Portugal – South Africa relations refer to the current and historical relationship between Portugal and South Africa. Nowadays the two countries have solid relations, with South Africa representing a major partner for Portugal amongst AU members.
South Africa has an Embassy in Lisbon. It also has Honorary Consulates in Porto and Funchal, Madeira. Portugal has an Embassy in Pretoria. In addition, there are Consulates-General in Johannesburg and Cape Town, and Honorary Consulates in Durban, Port Elizabeth and Welkom.
History
Exploration
Early explorers had set out with one purpose in mind, which was to discover a new sea route to the Orient. It is unlikely that they had any idea of achieving anything more than discovering and opening new channels of trade and commerce for Portugal. Furthermore, they were probably discouraged from any attempt to penetrate the interior of the country or to form settlements along the coast by the inhospitable terrain and by the hostile and warlike disposition of the native inhabitants. One of the biggest clashes between Portuguese and South African natives occurred in 1510; Francisco de Almeida, first viceroy of the Portuguese possessions in the East, was assassinated along with sixty-four of his men on the shores of Table Bay following a dispute with the Khoikhoi near Treaty Tree.
The Portuguese explored the coasts of South Africa from the late 15th century, and nominally claimed them as their own with the erecting of padrões (large stone cross inscribed with the coat of arms of Portugal placed there as part of a land claim). Bartolomeu Dias did so in 1486, erecting the first Western-style monument in today's South Africa.
In 1497 Vasco da Gama, en route to India, recorded a sighting of the Cape of Good Hope(Cabo da Boa Esperança) because of the optimism the Portuguese crown stored on the new trade route.
Apartheid
South Africa had close relations with Portugal, particularly during the time that Mozambique and Angola were Portuguese colonies. South Africa under Apartheid was ruled by the National Party, which shared common ground with the anti-communist Estado Novo regime of António de Oliveira Salazar in Portugal.
Following Britain's decision to grant independence to its colonies in Africa, the government of Hendrik Verwoerd feared that the newly independent states would fall under the influence of the Soviet Union, and from 1961 onwards, there were frequent meetings of South African and Portuguese intelligence operatives as well as visits of South African politicians to Portuguese-ruled Angola and Mozambique. It was in this scenario that the Alcora Exercise (acronym for "Aliança Contra as Rebeliões em Africa" or "Alliance against the rebellions in Africa"), a pact between Rhodesia, Portugal and South Africa, was established in 1970. Following the Carnation Revolution, in 1974, the alliance was dismantled.
Portuguese heritage in South Africa
The Portuguese have left many vestiges dating back to the Age of Discovery.
In Mossel Bay (named by Dias "Angra dos Vaqueiros" or Herder's bay) there is a Museum dedicated to Bartolomeu Dias (Bartolomeu Dias Museum Complex),. The museum was erected where the famous Post Office Tree, used by the Portuguese to exchange messages, stands. Moreover, it is in this very city that, a few years after Dias' expedition, the first Christian shrine in South Africa was built by João da Nova's crew.
It is noteworthy that there are still many toponyms of Portuguese origin in South Africa, such as Algoa Bay (from Bahia de Lagoa or "Bay of the Lagoon"), St Croix Island (from Ilha da Santa Cruz or "Saint Cross Island"), Cape Agulhas (from Cabo das Agulhas or "Cape of Needles" – the southern tip of continental Africa) and, Cape Voltas (or "Turning Cape"), Cape Recife (Cabo de Recife or "Cape of the reefs"), Infanta (named after João Infante), Machadodorp, and Saldanha (named after António de Saldanha, captain of a vessel in Albuquerque's fleet which visited South Africa in 1503).
In addition, KwaZulu-Natal province – the second most populated of the country – still retains the Portuguese origin of its name, being where Gama, travelling to India, landed on Christmas, 1497.
Due to the extensive travels of Portuguese eplorers in the 15th-16th centuries, the South African coast and its valuable historical heritage is considered one of the richest places in the world for studying the travels of the Portuguese in the early Age of Discovery.