Background:
Strategically important, Gibraltar was ceded to Great Britain by
Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht; the British garrison was
formally declared a colony in 1830. In referendums held in 1967 and
2002, Gibraltarians ignored Spanish pressure and voted
overwhelmingly to remain a British dependency.
Geography Gibraltar
Location:
Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links
the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern
coast of Spain
Geographic coordinates:
36 8 N, 5 21 W
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 6.5 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 6.5 sq km
Area - comparative:
about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Land boundaries: total: 1.2 km border countries: Spain 1.2 km
Coastline:
12 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 3 nm