The Portuguese in WWI: Europe's Forgotten Ally

0:00Lucas: So, we've covered a lot of the big players in this war — Britain, France, Germany, Russia, the Ottomans. But there's one European ally that almost never gets mentioned, and it's Portugal. Luna: Portugal? I always thought they stayed neutral in World War I. Lucas: That's what most people think, and they did stay neutral — for the first two and a half years. But in 1916, Germany declared war on Portugal, and by 1917, there were Portuguese troops on the Western Front. A whole expeditionary force, about 55,000 men, sent to fight in Flanders. Luna: What changed? Why did Germany declare war on them? Lucas: It's a bit complicated, but the short answer is that Portugal had centuries-old alliances with Britain — the Treaty of Windsor, 1386, one of the oldest alliances in Europe. When Britain asked Portugal to seize German ships that had taken refuge in Portuguese ports in 1914, Portugal did it. Germany saw that as a hostile act, but Portugal didn't actually declare war. So Germany eventually forced the issue by declaring war on Portugal in March 1916, partly to stop Portugal from selling supplies to the Allies. Luna: So Portugal was dragged in, in a way. Lucas: Exactly. And the timing was terrible for Portugal. The country was already in political turmoil — a shaky republic that had only been established in 1910, constant infighting between monarchists, republicans, anarchists. Then in December 1917, a military coup led by Sidónio Pais took over, and he was a lot more authoritarian. So the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps — the Corpo Expedicionário Português — was sent to France under a divided government, with troops that were often poorly equipped and poorly trained. Luna: That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Lucas: It was. They were assigned to hold a sector of the front near the River Lys in Flanders. It was a quiet sector at first, but by April 1918, the Germans launched their big spring offensive — the Kaiserschlacht we talked about in episode 77. And one of the main attacks fell right on the Portuguese lines. Luna: That's the Battle of La Lys. Lucas: Yes. On April 9, 1918, the Germans hit the Portuguese 2nd Division with overwhelming force. The Portuguese were exhausted — many of them had been in the line for months without relief, and their commander, General Gomes da Costa, had been asking for replacements that never came. The Germans used stormtrooper tactics — Stosstrupptaktik — and the Portuguese line crumbled. Thousands were killed, wounded, or taken prisoner. The Portuguese called it the 'Gólgota Português' — the Portuguese Golgotha. Luna: That's devastating. What happened to the survivors? Lucas: The survivors were pulled out of the line and the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps effectively ceased to exist as a fighting force. A few units were later reorganized, but they never again held a full sector of the front. The Portuguese war effort had been a disaster from start to finish — poor logistics, political infighting at home, and a German attack they couldn't withstand. Lucas: And it's not just the European front. Portugal also sent troops to its African colonies — Mozambique and Angola — where they fought against German colonial forces, especially in East Africa. They had some successes there, but it was still a drain on a very poor country. Luna: You know, I'm thinking about the show — how we've been able to explore so many of these forgotten stories, the ones that don't make it into the standard textbooks. And it's possible because listeners like you help keep it ad-free and independent. Lucas: That's exactly it. If you've been coming with us through these conversations about World War I, and you've gotten something out of them, a couple of dollars a month at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo genuinely makes a difference. It's what lets us keep digging into stories like the Portuguese Golgotha. Luna: Absolutely. And it's not just about the big battles — it's about the small ones that shaped history too. So thank you to anyone who chips in. Lucas: So back to Portugal. After the war, the country was in chaos. The war had exposed the weakness of the republic, and the cost of the war effort — both in lives and money — was enormous. Portugal actually had a higher casualty rate per capita than some of the major powers. About 8,000 dead out of that 55,000-man force, plus thousands more wounded and prisoners. Luna: And what about Sidónio Pais? He was assassinated in December 1918, right? Lucas: That's right. He was shot by a left-wing activist, and after that, Portugal spiraled into a period of instability that eventually led to a military coup in 1926 and then the Estado Novo dictatorship under António de Oliveira Salazar, which lasted until 1974. So the war didn't just kill Portuguese soldiers — it helped destroy the fragile democracy that had been born in 1910. Luna: It's a sobering reminder that World War I didn't just affect the big empires. It wrecked smaller countries too. Lucas: Absolutely. Portugal's experience is a microcosm of what happened to many smaller European nations. They were swept up in a global conflict that they didn't start, and they paid a terrible price. And the memory of that sacrifice has largely been forgotten — even in Portugal, the war is a footnote in most history books. Lucas: But there are efforts to remember. In 2018, a memorial was unveiled in the town of La Couture, near the battlefield, to honor the Portuguese dead. And there's a small museum in the village of Richebourg, where the Portuguese headquarters was located. So their story is still there, if you look. Luna: And what about the colonial troops? You mentioned Mozambique and Angola. Lucas: Right. In Africa, Portugal committed about 10,000 troops from Mozambique and another 5,000 from Angola, plus thousands of African porters and laborers. They fought in the East African campaign against Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck's Schutztruppe, which we covered in episode 63. The Portuguese were generally not very effective — their forces were poorly led and equipped, and they suffered heavily from disease. But they did capture the town of Tabora in German East Africa in 1916, which was a rare success. Luna: So Portugal's war was a disaster on almost every level. Lucas: Pretty much. And it had long-term consequences. The war accelerated the decline of Portugal's already crumbling empire. The colonies started demanding more autonomy, and the economic strain of the war made it harder to hold on. By the 1960s, Portugal was fighting bloody colonial wars in Africa, which eventually led to the end of the empire in 1975. You can draw a direct line from the trenches of La Lys to the fall of the Portuguese Empire. Luna: It's amazing how one event can ripple through decades. Lucas: Exactly. And that's why I think Portugal's story is worth telling. It's a reminder that the war was truly global, even if we only remember the names of the big powers. For a small country like Portugal, the war was an existential crisis that changed everything. Luna: Well, I'm glad we finally gave them a mention. The Portuguese Golgotha — I won't forget that. Lucas: Me neither. And maybe next time someone asks about World War I, we can say, 'Well, there was this one episode about Portugal...' Luna: I'll be sure to add it to the list.