one of the Pillars of Hercules along with Jebel Musa or Monte Hacho on the other side of the Strait.

Gibraltar was next visited by the Romans. Again, no permanent settlement was established. Following the fall of the Roman Empire, Gibraltar was visited by the Vandals and later the Goths. The Vandals' stay was temporary; however, the Visigoths were to remain on the Iberian peninsula from 414 to 711.

Muslim

Spanish

British

(While merging in from Siege of Gibraltar, History of Gibraltar said that the 3-day initial siege was 3 days ending on 24 July, and Siege of Gibraltar said 1-4 August. Is this date discrepancy due to the change of calendars?)

Those people in Gibraltar at the time, if they wished to stay, had to recognise Charles III as the new king of Spain. Those who did not stay took refuge in the proximity of the chapel of Saint Roch, where they founded a new town named San Roque. Many important objects of Gibraltar's history were taken by those who chose to leave, including a statue of the Holy Crowned Virgin Mary, and the historical documents signed by the Spanish Catholic Monarchs in 1502, granting Gibraltar's coat of arms. These objects remain in the nearby San Roque chapel.
  • 1704 October: Troops of France and Spain under the marquess of Villadarias start to beseige Gibraltar to try to recover it. The Marine brigade, still under the command of the British admiral Sir John Leake, and the military governor, Prince George of Hesse-Darmstadt (who had commanded the land forces in July), and reinforced shortly before by a further 400 Royal Marines, held the fortress against repeated attacks.
  • 1704 October 31: A notable incident during the siege: 500 French and Spanish volunteer grenadiers tried to surprise the garrison. Captain Fisher of the Marines with 17 of his men successfully defended the Round Tower against their assault. A contemporary report of this noted defence says, "Encouraged by the Prince of Hesse, the garrison did more than could humanly be expected, and the English Marines gained an immortal glory".
  • 1705 March 9: The French marshal de Tessé, who had replaced Villadarias, gave up the siege and retired.

Treaty of Utrecht

  • 1713: The territory was subsequently ceded to Great Britain in perpetuity by Spain in the Treaties of Utrecht. Despite some attempts by the Spanish to retake it, most notably in the Great Siege of 1779-1783, the Rock has remained under British control ever since.
In that treaty, Spain ceded Great Britain "the full and entire propriety of the town and castle of Gibraltar, together with the port, fortifications, and forts thereunto belonging ... for ever, without any exception or impediment whatsoever."
The Treaty stipulates that no overland trade between Gibraltar and Spain was to take place, except for emergency provisions in the case that Gibraltar is unable to be resupplied by sea. Another condition of the cession is that "no leave shall be given under any pretence whatsoever, either to Jews or Moors, to reside or have their dwellings in the said town of Gibraltar." This was quickly broken and Gibraltar has had for many years an established Jewish community, along with Moroccans, the descendants of the Moors.
Under the Treaty, should the British crown wish to dispose of Gibraltar, that of Spain should be offered the territory first. This article of the Treaty has been used by Britain to deny independence to Gibraltar, and by Spain to pursue its claim to the Rock, despite it being ceded in perpetuity. The Gibraltar Government has pointed out however that this "reversionary clause" is anulled by Article 103 of the UN Charter.

Later history

  • 1726: First of several sieges by Spain trying to recapture Gibraltar, despite the Treaty of Utrecht.
  • 1729: At the end of the Anglo-Spanish War of 1727-1729, the Treaty of Seville allowed Britain to keep Port Mahon and Gibraltar, and stipulated a strip of land of width "600 toises, being more than 2 cannon shots distance between the British guns and the Spanish guns" be considered "the neutral ground". The neutral territory exists to this day between the North Face of the Rock and the Spanish town of La Linea.
  • 1779 July: Start of the Siege of Gibraltar. This was an action by French and Spanish forces to wrest control of Gibraltar from the established British Garrison. The garrison, led by George Augustus Eliott, later 1st Baron Heathfield of Gibraltar, survived all attacks and a blockade of supplies.
  • 1782 September 13: Start of an assault involving 100,000 men, 48 ships and 450 cannon. The British garrison survived.
  • 1783 February: By now the Siege was over, and George Augustus Eliott was awarded the Knight of the Bath and was created 1st Baron Heathfield of Gibraltar.
  • During the reign of Isabel II of Spain, who wished to recover the lost Spanish Empire, a Spanish minister had an idea to exchange the Chincha Islands, which it had captured from Peru in 1864, with Gibraltar, but this project never came to fruition.
  • 1908: The British constructed a fence at the British side of the neutral territory. In order not to offend the Spanish, the fence was actually 1 metre inside British territory. Even though Spain, the United Kingdom and Gibraltar are all part of the European Union, the border fence is still relevant today since Gibraltar is outside the customs union. The border crossing is open 24-hours a day as required by EU law.

Second World War and after

  • 1939-1945: During the Second World War the residents of Gibraltar were evacuated, and the Rock was again turned into a fortress. Control of Gibraltar gave the Allied Powers control of the entry to the Mediterranean Sea (the other side of the Strait being Spanish territory, and thus neutral). The Rock was a key part of the Allied supply lines to Malta and North Africa, and the horse racecourse near the border was converted into an airport.
  • 1941: Germany planned to occupy Gibraltar and hand it over to Spain in "Operation Felix" which was due to start on 10th January 1941. It was cancelled because the Spanish government were reluctant to let the Wehrmacht enter Spain and then attack against the Rock, its civilians or the British Army from Spanish soil, because Franco feared that it may have been impossible to remove the Wehrmacht afterwards. In any case, Hitler was too busy elsewhere in Europe to give this much priority. After the war, the residents returned.
  • 1940-1943: Gibraltar harbour was attacked many times by Italian commando frogmen, which see for more information.
  • 1954: This was the 250th anniversary of its capture. Queen Elizabeth II visited Gibraltar, which angered General Franco, who renewed its claim to sovereignty, which had lain dormant for over 150 years. This led to the closure of the Spanish consulate and to the imposition of restrictions on freedom of movement between Gibraltar and Spain. By the 1960s, motor vehicles were being restricted or banned from crossing the border, while only Spanish nationals employed on the Rock being allowed to enter Gibraltar. For about 30 years, the land border was closed (from the Spanish side), to try to isolate the territory.
At the United Nations, Spain argued that the principle of territorial integrity, not self-determination, applied in the case of Gibraltar, and that Britain should cede sovereignty of the Rock to Spain. Madrid gained diplomatic support from countries in Latin America, with the UN General Assembly passing resolutions supporting the Spanish case. For its part, Britain stated that it would respect the wishes of the people of Gibraltar, and that there would be no change of sovereignty against their wishes.
  • 1988: The Special Air Service of the British Army shot dead three unarmed members of the IRA near the Spanish border, claiming they were making "suspicious movements". A subsequent search led to the discovery of a car containing a large amount of Semtex explosive, which they had planned to use to bomb the 'Changing of the Guard' ceremony a few days later.
A small group of Gibraltarians, known as the palomos or 'doves', advocated a political settlement with Spain. This provoked widespread public hostility and civil unrest.
  • 1967: A referendum was held on 10 September, in which Gibraltar's voters were asked whether they wished to either pass under Spanish sovereignty, or remain under British sovereignty, with institutions of self-government. Gibraltarians ignored Spanish pressure and voted overwhelmingly by 12,138 to 44 to remain under British sovereignty.
  • 1969: Under the 1969 Constitution, Gibraltar attained full internal self-government, with an elected House of Assembly. The preamble to the Constitution stated that
"Her Majesty's Government will never enter into arrangements under which the people of Gibraltar would pass under the sovereignty of another state against their freely and democratically expressed wishes."
  • 1969: In response, Spain closed the border with Gibraltar, and severed all communication links. Gibraltarians with families in Spain had to go by ferry to Tangier in Morocco, and from there to the Spanish port of Algeciras, while many Spanish workers lost their jobs in Gibraltar.
  • 1975: General Francisco Franco died, but this situation remained unchanged, with the border not fully reopened until 1985.
  • 1969: Major Robert (later Sir Robert) Peliza of the Integration with Britain Party (IWBP) was elected Chief Minister.
  • 1972: Joshua (later Sir Joshua) Hassan of the Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights (AACR) was returned to power.
  • 1975: The British Foreign Office Minister Roy Hattersley ruled out integration with the UK, and stated that any constitutional change would have to involve a 'Spanish dimension'. This position was reaffirmed the following year when the British government rejected the House of Assembly's proposals for constitutional reform. The IWBP broke up and was succeeded by the Democratic Party of British Gibraltar (DPBG), led first by Maurice Xiberras, formerly of the IWBP, and subsequently by Peter Isola.
  • 1982: The re-opening of the border was delayed in the wake of the war between Britain and Argentina over the Falkland Islands. The re-opening was only partial, as only pedestrians resident in Gibraltar and Spain were allowed to cross the border.
  • 1985: Spain sought to join the European Communities. Under the 1985 Brussels Agreement, Britain agreed to enter into discussions with Spain over Gibraltar, including sovereignty. The border was reopened.
  • 1987: A proposal for joint control of Gibraltar's airport with Spain led to widespread opposition locally. Chief Minister Sir Joshua Hassan resigned at the end of that year, to be succeeded by Adolfo Canepa.
  • 1988: Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party (GSLP) leader Joe Bossano was elected as Chief Minister, and firmly ruled out any discussions with Spain over sovereignty.
  • 1988: There was controversy when three members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) were shot dead by the SAS, after they were suspected of planning to bomb a military parade; a car bomb was later discovered in Spain.
  • 1996: In an election, Bossano was replaced by Peter Caruana of the Gibraltar Social-Democrats (GSD), who while favouring dialogue with Spain, also ruled out any deals on sovereignty.
  • 1991: The British Army effectively withdrew from Gibraltar, leaving only the locally recruited Royal Gibraltar Regiment, although the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy remain.
  • Spain has made various proposals involving the sovereignty of Gibraltar, which have been rejected by all parties in the Gibraltar House of Assembly.
  • 1991: The Socialist government of Felipe González proposed joint sovereignty over Gibraltar with the United Kingdom. A similar proposal was advocated by Peter Cumming, formerly of the GSD, in which the Rock would become a self-governing condominium or 'Royal City', with the British and Spanish monarchs as joint heads of state.
  • 1997: The Partido Popular Spanish Foreign Minister, Abel Matutes made proposals under which Gibraltar would be under joint sovereignty for fifty years, before being fully incorporated into Spain, as an autonomous region, similar to Catalonia or the Basque Country, but these were rejected by British Government.
  • 2000: An agreement was reached between the UK and Spain over recognition of 'competent authorities' in Gibraltar. Spain had a policy of non-recognition of the Government of Gibraltar as a 'competent authority', therefore refusing to recognise Gibraltar's courts, police and government departments, driving licences, and identity cards. Under the agreement, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London would act as a 'post box', through which Gibraltar's police and other government departments could communicate with their counterparts in Spain. In addition, identity documents issued by the Government of Gibraltar now featured the words 'United Kingdom'.
  • 2000 May - 2001 May: the nuclear submarine HMS Tireless (S88) was repaired in Gibraltar. This caused diplomatic tension with Spain, which claimed to have an anti-nuclear policy, albeit never having raised objections when nuclear propelled vessels enter Spanish ports.
  • 2001: The UK Government announced plans to reach a final agreement with Spain over the future of Gibraltar, which would involve shared sovereignty; however agreement was not reached.
  • 2002: The Gibraltar government organised a referendum on 7 November. The voters rejected shared sovereignty by 17,900 votes to 187 on a turnout of almost 88%. The wording of the 2002 referendum was:
On the 12th July 2002 the Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, in a formal statement in the House of Commons, said that after twelve months of negotiation the British Government and Spain are in broad agreement on many of the principles that should underpin a lasting settlement of Spain's sovereignty claim, which included the principle that Britain and Spain should share sovereignty over Gibraltar.
Do you approve of the principle that Britain and Spain should share sovereignty over Gibraltar?
The Gibraltarians did not approve. The Referendum was supervised by a team of international observers headed by the Labour MP Gerald Kaufman, who certified that it had been held fairly, freely and democratically.

See also

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