Normally I post a little history of the place we’re visiting for the first time. So I’m clearly late which I suppose is better than never.

The recorded history of Porto dates back to the 8th century BC when the Celts settled at the mouth of the Douro although there is evidence that the area was visited earlier by Phoenician and Greek traders. The Romans first appeared in 275 BC following their capture of the Iberian Peninsula from the Carthaginians in 200 BC in the first Punic War. Within a hundred and fifty years they had established a small city on the banks of the Douro that they named “Portus Cale,” or “warm port.” It took another hundred years for the rest of ancient Portugal and Northern Spain to be fully pacified and added to the Roman Iberian colonies. During the Roman occupation, the city developed as an important commercial port, primarily in the coastal trade between Olispo (modern Lisbon) and Bracara Augusta, (modern Braga.) As with most of Rome’s European colonies, they brought their expertise in agriculture and viniculture which provided the foundation of Portugal’s modern wine industry.

As the Western Roman Empire collapsed, the region was first invaded by the Germanic Suebi people in 410 CE and then by the Visigoths in 584 CE. The Visigoths consolidated their control of the entirety of Iberia and held it as a kingdom until they were overthrown by the Umayyad Caliphate in 711 during their invasion.

The Portuguese Reconquista began in 868 CE with the foundation of the County of Portugal, a vassal state to the Kingdom of Galicia in Spain. Portugal broke away and was declared an independent kingdom in 1139, making it the oldest nation-state in Europe. The rest of Portugal was recaptured over the next 381 years, with the final Moorish areas liberated in 1249. In 1255, Lisbon became the capital and the borders have remained almost unchanged since then. In 1385, the Castilians attempted to capture the country but were defeated.

During the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries, Portugal became a world power, on par with England, France, and Spain, due to their highly advanced sea power. Porto’s shipbuilding industry contributed heavily to that transformation. In 1415, Prince Henry the Navigator sailed from Porto in an expedition to capture the Muslim-held port of Ceuta in northern Africa. That event put the rest of Europe on notice of Portugal’s emergence.

Wine for European export began shipping down the Douro to Porto in the 13th century. A trading relationship was established with England in 1703 and In 1717, the first English trading post was established in the city. Port wine production passed into the hands of two English firms over the next few decades. During the Napoleonic Wars, Porto was occupied by the French until they were routed by the Duke of Wellington.

Like the rest of Portugal, Porto slowly slid into decline during the 19th and 20th centuries for a combination of reasons, including the military coup that took command of the government in the 1920’s. Following the re-establishment of civilian rule in 1974, Porto began to recover along with the rest of the country. The city was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996. Today the regional economy is driven by trade, agriculture, wine production, and of course, tourism which generates 10% of the city’s economy.