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Last Updated: Nov 6th, 2006 - 10:50:18 |
Portugal - Castles Tour: From Guimarães to Coimbra
Guimarães was Portugal’s birthplace and first capital. Coimbra was its second capital, and the seat of learning and Renaissance culture. Although the region is not rich in castles, it does possess some striking examples of medieval architecture that extend from pre-Portuguese history to the age of exploration.
It is a prosperous and bustling region, with a fine coast with modern resorts. There are also charming agricultural areas with fine wine and foods to offer. The area is rich in water, and the spas at Curia and Luso have the luxury of another era. The roads are quite good, and service easy to find. The terrain is more hilly than mountainous, and mostly forested. The journey from Coimbra to Guimarães is indeed a voyage of discovery in itself.
Where to Stay:
Guimarães - Portugal’s first capital boasts not one but two Pousadas, one right in the historic center, and another at the fringe of the town. The area also has many bed and breakfasts in historic manor homes.
Coimbra - The ancient university city has an excellent hotel with fine views of the city center at the famous Quinta das Lágrimas. The historic downtown houses the remains of Moorish walls and gates, the 12th century fortified cathedral and the tombs of Portugal’s first two kings at the abbey of Santa Cruz.
Buçaco - This ancient monastery on a mountain became Portugal’s first protected natural area in the 16th century thanks to the Pope’s decree, and later transformed into a royal lodge. Today the national park is enchanting with its hiking paths through ancient forests. The Grande Hotel do Buçaco is one of the most historic and luxurious in the country, with a world-class restaurant.
What to See: North to South
Soure (A1) - Guidebooks and tourists often ignore this tiny ruin. They make a great mistake in doing so, as Soure’s castle has several unique features. First, it is on a flat plain on a riverbank in a country where castles seek out the high ground. It also has one of the earliest keeps in the country, dating from the 5th or 6th century. Finally, it has a series of rare Visigothic windows, not to mention a Roman temple.
Soure had found itself in a no man’s land after the fall of the Visigothic kingdom to the Moors. The tiny castle must have seen numerous battles as Christians and Muslims fought. By the 12th century it was in Portuguese hands, but at that point the town had been abandoned. After the Moors had been expelled from Santarém in 1147, people returned to Soure. But, the castle was soon abandoned and fell into ruin. What remains is a wonderful lesson in Portuguese history, and it is more than enough to merit a visit.
Lousã (E236) - Like its neighbor to the south, the castle of Lousã holds several distinctions. It is, perhaps the smallest, and one of the most breathtaking. It is also veiled in mystery and myth. In realty, the castle is called “Lousã” because it is a few kilometers outside of the prosperous town of that name. But, it is really the castle of Arouce, the name of the lost village that it once protected. But, like so many tiny villages that once decorated the Serra da Lousã, the village of Arouse is nothing more than a few ruined houses and overgrown by trees at the foot of the castle that once defended them. The castle is nothing more than a small keep and a circle of wall built of brown tiles of slate. It dominates a hill surrounded by mountains in the valley of the river Arouse.
A twisting and narrow road leads to the spot, and the first sight of the castle reveals its rare and natural beauty. It is hard to imagine the valley without the tiny castle. So much so, that the exact date and builder of the fortress are unknown. The spot was inhabited in prehistoric times, and the castle may very well predate the Romans.
A local legend tells of a King Arounce who fled the Roman city of Conimbriga to the hidden castle with a horde of treasure and his daughter. It later formed part of the lines of the Mondego, a series of castles that defended a newborn Portugal against the Moors to the south. Its last reconstruction dates from that period, for shortly thereafter the border moved south to the river Tejo, and the castle lost its defense importance.
By 1513, Arouse had ceased to exist, and the more accessible town of Lousã emerged. People only came to the site to visit the chapels on the hillside in front of the castle, where mothers still travel to pray for their sons who are overseas in the military. Some in Lousã still talk of the ghost of a vigilant sentinel whose shadowy form may be seen on the ancient keep guarding the borders of new nation.
Montemor-o-Velho (EN111) - For at least 2000 years this great hill known as Monte Maior has been fortified. The Romans had called it Montis Maioris, and Roman stonework may be found in the base of the keep, while many walls are built on Moorish foundations. In 848 King Ramiro of Leon took the castle from the Moors, and entrusted it to a monk, Brother João. A violent Moorish counter attack was repelled with great valor, but by 990, the Christian knights were forced back. Only in 1095 did they take it back, and in 1111 Portuguese knights defended Montemor as the border of a soon to be born nation.
The castle grew with Portugal, and housed a garrison of some 5,000 men. In the 13th century, it became known as “O Velho,” for the town’s valor had spawned a new town in the Alentejo, Montemor-o-Novo. It last saw battle in 1808, as a band of students from the University of Coimbra turned back a French army. Today the castle persists, restored and immense. Boasting one of the largest barbicans in Portugal, and lines of walls after walls, Montemor appears mostly as it did after renovations in the 14th century, with a small keep, ruined palace, parade grounds and three churches. The great castle still reigns over the rice fields and green field of the Mondego River valley from its high hill.
Feira (A1) - Afonso Henriques had his hands full in creating a nation. Enemies lay on all sides; men and gold were hard to find. Yet, he molded his people into a true nation-state, and not only defended them, but vanquished all who dared to stand in his way. At Feira he rebuilt a granite castle to defend the flanks of his nation.
The lovely green hillock was perfect for a castle, and ancient fortifications existed on the spot. D. Afonso’s son, D. Sancho I favored the spot so much that he ordered in his will that his wife live there. In the middle of the 15th century, King D. Afonso V entrusted the castle to Fernão Pereira, who began to turn the old castle into a fortified palace. His son, Rui, fancied himself a feudal lord and took the title of lord of Feira. He built the massive keep, with its great hall, pepper pot towers, and rare murder hole/latrine in the walls and placed his coat of arms above the gate.
The well-preserved castle is a sight to be seen in its size and grandeur. The keep is the largest in Portugal in terms of width, and it takes some 60 steps to reach the roof. Lines of perimeter walls and a fine barbican surround the wide keep. Archer loops in the form of a cross are found throughout the fortifications. And the panoramic view from the walls is as vast as the castle.
The Castle of Guimarães (A3) - In the middle of the historic walled city, surrounded by parks and a 15th century palace stands the castle that witnessed the birth of the nation. The castle of Guimarães is simple, yet a formidable site, and a place with a story.
It was here that D. Afonso Henriques was born in the 12th century to the Count Henrique and his wife D. Teresa. The future king was baptized in the Romanesque chapel of São Miguel outside the castle gate. The country of Port Cale extended from the banks of the Minho River to the water of the Douro.
It belonged to the kingdom of Castile and Leon, and had just been wrestled from the Moors, and was given to the Frenchman Henrique of Burgundy as its first count. Henrique dreamed of establishing his own kingdom, but his death in 1114 would pit his widow against his son some 14 years later when young Afonso Henriques discovered that his mother was cheating him out his inheritance.
In June of 1128 Afonso Henriques and a group of his friends defeated D. Teresa’s army at São Mamede. He imprisoned his mother in the castle of Guimarães, but soon found himself under siege by the king of Castile and Leon, who did not want to lose Portugal. A treaty was worked out and Afonso Henriques, now count of Portugal, began a relentless campaign from Guimarães to push the Moors south. At the mythical battle of Ourique in 1139 Afonso Henriques dreamed that God offers him the crown, and then defeated a vast army of five Moorish kings. His men proclaimed him D. Afonso I, the new King of Portugal, and although it meant breaking his promise to the Castilians, he accepted. After all, who can argue with God’s will?
Today, the ruined palace of the first king, with its simple granite rooms, is all that fills the restored walls of Guimarães. But, the pointed castellated walls and parapet, high keep and guard towers remain, a reminder to today’s Portuguese of the courage of their first king.
Jayme Henriques Simões, President of Louis Karno & Company, and
frequent visitor to Portugal.
Jayme is the current president of the Public Relations Society of America
Yankee Chapter, and is the 2003 recipient of the Union Leader¹s ³40 Under 40
Award,² which honors New Hampshire¹s outstanding young professionals. Simões
founded the agency in 1999, using capital from a 90-year-old, family-run
business. A Chicago native who graduated with honors from Boston University
with a degree in Communications and Public Relations, Simões speaks
Portuguese and Spanish.
He has served on several not-for-profit boards, including the Hillsborough
Historical Society (president 1995-1996), New Hampshire Lodging and
Restaurant Association (1997), Citizens for Land and Community Heritage
(1999), The New Hampshire Travel Council (2000-present), Dartmouth Hitchcock
Medical Center Assembly of Overseers (2004-present), and he was the
chairperson of The Franklin Pierce Bicentennial Commission.
© Copyright
2006 by Classbrain.com
Keywords: Portugal Castles Tour, From Guimarães to Coimbra, Portugal, Castles Tour, From Guimarães to Coimbra
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