The Fort of Cresmina (Portuguese: Forte da Cresmina), also known as the Fort of Crismina, is located at the southern end of Cresmina beach, in the municipality of Cascais, Lisbon District, in Portugal. Originally built in 1762 to protect Cresmina beach from landings, it was transferred to private ownership in 1889. As of 2018 it was in a ruined condition.

History

During the so-called Fantastic War (1762-1763) between Portugal and Spain and the simultaneous Seven Years’ War that involved most European powers, three support batteries were built under the guidance of the Count of Schaumburg-Lippe on the 2 kilometer stretch of coastline covering Cresmina Beach and Guincho Beach on the west coast of Portugal, north of the River Tagus estuary. Their main objective was to provide quarters for small garrisons that could hinder the landing of Franco-Spanish forces via the beaches, where troops could be easily landed. This would allow time for the alarm to be raised to enable critical points in the defence of Lisbon, 30km away, to be reinforced. The Cresmina battery was the most southerly of the three batteries and, in addition to protecting the beaches, also crossed fire with the Fort of São Brás de Sanxete.

Rebuilding was carried out in 1793. The fort was not used during the Peninsular War (1807-1814), and it was gradually abandoned, being deactivated in the early 1820s. During the Portuguese Civil War (1828-1834), Miguel I of Portugal ordered its restoration and expansion, and this was carried out between 1830 and 1832. However, on July 24, 1833, it was disarmed and abandoned when the army of Miguel I withdrew, and later, after the civil war, it fell into ruins. In 1850 funds were made available for its repair, but nothing was done. By 1854 the fort was in an advanced state of ruin.

Cresmina fort was put up for auction in 1895. Ownership was subsequently transferred several times and in 1908 it was purchased by António Augusto Carvalho Monteiro and inherited by his descendants on his death. Although the structure still remains, it presents obvious signs of ruin.

Forte de Crismina

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The Fort of Guincho, also known as the Fort of Velas, is located at the edge of the Praia do Abano, along the southern edge of the coast of the civil parish of Alcabideche, in Cascais Municipality, Lisbon District, Portugal.. It was classified as Property of Public Interest (Portuguese: Imóvel de Interesse Público) by the national government on 29 September 1977, but today stands in a state of decay, even after studies to remodel the location as a visitors centre for the nearby Sintra-Cascais Nature Park.

History

Construction of the fort took place during the 1640s, with it becoming integrated into a group of fortifications that formed a defensive belt along the Cascais coast to the north of the River Tagus estuary. Construction was ordered by António Luís de Meneses, governor of Cascais during the post-Restoration era. It was a strategic point north of the Tagus River, and used to watch for ships on the high-seas and protect against disembarkation on Guincho beach.  Its cannons intersected with those of the battery of Galé to the south of the beach, the site of which is now covered by a hotel.

The first reference to a completed fort guarding the coast in this area dates back to 1675, in an inspection report that indicated that the fortification was guarded by the 3rd Cascais regiment and supported by seven cannons. A similar survey report by architect Mateus do Couto was completed in 1693.

In a report dated 29 June 1720, Colonel João Xavier Teles documented the extent of repairs necessary to maintain the walls and quarters and to replace the main gate and bunkers. Although he provided quotes as to these costs, there are no indications as to whether the projects were completed. At the time of this assessment, the garrison was composed of a commander, three soldiers and two artillery gunmen, placed in weekly rotation. The artillery pieces, which included one iron (out of use) and two bronze (operational) cannon, were considered inadequate by the Colonel, who urged that four new cannon should be sent to the fort to reinforce the garrison. In 1751 and 1758, there were new references to the inadequacy of the post, referring to the need to repair the walls of the fortification, the chimneys in the kitchens, the guardhouse and the barracks. At the time of the latter report, only two cannons continued to be operational. But, to some degree, this had changed by 1777 when the fort was, generally, reported to be in a good state of repair, although it required some small repairs to the quarters and cistern. The garrison at the time included a commander and three soldiers and had been upgraded to include five iron cannon.

Following the threat of landslide within the area of the fort, the structure was reinforced in 1793. In addition the barracks were enlarged to include extra space for living quarters, a kitchen, a magazine and warehouse, resulting in the reconstruction of the main entrance and the enlargement of the cistern. The walls were made thicker and, to impede the destructiveness of the ocean waves, a small breakwater wall was constructed (along with a road to circulate between the two walls). The rotting wood and rusting ironwork were also replaced in the quarters and kitchens. By 1796, a new plan for the fort had been completed by Sergeant-major Maximiano José da Serra.

By the 19th century, four sentry boxes (of which only their bases remain) and seven cannon emplacements on the parapets of the battery were remodelled (with the addition of two new gun emplacements to the south and one to the north). At the time of the Peninsular War the post was manned by nine artillery men, a commander and eleven members of the infantry. But, between 1813 and 1814, there was no manned garrison on the site.

A military report concerning the inspection completed at the fort in 1829 determined that some of the arms could not be fired while others could not be repaired. In 1831-1832 work was carried out to repair the parapets, bartizans and cannon emplacements, to patch the walls, to apply bitumen to the cistern, and to tile and repair the powder magazine. Despite this work, during the next decade the fort continued to be abandoned. An inspection of the site, on the 26 March 1854, by Brigadier José Gerardo Ferreira Passos and Captain João António Esteves Vaz, referred to the advanced state of its ruin.

By the end of the 19th century, the Count of Moser had obtained the right to rent the property, and others rented it subsequently. By the 20th century, the Fort had been taken over by the Ministry of Economy (Portuguese: Ministério da Fazenda) on 3 November 1934, while still being rented by other people. In 1944 the fort began operating as a shelter, in the hands of the Clube Nacional de Campismo (National Club for Camping). Small renovations and adaptions were made for this purpose.

Between 1970 and 1975 the fort was unoccupied, although there were plans to install a post for customs officers. The Direcção-Geral da Fazenda Pública (Directorate-General for Public Finances) ceded the fort once again, to the Clube Nacional de Campismo. But its tenure was short-lived, being handing back by the Club on 25 August 1976. At the beginning of 1977, the fort suffered several acts of vandalism, with items stolen from the site, resulting in its closing.

Between 2003 and 2004, the fort was ceded to the Municipal Government of Cascais, with the hope that the site would be restored and converted into a cafetaria and visitors centre for the Parque Natural Sintra-Cascais (Nature Park of Sintra-Cascais). But, in 2018 it remained unoccupied.

Forte do Guincho

The Fort of São Jorge (Portuguese: Forte de São Jorge de Oitavos)) is located on the coastal highway EN 247, near the Oitavos dunes, in the parish and municipality of Cascais, Lisbon district, Portugal. It was one of a series of forts stretching from the Tower of Belem close to Lisbon to Cabo da Roca. It is now a museum.

History

The fort was erected during the Portuguese Restoration War with Spain. It was designed as shelter for a small garrison of a corporal, three gunners and 18 soldiers, positioned to prevent landings on the coast between Guincho beach and Guia beach and thus complement the defence of the River Tagus. It permitted crossfire with the Fort of Nossa Senhora da Guia and the Fort of São Brás de Sanxete at Cabo Raso. The fort was constructed under the direction of António Luís de Meneses, 1st Marquis of Marialva.

It was equipped with four cannons, complemented by covered bartizans in the corners and by a covered line for the musketeers.

Although the inscription under the Coat of Arms on the gate specifies the dates of beginning and completion respectively as May 4, 1642 and 1648, scholars believe that a more correct period would have been from 1641 to 1643.

The museum

The building has been classified as a cultural heritage building since 1974. After considerable work to restore the fort to its original layout, the museum opened for the first time on March 1, 2001. Restoration was based on a dated drawing of the fort from 1796. In September 2005, the fort and museum were closed for further work in order to address structural problems, to be re-opened on February 28, 2009. Of the three exhibition rooms, the first two are permanent exhibitions that cover various events that affected the lives of those who lived in the fort. The third room is used for temporary exhibitions, focusing on themes related to the history of the fort and its relationship to Cascais.

Forte de São Jorge de Oitavos

The Palácio dos Condes de Castro Guimarães, originally known as the Torre de São Sebastião (St Sebastian's Tower), was built in 1900 as an aristocrat’s summer residence in Cascais, Lisbon District, Portugal. It became a museum in 1931. The building follows an eclectic architectural style, while the museum includes paintings of national and international significance, furniture, porcelain, jewellery and a neo-Gothic organ.
History
Jorge O'Neil built the Torre de São Sebastião in 1900, to the designs of Francisco Vilaça. O'Neill was a Portuguese aristocrat of distant Irish descent who had multiple business interests including Portugal's match monopoly. The nearby Casa de Santa Maria was also constructed at his behest.
The building employs several architectural styles, adopting a Revivalist approach that includes Neo-romanticism, Neo-Gothic, Neo-Manueline and Neo-Moorish. The overall impression is of a medieval castle. References to O'Neill's Irish heritage can also be found scattered throughout the building, particularly in the so-called Shamrock Room.
The building's most striking feature is the tower, the base of which juts out into a small cove. The house has an irregular rectangular plan, in two, three and four floors, with several main and triple windows. There are several gargoyles, protruding eaves and porches. The interior is built around a quadrangular cloister. The main rooms are intercommunicating and have beamed ceilings with floors in ceramic tiles with Polychromatic patterns, as well as some tiled walls. Almost all rooms also have tiled stoves, some of which were brought from other buildings.
In 1910 the house was sold to the 1st Count of Castro Guimarães who, with his wife, lived there until 1927. Many of the pieces now in the museum were acquired during that period. Notable were the purchases of a neo-Gothic organ, built for the Count, and rare 16th Century manuscripts including the valuable "Chronicle of Don Afonso Henriques", the first king of Portugal, written by Duarte Galvão (1446-1517).
The Count died in 1927, donating the house and its garden to the state, with the request that the house be used as a museum and art gallery. The Condes de Castro Guimarães Library Museum was inaugurated on July 12, 1931, and for many years was the only museum in Cascais. Directors have included João Couto, Carlos Bonvalot, Branquinho da Fonseca and Maria Alice Beaumont. In 1932, the famous Portuguese writer, Fernando Pessoa, applied for the position of curator, but was turned down for lack of qualifications.

Palácio dos Condes de Castro Guimarães

The Cascais Citadel Palace Museum (Portuguese: Palácio da Cidadela) is situated inside the grounds of the Cascais Citadel, in Cascais, Lisbon district, Portugal. Formerly the residence of the governor of the citadel, it was refurbished for use as the summer residence of the Royal Family, which spent September there annually from 1870 until the assassination of King Dom Carlos in 1908. It was subsequently used as one of the official residences of Portuguese presidents, but over time fell into neglect. After extensive restoration it was opened as a museum in 2011. The Palace forms part of the Museum of the Presidency of the Republic, (Portuguese: Museu da Presidência da República), which has its headquarters at the Belém Palace in Lisbon.
History
By 1870, Cascais had lost its strategic importance for the defence of the Lisbon coast and the River Tagus estuary and the citadel was no longer required for military purposes. King D. Luís adapted the old house of the governor to a vacation residence. The Royal Family popularised sea bathing and their presence in Cascais in September led to the Portuguese nobility also building houses in the town so they could be close to the King. The practice of Royal Family visits continued under King Dom Carlos until his assassination. King Carlos dedicated himself to the study of the oceans, installing in the Citadel the first Portuguese marine biology laboratory. Following the 5 October 1910 revolution and the end of the monarchy the palace was assigned to the Presidency of the Republic and used as a residence by several presidents.
The Museum
Development of the Palace into a museum was first discussed in 2004 and was completed in 2011 at a cost of €4.2 million. There is a permanent exhibition as well as rooms on the ground floor available for temporary exhibitions. Visitors have access to the chapel of Nossa Senhora da Vitória, and to most of the rooms of the Palace, including the old bedroom of King Dom Luís, or the Arab room, which subsequently served as an office to President Francisco Craveiro Lopes.

Citadel Palace

The Citadel of Cascais is a set of fortifications built between the 15th and 17th centuries to defend the Cascais coastline and River Tagus estuary and to protect against attacks on the capital of Portugal, Lisbon. The citadel incorporates three separate developments, the tower of Santo António de Cascais, the Fortress of Our Lady of Light (Nossa Senhora da Luz de Cascais), and the former Royal Palace area.

History

The first construction of a fort on the site was between 1410 and 1415. Improvements to this were deemed necessary as the Cascais Bay was constantly threatened by the English. In 1488 a medieval-style tower at the tip of the Point of Salmodo, to the southwest of the Bay, was begun under the orders of King John II of Portugal. The fort, known as the Torre de Santo António de Cascais, was designed to share, with artillery ships and two other fortresses, resistance to possible military attack on Lisbon. The other forts were the Belém Tower and the Fort of São Sebastião de Caparica, which are approximately opposite each other on the River Tagus closer to Lisbon. Construction of the fort of Nossa Senhora da Luz de Cascais was ordered by Philip I to provide further reinforcements. It began in 1594, designed by an Italian, Captain Fratino, following an unusual triangular design that took advantage of the existing Torre de Santo António de Cascais, which is incorporated as one of three bastions built into the Citadel. The fortress had an interior courtyard that allowed communication between the three bastions and access to the batteries, barracks and cisterns. Reinforcement and enlargement of the Citadel was subsequently carried out around 1648, under the control of King John IV. The structure underwent further modifications and repairs until 1755, when it suffered considerable damage as a result of the Lisbon earthquake.

Present day

In the nineteenth century, King Luís I of Portugal ordered the adaptation of the citadel to become a place of rest and retreat for the royal family and nobility and the royal palace area (now a museum) was constructed. Until the regicide of King Carlos I in 1908, the royal family spent the months of September and October in Cascais. This led to the growth of Cascais as an important location for affluent people from Lisbon to spend the summer. In 1878 the complex was equipped with the first electric lights in Portugal. Through a Decree in 1977, the complex was classified as Property of Public Interest. Since then it has been restored and incorporated into the modern design of the surrounding areas, providing an impressive backdrop for the new Cascais Marina. A hotel has been built into the Citadel buildings, which also now house an Arts Centre (Cidadela Arts District).




Citadel of Cascais

A Fortaleza de Nossa Senhora da Luz de Cascais está localizada em posição dominante na enseada de mesmo nome, na margem direita da foz do rio Tejo, na vila, freguesia e concelho de Cascais, distrito de Lisboa, em Portugal.

História

O Forte da Luz

A atual estrutura foi iniciada em 1594, quando a torre quatrocentista foi envolvida por três baluartes, reinaugurada sob a invocação de Nossa Senhora da Luz.

A estrutura foi severamente danificada durante o terramoto de 1755, quando se abriram fissuras nos muros externos, vindo a desmoronar a parte superior da antiga torre, assim como todos os seus assoalhos e tetos. Perdeu-se ainda, na ocasião, a Capela de Santo António, patrono do Exército português.

Com a evolução dos meios bélicos a antiga fortificação perdeu a sua função defensiva, vindo a ser desativada.

Do século XX aos nossos dias

No início do século XX, obras de adaptação impuseram novos assoalhos e ocultaram extensos trechos da antiga torre, rebocada e caiada.

Na atualidade, a Cidadela de Cascais, incluindo o Forte de Nossa Senhora da Luz e a Torre de Santo António de Cascais, compreendendo toda a parte fortificada entre a Ponta do Salmodo e o Clube Naval de Cascais, encontra-se classificada como Imóvel de Interesse Público através do Decreto nº 129, de 29 de Setembro de 1977.

A fortaleza vem sofrendo intervenções de restauro a partir de 1985. A cidadela e as instalações do forte são utilizadas pelo Exército Português. Servem ainda de residência oficial de verão ao Presidente da República Portuguesa.

Características

O corpo principal da estrutura, em tons de ocre para que, do mar, fosse confundida com a linha da costa, é constituído pela torre quatrocentista, alicerçada na rocha.

Abaluartada em finais do século XVI, a torre sofreu transformações, adossada por um outro corpo, mais baixo, de planta retangular, sendo todo o conjunto envolvido por muralhas. Nos trabalhos de reparo que se seguiram ao terramoto de 1755, as janelas do lado Norte foram remodeladas e, das abóbadas originais só restam as bases dos arcos com as respectivas mísulas.

Forte de Nossa Senhora da Luz de Cascais

The Santa Marta Lighthouse is situated to the south of the centre of Cascais, Lisbon District, Portugal, on the estuary of the River Tagus, providing a light for the Cascais Bay and for the town's new marina. It is a quadrangular masonry tower covered with white tiles, with blue horizontal stripes and a red lantern. The lighthouse was built on the grounds of the Santa Marta Fort, which now houses a lighthouse museum.

History

The Fort of Santa Marta was probably built in the 1640s, later than of the other fortresses that are distributed along the coast of Cascais, since it was not mentioned in the inventory of forts of Cascais made in 1646. This fortress was built with the intention of preventing the approach of enemies to the Cascais Bay area. In the second half of the eighteenth century the fortress was the object of additional work, the most significant being that of 1762-1763, during which the parapet was widened, and that of 1793, in which battery spaces and quarters were expanded.

The Lighthouse

In 1864 the fort was considered to be no longer militarily necessary. However, the strategic position its location had for military reasons also applied to navigation and it was decided to build a lighthouse on the site.

Concluded in 1867, the Santa Marta lighthouse started to signal its area of the coast of Cascais, crossing with the Guia Lighthouse. In 1868, a small tower was added. A report from 1897 stated that the lighthouse had a fixed red light, given by a dioptric lens directed by a catoptric apparatus. This light was replaced by a 5th-order, fixed-light catadioptric system in 1908. In 1936 the tower was increased in height by 8 meters, due to new buildings in the vicinity that impeded the existing light. In 1949 a foghorn system was installed featuring three seconds of sound followed by seven seconds of silence.

The lamp was electrified in 1953, and an automatic light source backup system was also installed, operated by acetylene incandescence. In 1964, a generator was installed thus negating the need for acetylene. Between 1980 and 1981 work was carried out on the complete automation of the lighthouse, which was included in the telecontrol network of the approaches of the Port of Lisbon and in 2000 a new monitoring system was added.

The Lighthouse Museum

Throughout the twentieth century, the fort and lighthouse of Santa Marta gradually became degraded, leading to a proposal to revitalize the space. The restored fort and new Lighthouse Museum were subsequently opened in July 2007. The combination of a working lighthouse together with a lighthouse museum is unique in Portugal.

The collection of the Santa Marta Lighthouse Museum was entirely established by the Portuguese Navy. The exhibition area is divided into two spaces in the former residences of the lighthouse keepers.

Santa Marta Lighthouse

The Fort of Saint Anthony of Barra (Portuguese: Forte de Santo António da Barra) is located overlooking the sea, in the parish of Estoril, Cascais municipality, District of Lisbon, in Portugal. It is sometimes known as the Old Fort (Portuguese: Forte Velho)), or as the Fort of Salazar as it was used by the Prime Minister, António de Oliveira Salazar as his seasonal residence during the Portuguese dictatorship. Until early 2018 the fort had been disused and subject to some vandalism, but it was then restored by the Municipality and opened for public viewing for the first time on April 25, 2018.

History

The fort’s structure dates back to the time of the Philippine Dynasty, when Philip I of Portugal (Philip II of Spain) commissioned the military engineer and Neapolitan architect, Giovanni Casale, to develop plans. Following the successful landing of the troops commanded by the Duke of Alba in 1580 the monarch was aware of the need to improve the defensive system on the approaches to Lisbon on the River Tagus against the threat of English and Dutch ships. The fort is laid out in a star-shaped irregular polygonal plan, with two outer bulwarks. In the center there is a square building with a chapel dedicated to Saint Anthony and vaulted barracks. There was a moat between the two outer walls. The construction took little more than a year. On February 16, 1591 the king received a letter from Casale, informing him that the castle was ready to receive soldiers and artillery.

After the War of the Restoration of Independence the Portuguese Crown undertook a comprehensive reform of land and sea fortifications under the direction of the António Luís de Meneses, 1st Marquis of Marialva. The fort was subject to works of modernization and expansion to increase the existing firepower, in recognition of the continued improvement of both ships and the artillery on them and the need to build forts that were more resistant to the greater firepower. The fort then formed an important part of what was arguably the largest set of fortifications in the world, stretching from Belém in Lisbon to Cabo da Roca on the Atlantic coast.

The fort was heavily damaged by the 1755 Lisbon earthquake and underwent restoration in 1762-63. At the end of the nineteenth century, the fort became a customs post. From 1915, its facilities began to be used as a holiday camp of the Odivelas Institute, a military school for girls. In 1950 it became the summer residence of Prime Minister Salazar. On August 3, 1968, Salazar suffered a fall while at the fort. A worsening in his condition would lead to the President appointing a new prime minister without telling Salazar, who, in fact, lived for a further two years.

After the closure in 2015 of the Instituto de Odivelas, the site was abandoned. Following this the Municipality of Cascais signed an agreement aimed at transferring the site to the municipality, which intended to use it as a research centre, at an estimated cost of €6mn. The transfer finally took place in March 2018 and the fort was opened for public viewing on April 25, 2018, Freedom Day in Portugal, which celebrates the overthrow of the authoritarian regime of the Estado Novo in 1974. In 2016, a fire had been reported in one of the areas of the fort. The fort also suffered internal damage and had been the victim of significant graffiti.

Fort of Santo António da Barra

The Monserrate Palace (Portuguese: Palácio de Monserrate) is a palatial villa located near Sintra, the traditional summer resort of the Portuguese court in the foothills overlooking the Atlantic Ocean north of the capital, Lisbon.
History
According to legend, there was a chapel dedicated to Virgin Mary built by Afonso Henriques after the reconquest of Sintra (circa 1093). On its ruins another chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Monserrate was constructed on the top of the hill in 1540. The estate was then owned by Hospital Real de Todos os Santos, Lisbon. In the 17th century possession of the property was taken by the Mello e Castro family but after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake the farmhouse became unlivable.
An English merchant named Gerard de Visme rented the farm in 1789 and built a neo-Gothic house over the ruins of the chapel. In 1793-1794 the estate was subleased by William Thomas Beckford who started to design a landscaped garden. Though the property was still in ruins when Lord Byron visited in 1809, its magnificent appearance inspired the poet, who mentioned of the beauty of Monserrate in Childe Harold's Pilgrimage. After that, the property attracted foreign travelers’ attention. One of them was Francis Cook, a wealthy English merchant who subleased the estate in 1856 and was graced with the title of Viscount of Monserrate by King D. Louis. Cook purchased the property in 1863 and started to work with the architect James Knowles on the remains of the house built by de Visme. The Palace became the summer residence of the Cook family.
The design was influenced by Romanticism and Mudéjar Moorish Revival architecture with Neo-Gothic elements. The eclecticism is a fine example of the Sintra Romanticism, along with other nearby palácios, such as the Pena Palace and the Quinta do Relógio. The Islamic architectural influence is in reference to when the region was a part of the wider Muslim Gharb Al-Andalus until the 13th century.
The property and hunting grounds were acquired by the Portuguese state in 1949. In 1978 the Park and Palace of Monserrate were categorized as a building of public interest. In 1995 Sintra Hills, including the Park of Monserrate, was defined as a World Heritage Cultural Landscape by UNESCO. The management of the Park of Monserrate was taken over by the Sintra Park in 2000 and its recovery and restoration program enabled the Palace to re-open to the public. In 2013 the Park of Monserrate was honored with European Garden Award under the category of “Best Development of a Historic Park or Garden”.
Park
The terrace leads out into the large park. It is designed in a romantic style with a lake, several springs and fountains, grottoes, and is surrounded by lush greenery with rare species.
The garden is full of plants organized according to geographical areas. There are naturally grown regional strawberry and holly bushes, cork oaks; araucaria and palm trees, tree ferns from Australia and New Zealand; and agaves and yuccas from Mexico. There are camellias, azaleas, rhododendrons, bamboos as well representing Japan.
Farmyard
The Farmyard of Monserrate covers an area around 2 hectares including native trees and a water line. It is like a small farm with various types of plants and fields for livestock. The farmyard has a renewable energy system, so it is entirely self-sufficient in terms of energy.
The former house built in 19th century was restored and furnished with equipment for educational activities, or kitchen workshops. There are orchard and vegetable patches, are of wild plants and berries, as well as cereals and aromatic plants in the farmyard. Plantation area is surrounded with the fields of horses, donkeys and sheep, besides a rabbit hutch, and a poultry coop. There is also a picnic area, an open-air amphitheater and a barn.
The stream runs through the farmyard and takes its water supply from natural springs of Monserrate Hunting Grounds. The stream has also been restored, and now amphibians and water animals get benefit of it.
Totem
The sculpture has 7.5 metres height and was made of the trunk of a fifty years old eucalyptus tree with a chainsaw. The tree had no chance to survive due to serious infestation by wood-decay fungus, therefore with an intervention it was kept instead of being cut. The tree was made the object of specific natural values of Sintra Mountains.
The totem of the farmyard of Monserrate was created by a Welsh artist (Nansi Hemming) who is experienced at wood sculpturing. The natural values portrayed on the totem are: Bonelli's eagle; Lesser horeshoe bat; Stage beetle; Badger; Egyptian mongoose; Lataste's viper; Mottled owl; Eurasian eagle owl; Fire salamander; Tarantula hawk; Marsh fritillary; Genet; and relict forest of Oak, Arbutus, European Holly and Ivy-leaved-fern.
The Off-Grid Farmyard
Renewable energy project “Off-Grid Farmyard” is implemented at the Farmyard of Monserrate in order to produce electricity to meet the consumption of the Farmyard. Renewable energy is produced through 3 different sources in the Farmyard: wind power – with an air generator; hydro power – with a hydro-turbine; solar power – with a set of photovoltaic panels.
Infrastructure and equipment for “Off-grid Farmyard” was installed in 2012 under the framework of BIO+Sintra project financed by LIFE Program of the European Commission and run by Sintra Park – Monte da Lua.

Monserrate Palace

The Pena Palace (Portuguese: Palácio da Pena) is a Romanticist castle in São Pedro de Penaferrim, in the municipality of Sintra, on the Portuguese Riviera. The castle stands on the top of a hill in the Sintra Mountains above the town of Sintra, and on a clear day it can be easily seen from Lisbon and much of its metropolitan area. It is a national monument and constitutes one of the major expressions of 19th-century Romanticism in the world. The palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the Seven Wonders of Portugal. It is also used for state occasions by the President of the Portuguese Republic and other government officials.
History
The castle's history started in the Middle Ages when a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Pena was built on the top of the hill above Sintra. According to tradition, construction occurred after an apparition of the Virgin Mary.
In 1493, King John II, accompanied by his wife Queen Leonor, made a pilgrimage to the site to fulfill a vow. His successor, King Manuel I, was also very fond of this sanctuary, and ordered the construction of a monastery on this site which was donated to the Order of Saint Jerome. For centuries Pena was a small, quiet place for meditation, housing a maximum of eighteen monks.
In the 18th century the monastery was severely damaged by lightning. However, it was the Great Lisbon Earthquake of 1755, occurring shortly afterwards, that took the heaviest toll on the monastery, reducing it to ruins. Nonetheless, the chapel (and its works of marble and alabaster attributed to Nicolau Chanterene) escaped without significant damage.
For many decades the ruins remained untouched, but they still astonished young prince Ferdinand. In 1838, as King consort Ferdinand II, he decided to acquire the old monastery, all of the surrounding lands, the nearby Castle of the Moors and a few other estates in the area. King Ferdinand then set out to transform the remains of the monastery into a palace that would serve as a summer residence for the Portuguese royal family. The commission for the Romantic style rebuilding was given to Lieutenant-General and mining engineer Wilhelm Ludwig von Eschwege. Eschwege, a German amateur architect, was much traveled and likely had knowledge of several castles along the Rhine river. The construction took place between 1842 and 1854, although it was almost completed in 1847: King Ferdinand and Queen Maria II intervened decisively on matters of decoration and symbolism. Among others, the King suggested vault arches, Medieval and Islamic elements be included, and he also designed an ornate window for the main façade (inspired by the chapter house window of the Convent of the Order of Christ in Tomar).
After the death of Ferdinand the palace passed into the possession of his second wife Elisa Hensler, Countess of Edla. The latter then sold the palace to King Luís, who wanted to retrieve it for the royal family, and thereafter the palace was frequently used by the family. In 1889 it was purchased by the Portuguese State, and after the Republican Revolution of 1910 it was classified as a national monument and transformed into a museum. The last queen of Portugal, Queen Amélia, spent her last night at the palace before leaving the country in exile.
The palace quickly drew visitors and became one of Portugal's most visited monuments. Over time the colors of the red and yellow façades faded, and for many years the palace was visually identified as being entirely gray. By the end of the 20th century the palace was repainted and the original colors restored.
In 1995, the palace and the rest of the Cultural Landscape of Sintra were classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Architecture
The Pena Palace has a profusion of styles much in accordance with the exotic taste of the Romanticism. The intentional mixture of eclectic styles includes the Neo-Gothic, Neo-Manueline, Neo-Islamic and Neo-Renaissance. Much of this has been evident since major renovations in the 1840s. References to other prominent Portuguese buildings, such as the Belém Tower, are also present.
Almost the entire palace stands on rock in the Sintra Mountains. Structurally, it can be divided in four sections:
the foundations and its enveloping walls, with two gateways (one of which is protected by a drawbridge)
the restored structure of the old convent, and the clock tower
the Arches Yard in front of the chapel, with its wall of Moorish arches
the palatial zone and its cylindric bastion, with interiors decorated in the cathédrale style.
Convent section and clock tower
As many elements as possible were preserved of the remains of the Hieronymite convent including the cloister, the dining room, the sacristy, and the Manueline-Renaissance chapel. All were embedded in a new section that featured a wide terrace and a clock tower. The Queen's Terrace is perhaps the best spot for obtaining an overall picture of the architecture of the palace. The terrace features a sundial cannon that used to fire every day at noon. The clock tower was completed in 1843.
Interior
The interiors of the Pena Palace were adapted to serve as the Summer residence of the royal family. It has amazing stuccos, painted walls in trompe-l'œil and various revetments in tile from the 19th century, forming part of the numerous royal collections.
Park
The Pena Park is a vast forested area completely surrounding the Pena Palace, spreading for over 200 hectares of uneven terrain. The park was created at the same time as the palace by King Ferdinand II, who was assisted in the task by the Baron von Eschwege and the Baron von Kessler. The exotic taste of the Romanticism was applied to the park as it was to the palace. The king ordered trees from diverse, distant lands to be planted there. Those included North American sequoia, Lawson's cypress, magnolia and Western redcedar, Chinese ginkgo, Japanese Cryptomeria, and a wide variety of ferns and tree ferns from Australia and New Zealand, concentrated in the Queen's Fern Garden (Feteira da Rainha). The park has a labyrinthic system of paths and narrow roads, connecting the palace to the many points of interest throughout the park, as well as to its two gated exits.