📚 Sources: The Gibraltar Crusade: Castile and the Battle for the Strait – Joseph F. O’Callaghan (2011) The Reconquista: The History and Legacy of the Conflicts Between the Moors and Christians on the Iberian Peninsula – Charles River Editors (2018) The Reconquest of Spain – Derek Lomax (1978) The Portuguese in the Age of Discovery 1340-1665 – David Nicolle (2012)
The Battle of Ourique is a defining moment in the history of Portugal, as it was here that Afonso Henriques was on July 25, 1139, proclaimed the first King of Portugal by his troops after defeating the Moorish army. The significance of the battle of Ourique cannot be overstated for it secured the founding of the Kingdom of Portugal.
The five blue shields at the very centre of the flag of Portugal represent the five Moorish kings that were defeated by Portugal’s first King Afonso Henriques in the battle of Ourique 1139. The white central shield is the personal armor of this same King and was said to have been given to him in a vision of the crucified Christ on the eve of battle.
📢 Narrated by David McCallion
🎼 Music: EpidemicSound Filmstro
📚 Sources: The Reconquest Kings of Portugal: Political and Cultural Reorientation on the Medieval Frontier – Stephen Lay (2008) Between Silences: The Coronation of Portuguese Medieval Kings (12th–14th Centuries) – Carla Varela Fernandes (2020) The Teaching of military history at Portuguese universities: Pride and Prejudice – João Gouveia Monteiro (2021) The History of Medieval Portugal in the Deducao cronologica analitica – Filipe Alves Moreira (2022) The Kingdom of León-Castilla under King Alfonso VII, 1126–1157 – Bernard F. Reilly (1998) Between God and the King: The world of military orders – Isabel Cristina Ferreira Fernandes (2018) A History of Portugal and the Portuguese Empire, volume I, Cambridge University Press – Anthony Disney (2009) The Reconquista and Its Legacy, 1000-1348 – António Henriques (2017) Fantastic Stories of the History of Portugal – João Ferreira (2010)
Correction: 10:48 The location of the battle is heavily debated. Contemporary sources said that they do not know where the battle took place, only that it took place on “fields near Ourique”. But today many historians argue that Alfonso couldn’t lead a full military campaign in Alentejo with his limited resources, so deep in Muslim territory (he was only a count with a small realm). A more plausible location is suggested near Vila Chã de Ourique, which was closer to Portugal’s traditional lands. Nevertheless, historians are divided between Ourique in Alentejo and Vila Chã de Ourique further north – my opinion is that Vila Chã de Ourique is much more plausible.
📚 Sources Joseph F. O’Callaghan – A History of Medieval Spain Joseph F. O’Callaghan – Reconquest and Crusade in Medieval Spain George F. Nafziger, Mark W. Walton – Islam at War: A History Kenneth M. Setton et. al. – A History of the Crusades Vol. II: The Later Crusades
Join ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet for a tour of the International Space Station’s Russian MLM module. The module docked to the Station on 29 July 2021, bringing with it the European Robotic Arm (ERA) that will provide unprecedented access outside the Russian segment.
In this tour, Thomas explains what happened when the module arrived on Station and gives an overview of its facilities and functions. Short for Multipurpose Laboratory Module, and also known as Nauka, the module increases opportunities for science and research in microgravity.
Thomas shows the hatch to access the module, its main hall and a new toilet – the third toilet for the Space Station. He also shows the scientific racks, the piloting station for ERA, a crew quarter, and a second part of the module that will be used for docking with an airlock that will allow experiments to be sent out into the vacuum of space, and a window that – once it is functional – will provide more incredible views over Earth.
We are Europe’s gateway to space. Our mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world. Check out https://www.esa.int/ to get up to speed on everything space related.
