's Tower of Homage
Prehistory and ancient history Evidence of
Neanderthal habitation in Gibraltar from around 50,000 years ago has been discovered at
Gorham's Cave. The caves of Gibraltar continued to be used by
Homo sapiens after the final extinction of the Neanderthals. Stone tools, ancient hearths and animal bones dating from around 40,000 years ago to about 5,000 years ago have been found in deposits left in Gorham's Cave. Numerous
potsherds dating from the
Neolithic period have been found in Gibraltar's caves, mostly of types typical of the
Almerian culture found elsewhere in
Andalusia, especially around the town of
Almería, from which it takes its name. There is little evidence of habitation in the
Bronze Age when people had largely stopped living in caves. During ancient times, Gibraltar was regarded by the peoples of the Mediterranean as a place of religious and symbolic importance. The
Phoenicians were present for several centuries since around 950 BC, apparently using Gorham's Cave as a shrine to the
genius loci, as did the
Carthaginians and
Romans after them. Gibraltar was known as
Mons Calpe, a name perhaps of Phoenician origin.
Mons Calpe was considered by the ancient Greeks and Romans as one of the
Pillars of Hercules, after the
Greek legend of the creation of the
Strait of Gibraltar by
Heracles. There is no known archaeological evidence of permanent settlements from the ancient period. They settled at the head of the bay in the
Campo (hinterland) of Gibraltar. The town of
Carteia, near the location of the modern Spanish town of
San Roque, was founded by the Phoenicians around 950 BC on the site of an early settlement of the native
Turdetani people.
Middle Ages The area of Gibraltar later formed part of the
Visigothic Kingdom of
Hispania for almost 300 years, from 418 until 720 AD. Following a raid in 710, a predominantly
Berber army under the command of
Tariq ibn Ziyad crossed from North Africa in April 711 and landed somewhere in the vicinity of Gibraltar (though most likely not in the bay or at the Rock itself). Tariq's expedition led to the
Islamic conquest of most of the Iberian peninsula.
Mons Calpe was renamed
Jabal Ṭāriq (), "the Mount of Tariq", subsequently corrupted into
Gibraltar. In 1160 the
Almohad Sultan
Abd al-Mu'min ordered that a permanent settlement, including a castle, be built. It received the name of Medinat al-Fath (City of the Victory). The Tower of Homage of the
Moorish Castle remains standing. From 1274 onwards, the town was fought over and captured by the
Nasrids of
Granada (in 1237 and 1374), the
Marinids of
Fez (in 1274 and 1333) and the kings of
Castile (in 1309). Upon the Nasrid destruction and abandonment of
Algeciras and Nasrids' procurement of Gibraltar away from Marinids in 1375, the Nasrids favoured Gibraltar (a worse natural harbor than Algeciras but featuring better defence capabilities) as a military and urban outpost in the Strait, although Gibraltar did not ever reach a large population during this period.
Modern era map of Gibraltar, 1901 In 1462, Gibraltar was
captured by
Juan Alonso de Guzmán, 1st Duke of Medina Sidonia, from the
Emirate of Granada. After the conquest,
Henry IV of Castile assumed the additional title of
King of Gibraltar, establishing it as part of the
comarca of the
Campo Llano de Gibraltar. Six years later, Gibraltar was restored to the Duke of Medina Sidonia, who sold it in 1474 to a group of 4,350
conversos (Christian converts from Judaism) from
Cordova and
Seville and in exchange for maintaining the garrison of the town for two years, after which time they were expelled, returning to their home towns or moving on to other parts of Spain. In 1501, Gibraltar passed back to the Spanish Crown, and
Isabella I of Castile issued a
Royal Warrant granting Gibraltar the coat of arms that it still uses. In 1540 Gibraltar was captured and ransacked by
Ottoman admiral
Hayreddin Barbarossa. The raid of the small town eliminated nearly an entire generation of Gibraltarians. Many of the displaced residents settled nearby. Giovanni Maria Boschetti, who arrived in Gibraltar in 1784 as a 25-year-old from Milan, where he is thought to have been a stonemason or engineer, built the Victualling Yard (completed in 1812) and many other buildings. Boschetti is regarded as having been responsible for setting the old town's style, described by Claire Montado, chief executive of the Gibraltar Heritage Trust, as "military-ordnance-style arched doorways, Italianate stucco relief, Genoese shutters, English Regency ironwork balconies, Spanish stained glass and Georgian sash and casement windows." its strategic location made it a key base during the
Crimean War of 1854–1856. In the 18th century, the peacetime military garrison fluctuated in numbers from a minimum of 1,100 to a maximum of 5,000. The first half of the 19th century saw a significant increase of population to more than 17,000 in 1860, as people from Britain and all around the MediterraneanItalian, Portuguese, Maltese, Jewish and Frenchtook up residence in the town. Its strategic value increased with the opening of the
Suez Canal, as it lay on the sea route between the UK and the
British Empire east of Suez. In the later 19th century, major investments were made to improve the fortifications and the port.
Contemporary history of
BOAC is silhouetted at Gibraltar by the batteries of searchlights on the Rock, as crews prepare it for a night flight to the United Kingdom.
During the Second World War, most of Gibraltar's
civilian population was evacuated, mainly to London, but also to parts of
Morocco and
Madeira and to
Gibraltar Camp in
Jamaica. The Rock was strengthened as a
fortress. On 18 July 1940, the
Vichy French air force attacked Gibraltar in retaliation for the
British bombing of the Vichy navy. The naval base and the ships based there played a key role in the provisioning and supply of the island of
Malta during
its long siege. As well as frequent short runs, known as "Club Runs", towards Malta to fly off aircraft reinforcements (initially
Hurricanes, but later, notably from the USN aircraft carrier
Wasp,
Spitfires), the critical
Operation Pedestal convoy was run from Gibraltar in August 1942. This resupplied the island at a critical time in the face of concentrated air attacks from German and Italian forces. Spanish dictator
Francisco Franco's reluctance to allow the
German Army onto Spanish soil frustrated a German plan to capture the Rock, codenamed
Operation Felix. , dating from the 1895 expansion In the 1950s, Franco renewed Spain's claim to sovereignty over Gibraltar and restricted movement between Gibraltar and Spain. Gibraltarians voted overwhelmingly to remain under British sovereignty in the
1967 Gibraltar sovereignty referendum, which led to the passing of the
Gibraltar Constitution Order in 1969. In response, Spain completely closed the border with Gibraltar and severed all communication links. The border with Spain was partially reopened in 1982 and fully reopened in 1985 before Spain's accession to the
European Community. In the early 2000s, Britain and Spain were in negotiations over a potential agreement that would see them sharing sovereignty over Gibraltar. The government of Gibraltar organised a
referendum on the plan, and 99% of the population voted to reject it. In 2008, the British government committed to respecting the Gibraltarians' wishes. A
new Constitution Order was approved in referendum in 2006. A process of tripartite negotiations started in 2006 between Spain, Gibraltar and the UK, ending some restrictions and dealing with disputes in some specific areas such as air movements, customs procedures, telecommunications, pensions and cultural exchange. In the
British referendum on membership of the European Union 96% of
Gibraltarians voted to remain on an 84% turnout. Spain renewed calls for joint Spanish–British control of the peninsula; these were strongly rebuffed by Gibraltar's Chief Minister. On 18 October 2018, however, Spain seemed to have reached an agreement with the United Kingdom in relation to its objections to Gibraltar leaving the EU with the UK, with Spain's prime minister
Pedro Sánchez stating, "Gibraltar will no longer be a problem in arriving at a Brexit deal." On 31 January 2020, the
UK left the European Union, and Gibraltar consequently did the same. During the transition phase set out in the
Brexit withdrawal agreement, Gibraltar's relationship with the EU remained unchanged until the end of 2020, when it was replaced by the
EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement. On 31 December 2020, the UK and Spain agreed in principle on a framework for Gibraltar to participate in the
Schengen Area to avoid a hard border with Spain after years of negotiations. On 11 June 2025, a deal was signed which established an
open border and joint passport controls at
Gibraltar International Airport, measures designed to facilitate easier travel and daily crossings. Despite these arrangements, the UK reaffirmed that Gibraltar remains British sovereign territory, preserving the existing status despite practical changes on the ground. In 2022, Gibraltar launched a bid for city status as part of the
Platinum Jubilee Civic Honours. The bid was refused, but when researchers looked through
the National Archives, they found that it had already been recognised as a city by
Queen Victoria in 1842. ==Governance==