ANDORRA AND ITS HISTORY

The first mentions of the territory that would form Andorra date back to the 1st century BC. C. Later incorporated into the Roman Empire as part of the Hispania Tarraconense province, created in 27 a. C., even after the creation of the Visigoth kingdom.

After the Muslim conquest, the Andorran valleys were part of the Marca Superior de Al-Andalus. This territory was the scene of the struggle between Franks and Andalusians until the invasion of Charlemagne, the traditional date of Andorra's independence (year 788). 

The first preserved document that mentions Andorra is the deed of consecration of the cathedral of Urgell, from the 9th century, where it is pointed out that Andorra was a fief of the county of Pau. 

On January 27, 1133, Count Armengol VI d'Urgell cedes his property and rights in the valleys of Andorra and Arcavell in exchange for one thousand two hundred sous, to the bishop of Urgell. Later, the different war conflicts forced the bishop to submit to the protection of the Caboet house, whose heir was the Count of Foix. 

In 1278, and due to numerous disputes, the “Pareatge” was signed between the bishop of Urgell and the count of Foix, a document of reconciliation with which the institution of the co-principate arose. In 1288, the second “Pareatge” was signed. 

The current Parliament, called the “Consell General”, was established in 1419, with the creation of what was then called the “Consell de la Terra”. 

The tradition of Andorran neutrality can be traced back to the beginning of the 18th century, during the Spanish Succession War. In 1715, the bishop of Urgell, Simeó de Guinda, dictates several rules in which the Consuls of the “Valls d'Andorra” are ordered not to obey any order that was not issued by the King of France. 

In 1789, the French Revolution broke out and placed Andorra between two opposing powers, France and Spain. The French revolutionaries refuse to maintain the “Pareatge” due to its feudal origin and it is interrupted, also suspending the relations between Andorra and France, as well as the perception of the tributes of the “Qüestia”. 

In 1794, in the middle of the war with Spain, a French detachment penetrated Andorran territory as far as Soldeu, in an attempt to occupy Seu d'Urgell. But a group of Andorrans go to Puigcerdà and convince General Chabret to give up the operation. 

Then, already in 1806, Napoleon re-established the feudal tradition and co-lordship rights of France over the Principality of Andorra. 

Between 1812 and 1814, when the French Empire nominally annexed Catalonia and divided it into four departments (Segre, Ter, Montserrat and Boques de l'Ebre), Andorra became part of the district of Puigcerdà, within of the Department of Segre. 

In 1866, a rich Andorran landowner, Guillem d'Areny- Plandolit , spearheaded a reform of government institutions called the New Reform. This reform of the institutions granted a limited participation of the heads of families in the government of the country. 

The General Council is composed, from then on, of 24 councilors elected by the trustees. In 1866 itself, the reform was accepted by the bishop of Urgell, and in 1869 by the French co-prince Napoleon III. 

It was on June 17, 1933 that the General Council of Andorra, pressured by popular demonstrations, agreed on universal male suffrage for Andorrans, which until then had been limited to "family heads". 

The right to vote is established at the age of 25, and women will not obtain it until 1970. Despite all this, the Tribunal de Corts considered this decision disobedience to the co-princes and dismissed the General Council. However, its members refused to leave office.

The president of the French Republic, as co-prince of Andorra and after the demand of the bishop of La Seu d'Urgell, on August 8 sent a detachment of the gendarmerie to restore order. 

The detachment, commanded by Colonel René Baulard , was withdrawn on October 9, 1933. Jaume Sansa Nequi , appointed Veguer by Justí Guitart Vilardebó in 1933, remained so throughout the mandate of Ramón Iglesias Navarri and by Ramón Malla Call, and until March 1972 with Joan Martí Alanis . 

Following the Spanish Civil War, from July 1936 until June 1940 (date of the surrender of France to the German army) there was a French detachment in Andorra, again commanded by Colonel René Baulard, to prevent attacks by General Franco's government.

Franco's troops, shortly after occupying Girona and reaching the French border, arrived at the Andorran border in February 1939. The good understanding between Commander Aguirre, the trustee Cairat and Colonel Baulard, with whom interviewed at the border crossing, he guaranteed Andorra's neutrality in the conflict. 

During the Second World War, Andorra remained neutral. In 1944, a detachment of French gendarmes (without agreement with the bishop of the See) and a group of civil guards were established in Andorra, but no significant confrontation occurred between the two forces, which remained in the Principality until 1945. 

In the 1960s there was a big jump in the life of Andorrans thanks to commerce (favored by its status as a tax haven and by smuggling) and tourism, developing sports facilities for the practice of ski. In 1967 co-prince Charles de Gaulle visited the Principality. In 1973 the two co-princes, Georges , met for the first time since the 13th century Pompidou and Bishop Joan Martí Alanis . 

On January 14, 1982, Andorra's first government took office, separating for the first time the legislative power from the executive.

At the beginning of the 1990s, Andorra signs an agreement with the European Economic Community and a new penal code is approved.

On March 14, 1993, the Constitution was approved in a referendum that dismantled the last feudal reminiscences of the Andorran government by declaring the Andorran people as the sole sovereign of the State. 

The power of the co-princes is reduced and a system of modern parliamentary government is created. On July 28 of that same year, Andorra became a full member of the United Nations. 

On July 28, 1993, the Head of Government of Andorra Óscar Ribas Reig delivered the first speech in Catalan, on the occasion of Andorra's entry into the UN.