page_title: Olivenza
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Olivenza / Geography
caption_attribution_description: English: Unofficial map of Olivenza, annexed by Spain in 1801. Español: Mapa de los actuales distritos portugueses de Portalegre y Évora junto a Olivenza, anexionada por España en 1801.
context_page_description: Olivenza or Olivença is a town situated on a disputed section of the Portugal–Spain border. Its territory is administered by Spain as a municipality belonging to the province of Badajoz, and to the wider autonomous community of Extremadura. Portugal does not recognise Spanish sovereignty over the territory, based on its interpretation of the rulings of the 1815 Congress of Vienna. Spain accepted the Treaty on 7 May 1817; however, Olivença and its surroundings were never returned to Portuguese control and this question remains unresolved and Portugal holds a claim over it.
  The town of Olivença was under Portuguese sovereignty between 1297 and 1801, when it was invaded by the Spanish during the War of the Oranges and ceded to Spain that year under the Treaty of Badajoz. Spain has since administered the territory, whilst Portugal invokes the self-revocation of the Treaty of Badajoz, plus the Treaty of Vienna of 1815, to claim the return of the territory. In spite of the territorial dispute between Portugal and Spain, the issue has not been a sensitive matter in the relations between these two countries.
context_section_description: Olivenza is located on the left (east) bank of the Guadiana river, at an equal distance of 24 kilometres (15 miles) south of Elvas in Portugal and Badajoz in Spain. The territory is triangular, with a smaller side resting on the Guadiana and the opposite vertex entering south-east and surrounded by Spanish territory. By an agreement between Spain and Portugal, the left bank of the river was recognized as being Portuguese territory (to a non-defined width, though), which sets the de facto border in that area. Besides the town, the municipality of Olivenza includes six villages: San Francisco (Portuguese: São Francisco), San Rafael (São Rafael), Villarreal (Vila Real), Santo Domingo de Guzman (São Domingos de Gusmão), San Benito de la Contienda (São Bento da Contenda), and San Jorge de Alor (São Jorge da Lor). Another village, Táliga, was detached to become the seat of a separate municipality in 1850.
  Total population is 10,762 (2002), of which 8,274 live in Olivenza. The total area is 750 square kilometres (290 sq mi). Like the surrounding regions, population density is low, at 11 inhabitants per km².
  Some monuments include the church of Saint Mary of the Castle (Spanish: Iglesia de Santa María del Castillo, Portuguese: Igreja de Santa Maria do Castelo), Holy Ghost Chapel (Capilla del Espíritu Santo, Capela do Espírito Santo), Saint Mary Magdalene Church (Iglesia de Santa María Magdalena, Igreja de Santa Maria Madalena, considered a masterwork of Portuguese Manueline architecture), Saint John of God Monastery (Monasterio de San Juan de Dios, Mosteiro de São João de Deus), the keep (torre del homenaje, torre de menagem), and the ruins of the Our Lady of Help Bridge (Puente de Nuestra Señora de Ayuda, Ponte de Nossa Senhora da Ajuda, destroyed in 1709 and never rebuilt).
  There are still traces of Portuguese culture and language in the people, although the younger generations speak Spanish only. At the beginning of the 1940s the city was reportedly mainly Portuguese-speaking, but after the 1940s a language shift towards Spanish took place.
caption: Olivença in the former Alto Alentejo Province.
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