Between 1914-1916, Portugal walked a delicate line. While actively engaged in an undeclared war with Germany in Africa, Portugal was not a combatant in Europe, nor did it officially declare neutrality. It stayed out of the war, but it provided support in a variety of ways to Britain – its historical ally. Britain hoped to maintain this arrangement for the duration of the war. In contrast, the Portuguese government was anxious to join the war. In March 1916, it got its way. By 1917, the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps (CEP) was fighting in France. 

In the decades after WWI, the dominant trend in scholarship was to view the CEP as incapable and even cowardly. More recent scholarship provides a more balanced picture of the CEP. To further explore Portugal and the CEP in WWI the World War I Podcast hosted Dr. Jesse Pyles, an expert on the CEP. 

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