Portuguese Civil War (NAI)

The Portuguese Civil War is a conflict that broke out in 2028 following the global societal collapse. A group of Portuguese nationalists, angered by the poor work of the government, gathered in the north of the country and declared that the government stepped down. They refused, and deployed Public Security Police, most of whom were either killed or defected. Nationalists left the country side, armed by their Spanish neighbor, and took over the northern city of Braga. The nationalist leader proclaimed himself the president of the Nationalist Republic of Portugal, with Braga as the capital.

Eventually, after two years, the Nationalists defeated the Democrats at the Siege of Lisbon, ending the Democratic Republic.

Beginnings
In the late 2020s, the government of Portugal was one of the few that survived the global societal collapse. However, the people were still angry with the government, but did not do much about it. In 2028, a group of nationalists convened in a northern Portuguese town. Arming themselves, they took the city with force, killing several police officers. The government deployed more police, all of whom either defected or were killed. After that, they marched on to Braga, taking the city with little casualties and declaring the Nationalist Republic.

Nationalist advance
Hours later, the president declared a state of emergency. He deployed 12,000 Republican National Guardsmen and 8,000 Army troops to retake the city, which was held by some 30,000 nationalists and police deserters. The battle that ensued was a disaster for government forces: 4,000 soldiers defected, and 6,000 were killed. The remaining 10,000 retreated to the city of Porto on the coast, slightly larger than Braga and the next Nationalist target.

Nationalists deployed 32,000 soldiers to take the city. As they marched, their numbers swelled to 37,000. The city of Porto was defended by 26,000 government troops, mostly Army, but some Republican Guardsmen as well. As they attacked from the north, the Navy bombarded their advance columns from the sea, killing at least 3,000. As the nationalists clashed with government defenders, many more were killed in the close house-to-house fighting. The Air Force bombed much of the city.

Finally, it fell, with 14,000 dead government troops and 16,000 nationalists. They also shot down 47 a aircraft. Porto became the de facto capital, as nationalist commanders did not wish to relocate. Meanwhile, nationalist uprisings occurred across the nation, even in Lisbon itself. In the clashes, 7,000 government soldiers and 13,000 nationalists were killed. The Nationalist leader, Alvaro Casimiro, was contacted by the Spanish Empire. They offered to bring 5,000 troops into the country. He agreed.

Road to Victory
Over the next several months, government troops formed a trench formation separating northern Portugal (which was mostly under Nationalist control by that point) from the south. Known as the "Alberto Line", after the general commanding it, the trench was guarded by some 60,000 troops. However, the majority were conscripts. Both sides drafted from their territories. The nationalists had 340,000 regulars, and an unknown number of irregulars, while the military and police had some 278,000 personnel.

After the last of Northern Portugal was taken, Casimiro assembled the Combined Army, a force of 85,000 Portuguese nationalists and 20,000 Spanish volunteers, with 500 tanks. The objective was to break the Alberto Line, and cut a path to Lisbon, the capital. After months of preparations, and skirmishes by other units at the Alberto Line, a weak spot to break through was found. On 18 November 2029, the Combined Army charged the weak point. The government forces, having not faced anything but small insurgent teams, were unprepared for the large attacking group.

The Combined Army broke through, and took a well sized city. More nationalists filled up the gap and took advantage of the government's shock, gaining ground and taking the positions of the Combined Army at the city so they could advanced. The Army, 120,000 strong, advanced onto Lisbon, but was bogged down on the way. Casimiro had to pull away troops to halt a government counteroffensive.

Siege of Lisbon
Finally, in early January 2030, a force of 145,000 nationalists advanced on the city. The British Empire, rivaling Spain, heard that the Spaniards were backing the Nationalists. Not wanting Portugal to become a Spanish puppet, the British government deployed a Royal Navy fleet to supply Lisbon as the nationalists besieged the capital. Much of the government navy was destroyed, and the capital was defended by a few destroyers and cruisers. As the siege dragged on, the a Royal Navy delivered 400 metric tons of supplies daily, though their efforts became hampered by the Nationalist Air Force.

The Spanish Armada heard of the British involvement, and ambushed the Royal Navy fleet, destroying it. They later claimed that they thought those were pirates. In late January, the city was stormed by nationalists. Government forces fell back, while officials were executed in the streets. The Siege of Lisbon was over.

Aftermath
The war resulted in the Nationalist Republic of Portugal becoming the dominant government in the region, though the Democratic Republic was not entirely gone. Several officials escaped aboard British submarines and formed the Democratic Republic of Portugal-in-exile, out of London. Nationalist Portugal told the British not to meddle in their affairs, and allowed Spain to build naval bases in their territory. The last government holdout fell in April 2030.