Bissau, Guinea-Bissau

Bissau in Guinea-Bissau
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:People_in_Guinea_Bissau_visit_shops_along_a_busy_street.jpg
Author: Vince Crawley


Bissau is the capital, main seaport and largest city of Guinea-Bissau. It covers 77 sq km (30 sq mi) and has a population of 407,000 people (2012 estimate).

Located on the Geba River, Bissau was founded by the Portuguese in 1687. It the medieval period it was developed as a fortified town and trading center. It was part of Portuguese Guinea, which including the Cape Verde Islands. In 1942, Bissau was made the capital of Portuguese Guinea.

From 1956, nationalist sentiments began to develop in Portuguese Guinea with the founding of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde, or PAIGC. After its attempt to seek independence through political campaigns brought little progress, the PAIGC began to use guerrila tactics.

In 1973, the PAIGC unilaterally declared independence. They made Madina do Boe the capital, although Bissau continued to serve as capital of regions occupied by the Portuguese administration. A military coup in Lisbon was instrumental in changing the Portuguese position, and a year later, Portugal pulled out of Portuguese Guinea, and recognized the independence of Guinea-Bissau, with Bissau becoming capital of the new independent state.

Bissau Cathedral
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cattedrale_Bissau.JPG
Author: Francofranco56

Visiting Bissau

The Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB) is the only international airport in Guinea-Bissau. It receives flights from Casablanca, Dakar, Freetown, Lisbon, Nouakchott and Praia.

Places of Interest in Bissau

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About this website

Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.