Ceuta celebrates this Wednesday, September 2, its official day. It does so in a particularly marked year for the autonomous city, which reaches one of the most important dates on its calendar still pending the consequences of the migration crisis that began at the end of July.
Thousands of migrants still remain in Ceuta as the returns to Morocco and increases pressure on city resources. The situation has also taken Ceuta Day beyond its borders, with rallies called in numerous Spanish municipalities for this September 2.
In the middle of that scenario, Ceuta commemorates a date whose history goes back more than six centuries. Because although Ceuta Day as an official celebration is only a few decades old, the reason why September 2 was chosen requires us to travel back to 1415.
A date dating back to 1415
Ceuta did not always belong to Spain. At the beginning of the 15th century the city was under Muslim rule. until an expedition led by John I of Portugal managed to take it in August 1415.
That operation turned Ceuta into one of the first possessions of Portuguese expansion outside of Europe and It opened a stage that would last for more than two centuries.
But there is a curiosity behind the date that currently appears on the calendar. The Portuguese entry into Ceuta took place on August 21several days before the day that is commemorated today.
He origin of september 2 It’s in what happened next.
Pedro de Meneses and the origin of Ceuta Day
Once the city was controlled, Portugal needed to organize a plaza located on the other side of the Strait and guarantee its defense. That’s when it came to prominence. Pedro de Meneses.
He September 2, 1415 he was appointed governor of Ceuta and his figure remained closely linked to the city ever since. That episode would end up being chosen, centuries later, to establish the date of its official celebration.
The Portuguese presence also left a mark that is still visible today. One of the most recognizable examples is the flag of Ceuta, formed by white and black fields and historically related to the Lisbon flag. Its shield also maintains similarities with the Portuguese one, although it presents its own elements.
When did Ceuta become part of Spain?
The link with Portugal was maintained for more than two centuries. In 1580Philip II also went on to occupy the Portuguese throne, so both crowns remained under the same monarch.
The situation changed in 1640. Portugal rose up against the Hispanic Monarchy and began the process that would end up returning its independence. Ceuta then made a different decision and remained linked to Philip IV.
The new scenario was consolidated with the Treaty of Lisbon of 1668by which Spain recognized the independence of Portugal. Ceuta remained within the Spanish Crown and definitively put an end to a Portuguese stage started more than 250 years before.
Ceuta Day is barely three decades old
The history that explains September 2 is more than 600 years oldbut its addition to the calendar is much more recent.
The Ceuta Assembly agreed in October 1997 to establish this day as Autonomous City Day. The date became part of the labor holiday calendar in 1998.
Since then, Ceuta Day has had a marked institutional character and also serves to recognize people and entities related to the city. Among the events traditionally associated with the day is the delivery of the Medals of Autonomyin addition to different cultural and civic activities.
A different Ceuta Day in 2026
This year’s celebration will inevitably be conditioned by everything that has happened in recent weeks. The massive entry of migrants from Morocco has placed Ceuta at the center of the national political debate and has forced the resources available in the city to be reinforced.
The crisis has also caused a support movement outside the city. Dozens of city councils and organizations have called rallies for September 2, making the mobilizations coincide with Ceuta Day.
In this way, a date chosen almost three decades ago to remember an episode that occurred in 1415 takes on a different meaning this year. More than six centuries after the event that gave rise to September 2, Ceuta celebrates its day again with a good part of Spain pending what is happening in the autonomous city.