Editing Praia (section)

==History==
[[File:Battle_of_Porto_Praya.jpg|thumb|left|A depiction of Praia during the 1781 [[Battle of Porto Praya]].]]
[[File:BARROW(1806) p098 PORTO PRAYA, ISLAND OF ST.JAGO (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|Praia, depicted in 1806.]]  
The island of Santiago was discovered by [[António da Noli]] in 1460.<ref name=gomes>[http://hdl.handle.net/11328/594 Valor simbólico do centro histórico da Praia], Lourenço Conceição Gomes, Universidade Portucalense, 2008</ref>{{rp|73}} The first settlement on the island was Ribeira Grande ([[Cidade Velha]]). The village ''Praia de Santa Maria'' was first mentioned around 1615 and grew near the natural [[Praia Harbor|harbour]].<ref>Roman Adrian Cybriwsky, ''Capital Cities around the World: An Encyclopedia of Geography, History, and Culture'', ABC-CLIO, USA, 2013, p. 244</ref> The ports of Santiago were important ports of call for ships sailing between Portugal and the Portuguese colonies in Africa and South America. Between the end of the 16th century and the end of the 18th century, both Ribeira Grande and Praia suffered many pirate attacks, including those by [[Francis Drake]] ([[Capture of Santiago (1585)|1585]]) and [[Jacques Cassard]] ([[Cassard expedition|1712]]).<ref name=gomes/>{{rp|195}}

Due to its strategic position on a plateau it had better protection against pirate attacks, which gave it a large advantage over the older city of Ribeira Grande ([[Cidade Velha]]). It gradually superseded Cidade Velha to become the most important settlement of Cape Verde, and became the capital of Cape Verde in 1770.<ref name=unesco>{{Cite web|title=Centre historique de Praia|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/6103/|access-date=2023-02-19|website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre|language=fr|date=2016}}</ref> The naval [[battle of Porto Praya]] took place at [[Praia Harbour]] on 16 April 1781, as Portugal was neutral, it involved Great Britain and France and ended in a tactical draw and French strategic victory. Praia was the first stop of [[Charles Darwin]]'s voyage with {{HMS|Beagle}} in 1832.<ref>
[[s:en:Journal of researches into the natural history and geology of the countries visited during the voyage of H.M.S. Beagle round the world/Chapter 1|Journal of researches into the natural history and geology of the countries visited during the voyage of H.M.S. Beagle round the world – Chapter 1 at Wikisource, top part]]</ref>

In the course of the 19th century, the ''[[Plateau (Praia)|Plateau]]'' was completely redeveloped with streets according to a [[grid plan]], lined with grand colonial buildings and mansions.<ref name=unesco/><ref>[http://www.portaldoconhecimento.gov.cv/bitstream/10961/2407/1/monografia%20Domigas%20de%20Pina.pdf Antigas residências senhoriais do Centro Histórico da Praia], Domingas Andrade Silva Barbosa de Pina, [[University of Cape Verde|Universidade de Cabo Verde]], 2009</ref> Praia officially became a city (''cidade'') in 1858, which secured its status as the capital of Cape Verde, concentrating political, religious and economic roles.<ref name=gomes/>{{rp|55}} In the early 1920s, the population was around 21,000.<ref>{{cite book|last=Habbel|first=Josef|title=Habbels Konversationslexikon|volume=3|page=1043|place=Regensburg|year=1925}}</ref>

As in other parts of the archipelago, resistance against Portuguese rule rose in the 1950s. There was no open independence war like in [[Guinea-Bissau War of Independence|Guinea-Bissau]]; after the 1974 [[Carnation Revolution]] in Portugal and the resulting end of the [[Portuguese Colonial War]], Cape Verde declared independence in July 1975. After independence, Praia underwent a demographic boom, receiving migrating movements from all the islands. As a result, 56% of the entire population of Cape Verde resides in Santiago; and 29% in the Municipality of Praia alone. Its estimated population has reached 151,436 (2015).<ref name=yearbook/>{{rp|36}} On 28 June 1985, Praia became member of UCCLA, the Union of Luso – Afro-Americo-Asiatic Capital Cities, an international organization.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cm-lisboa.pt/investir/relacoes-economicas-internacionais/uccla|title=Site of the City of Lisbon: UCCLA|publisher=City of Lisbon|language=pt|access-date=11 October 2016}}</ref>