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Gibraltar derives its name from Tariq Ibn Zeyad (Gibel Tariq – Tarik's Mountain), who led the 8th-century conquest of Spain by a combined force of Arabs and Berbers crossing from Africa. Gibraltar's unusual status was not acquired until almost 1000 years later, long after the Islamic invaders had been driven out, as a consequence of the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht which brought to an end the War of the Spanish Succession and gave the territory to Britain. The British interpretation of the treaty, moreover, holds that the territory was ceded to them indefinitely.
The presence of a foreign-owned mini-state on the Spanish mainland has been an irritant in Anglo-Spanish relations ever since (though the British point to the Spanish-controlled enclaves of Ceuta and Mellila on the Moroccan coast). The Spanish dictator Franco launched a campaign in 1963 through the United Nations to reclaim Gibraltar, adding to the pressure by closing the border and severing telephone links. Despite a more flexible and amicable attitude on the part of the Spanish since the death of Franco in 1975 (the border was finally opened in 1985), there has been little movement on the basic issue of sovereignty.
The Gibraltarians have been equally unyielding in their attachment to Britain. Trilateral co-operation between the UK, Spain and Gibraltar has steadily improved in the security field and will necessarily be strengthened as the EU's common border plan comes into operation. There has been some shifting of ground in Madrid as regards the constitutional future of Gibraltar: Premier Felipe González has suggested to the British some form of joint authority. The most recent general election in Gibraltar returned Joe Bossano as chief minister thereby strengthening the hand of those on the Rock who prefer outright independence, although in public statements Bossano remains vague about his intentions.
Recent discussions between the British and Spanish governments over the future of Gibraltar have continued at a sedentary pace. In July 1998, a plan to permit inhabitants of most of Britain's remaining territories to acquire full British citizenship was announced by the Foreign Office. The Falklands and Gibraltar were excluded as residents of those territories already have full British citizenship rights.
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