HISTORIC TIMELINE
1456Portuguese Discovery and Settlement
Portuguese explorers settled Cape Verde, one of the first European settlements in the tropics.
16th-17th centuriesTransatlantic Slave Trade
Cape Verde became a significant point in the transatlantic slave trade, boosting its economy.
mid-19th centuryEconomic Decline
Increased foreign competition and droughts led to economic decline and emigration from Cape Verde.
1975Independence from Portugal
Cape Verde gained independence from Portuguese colonial rule.
1990sTransition to Democracy
Cape Verde established a stable representative democracy and became one of the most developed countries in Africa.