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The Portuguese Empire (in Portuguese: Imperio Colonial Português) means the overseas territories occupied and administered by Portugal from the beginning of the 15th century and the 20th century. Officially, the term "Portuguese overseas islands" (Ultramar português) was long favored until the provisional adoption of the term "Portuguese colonial empire" between 1930 and 1951.
This set, together with the Spanish Empire, constituted the first colonial empire in modern European history, with a set of territories scattered over five continents under Portuguese sovereignty, the result of explorations made during the Great Discoveries. It extended over what today represents sixty different sovereign states. It has also been one of the most enduring and has faced laborious and often tragic decolonization; Portugal's presence outside of Europe lasted nearly six centuries.
It is considered one of the ten greatest empires of mankind since the registration of civilizations and the first pluricontinental empire. At the beginning of the 16th century, Portugal had fleets and armies on 5 continents.
The Portuguese Empire was initially ruled by the House of Aviz for almost one hundred and fifty years, then by the Spanish Habsburgs for sixty years, then by the House of Braganza for three hundred years, before finally being ruled by the Republic. Portuguese since 1910.
Conventionally, the beginning of the empire falls on 1415, the date of the conquest of Ceuta. As for its end, the date varies depending on the criteria used: 1975, when most of the colonies gain independence, or 1999, when the Portuguese administration of Macau, the last overseas territory officially under Portuguese sovereignty, ends.
Today, the countries of this ancient empire are part of the Community of Portuguese-speaking countries.