History of Andorra

The history of Andorra traces the development of a Pyrenean principality whose institutions grew from medieval feudal agreements and whose sovereignty was formally recognized in 1993.

Connect

Paréage of Andorra: A 1278 agreement established shared lordship over Andorra between the bishop of Urgell and the count of Foix. It established the co-principality that shaped Andorra’s political order for centuries.
Co-principality of Andorra: A political system in which the bishop of Urgell and the president of France jointly serve as Andorra’s heads of state. It is the enduring constitutional form produced by the medieval agreements.
Andorran Constitution of 1993: Andorra’s constitution, approved by referendum on 14 March 1993, establishing a parliamentary system and sovereign statehood. It marked the decisive transition from a feudal co-principality to a modern democracy.
Andorran Revolution of 1933: A political uprising in Andorra in 1933 that led to demands for broader suffrage and political reform. It exposed tensions between traditional authority and demands for democratic participation.
Bishop of Urgell: The head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Urgell in Catalonia, traditionally one of Andorra’s two co-princes. The bishop’s territorial claims became one half of Andorra’s shared lordship.
Andorran parishes: Andorra’s seven historic territorial divisions, which also function as local administrative units. Their communal institutions preserved local self-government within the shared lordship.
Andorra–European Union relations: The institutional and economic relationship between Andorra and the European Union, including agreements on customs and currency. Andorra’s post-1993 diplomacy sought closer economic ties while retaining independence.
Boris Skossyreff: A Russian adventurer who briefly proclaimed himself Boris I, King of Andorra, in 1934 before being arrested and expelled. His short-lived claim tested Andorra’s political institutions during an unsettled period.
County of Foix: A medieval county in the Pyrenees whose rulers held rights over Andorra before those rights passed to France’s monarchy. The count of Foix became Andorra’s other co-lord under the 1278 agreement.
Andorran General Council: Andorra’s national parliament, descended from a representative body established in the late medieval period. Its evolution marks the growth of representative institutions under the co-princes.