September 29 - ...And Couto Misto Is No More!

Posted on September 29, 2020

On this date in 1864, the Treaty of Lisbon was signed, establishing the border between Spain and Portugal.

Spain and Portugal are located in the part of
Europe called the Iberian peninsula.

This treaty ended the existence of what had been, pretty much, an independent teeny-tiny nation. (Really small nations, like Monacor, Tuvalu, and Vatican City, are sometimes called microstates.) The teeny-tiny microstate of Couto Misto included three villages, farmland, and uninhabited land.

Key Points

The teeny-tiny nation of Couto Misto is pictured in
orange on the right-hand map, which shows an
expansion of the rectangular area outlined on the
left-hand map.

See also April 24, 2011 - Easter

For centuries, neither Portugal nor Spain ruled this bit of land and its people – and that gave the people of Couto Misto some very nice perks:

They didn’t have to serve in an army. Remember, Couto Misto was de facto independent for hundreds of years, so there were times when war broke out and the nations of Spain or Portugal (or both) called on its men to serve – but not those of Couto Misto.

They didn’t pay taxes! I guess they also didn’t get any services from any national government, though.

They could grant asylum if they wanted, or they could kick out “foreigners” like Spaniards or Portuguese, if they wanted.

They had self-government that was, in such a small area, easily handled with popular assemblies. In other words, instead of electing representatives to make decisions and create laws, the people of Couto Misto were able to gather and debate, vote, and decide such things for themselves.

Flag of Couto Misto

When the Treaty of Lisbon ended Couto Misto’s independence, it basically divvied up the land into Spanish lands and Portuguese lands. Spain got almost all of the land, including all three villages; Portugal got just a narrow strip of uninhabited land.