Lisbon: Ancient Glories and Modern Woes

Lisbon is one of the oldest cities in Western Europe. As a large and important port, it was shaped by many different cultures and bowed down to disparate rulers over the centuries. Originally called Olissipo, the Romans renamed it Felicitas Julia. The next conquerors were Germanic tribes, then Islamic Moors, with Christians finally reclaiming it in 1147. It became Portugal's capital in 1256.

Portugal occupies just 15 percent of the Iberian Peninsula, squeezed by Spain to the edge of the Atlantic. However, in its heyday in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Kingdom of Portugal was a vast naval empire with colonies in Asia, South America, Africa and the Atlantic Islands. This was Europe's exhilarating Age of Discovery, and Portuguese explorers held their own with monumental findings like the oceanic route to India.

A great calamity befell Lisbon in 1755, when an earthquake and resulting tsunami and fires destroyed 85 percent of the city, taking 30 to 40 thousand lives. The Baixa district, thereafter rebuilt to be quake-resistant, is still admired for its efficient urban planning. The 19th and 20th centuries brought much political upheaval, the independence of Brazil and other colonies, and membership in the European Community.

Lisbon's GDP constitutes 45 percent of the nation's total and was valued at $96.3 billion in 2014. The city houses the Euronext Lisbon stock exchange, diverse manufacturing facilities and a strong tertiary sector of industries such as media.

里斯本的往日榮耀與今朝困境

里斯本是西歐最古老的城市之一。作為一座大型的重要港口，里斯本是由各式各樣的文化型塑而成，過去幾個世紀也曾臣服於迥然相異的統治者。這座城市原本的名稱為「奧利斯普」，羅馬人改名為「祝賀凱撒」。接下來的征服者是日耳曼部族，然後是伊斯蘭摩爾人，最後基督徒終於在 1147 年取回這座城市。里斯本在 1256 年成為葡萄牙的首都。
被西班牙擠到大西洋邊緣的葡萄牙僅佔伊比利亞半島 15% 的面積。然而在十五、十六世紀的全盛時期，葡萄牙王國曾是一座龐大的海軍帝國，在亞洲、南美洲、非洲與大西洋群島都有殖民地。這段時間是歐洲令人振奮的地理大發現時期，葡萄牙的探險家更是表現出色，擁有通往印度的海上航道等重大發現。
里斯本在 1755 年遭遇重大災難，一場地震以及因此造成的海嘯與大火摧毀了 85% 的城區，奪走三、四萬條性命。後來重建為抗震結構的貝薩區，至今仍以其極具效率的都市規劃而為人稱道。十九、二十世紀帶來許多政治上的動盪，巴西和其他殖民地相繼獨立，而葡萄牙也取得歐洲共同體的會員資格。
里斯本的國內生產毛額佔全國總額的 45%，在 2014 年估計為 963 億美元。這座城市設有里斯本泛歐交易所、各種製造廠房以及媒體之類的強大第三級產業。