colony · Egypt, North Africa and Sudan

English Tangier

1661 CE – 1684 CE · capital Tangier

Tangier under English rule after it came as part of Catherine of Braganza's dowry, a costly garrison abandoned after twenty-two years.

Origins

In 1661 the Kingdom of Portugal ceded Tangier to Charles II of the Kingdom of England as part of the dowry of Catherine of Braganza. English troops took over in January 1662, hoping to make it a naval base controlling the Strait of Gibraltar.

Rule and society

Tangier was governed by military governors such as the Earl of Teviot, who was killed in an ambush in 1664. The English built a great mole to create a harbour and granted the town a municipal charter in 1668. The garrison was under constant pressure from Moroccan forces, especially after Moulay Ismail of the Alaouite Sultanate came to power.

Decline and legacy

With costs rising and Parliament unwilling to pay, Charles II ordered the evacuation. In 1684 the English blew up the mole and fortifications, with Samuel Pepys among the officials present, and left the town to Morocco.

Lineage

Portuguese Morocco 1415 CE – 1769 CEEnglish Tangier

Connections (1)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). English Tangier. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/english-tangier
MLA
“English Tangier.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/english-tangier. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “English Tangier.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/english-tangier.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘English Tangier’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/english-tangier (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻