Alone among the former imperial powers of Europe, tiny Portugal has clung desperately to all its overseas possessions, refusing to surrender so much as a foot of territory. Britain gave up India; France gave up its Indian enclaves; but for all of Nehru's huffing and puffing, Portugal hung on to Goa. Last week stubborn Portugal was forced to give up at least the first inch of empire.
At issue was the fort of St. John the Baptist, built at Ouidah on the coast of Dahomey in 1680 as a depot for ivory, gold and rubber. It was almost destroyed in the...
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