The Fort of Milreu, also known as the Fort of St. Peter of Milreu (Portuguese: Forte de São Pedro de Milreu), is situated on the Atlantic coast 3km north of the town of Ericeira in Lisbon District of Portugal. Part of a programme to extend Portugal's coastal defences, it was built between 1670 and 1675.

History

The Fort of Milreu, was built after the Portuguese Restoration War between Portugal and Spain. Lessons learned from this war, which ended with the Treaty of Lisbon (1668), convinced the Portuguese of the need to reorganise their coastal defences by building numerous fortresses and forts along the entire coastline of the country. The choice of Milreu as a location to erect a fort was because this was the ideal place to both defend against maritime access to Ericeira from the north and protect against landings on the Beach of Ribeira de Ilhas, immediately to the north of the fort.

By 1680 the fort was already garrisoned, supplied with artillery and in full operation. Rectangular in shape and in a Mannerist style, it consisted of a battery with cannons, two circular bartizans with a conical cover, three barracks and a guardhouse. A side staircase, led to a terrace protected by a parapet. However, by 1751 it was reported to be in a poor condition as a result of a harsh winter and this was aggravated by the earthquake on 1 November 1755. By 1796 the garrison consisted of 7 soldiers and 5 gunners, and the artillery one bronze cannon and five iron cannon. The fort was abandoned in 1806 and by 1821 it was reported to be in an advanced state of ruin. Significant repairs were made in 1831-32 during the Portuguese Civil War and in 1832 it was garrisoned by Miguelist forces and artillery. However, by 1853 it was again abandoned and in a degraded state.

In 1871, parts of the fort were used in the rebuilding of the Church of São Pedro da Ericeira. With no remaining military function its bronze cannon were sent to Lisbon in 1880 and it was occupied by the Portuguese Fiscal Guard in 1891. Some repair work was carried out between 1908 and 1910 but this ceased with the dissolution of the monarchy in 1910. In 1940, work finally began to restore the fort but the following year it officially ceased to be considered a military fortification and responsibility for its management was handed over to the Ministry of Finance. Between 1946 and 1992 there were many ideas for the use of the building, such as a café or restaurant, but none materialised. The Fort of Milreu was classified as a Property of Public Interest in 1977 and the Directorate General of National Buildings and Monuments (DGEMN) rebuilt the wall and made other repairs in 1984 and in 2001. Nevertheless in 2019 it remained in a degraded condition.

Fort of Milreu

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História

Foi erguido em 1706 sob o reinado de Pedro II de Portugal, para defesa do porto de pesca e praia dos Pescadores.

Em 1821 encontrava-se abandonado e em mau estado de conservação, ainda em consequência da Guerra Peninsular. O relatório de inspeção em 1823 informa que o lado sul do forte desabara parcialmente e que se encontravam arruinadas as duas rodas dos reparos das duas peças de artilharia. No ano seguinte (1824), encontrava-se guarnecido por um sargento e cinco soldados da 6ª Companhia de Veteranos. Um Ofício Régio, datado de 1829, determinou que o forte desse salvas nos dias de festividades. Em 1831 foram substituídas as peças de artilharia de bronze, do calibre 12.

Posteriormente, em 1886 registou-se o desabamento de parte da muralha de sustentação do forte. Em 1891 as suas dependências passaram a abrigar a guarnição da Guarda Fiscal.

No século XX, após campanha de recuperação empreendida pela Junta de Turismo da Ericeira e pela Câmara Municipal de Mafra, o forte foi aberto ao público em 1976.



Forte de Nossa Senhora da Natividade

The Palace of Mafra (Portuguese: Palácio de Mafra), also known as the Palace-Convent of Mafra and the Royal Building of Mafra (Real Edifício de Mafra), is a monumental Baroque and Neoclassical palace-monastery located in Mafra, Portugal, some 28 kilometres from Lisbon. Construction began in 1717 under King John V of Portugal and was completely concluded in 1755.
The palace was classified as a National Monument in 1910 and was also a finalist in the Seven Wonders of Portugal. On 7 July 2019, the Royal Building of Mafra – Palace, Basilica, Convent, Cerco Garden and Hunting Park (Tapada) was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
History
The palace, which also served as a Franciscan friary, was built during the reign of King John V (1707–1750), as consequence of a vow the king made in 1711, to build a convent if his wife, Queen Mariana, gave him offspring. The birth of his first daughter the Infanta Barbara of Portugal, prompted construction of the palace to begin. The palace was conveniently located near royal hunting preserves, and was usually a secondary residence for the royal family.
The construction was funded in large part from the proceeds of the colonies in Brazil, where gold and then diamonds were mined in vast quantities.
This vast complex, largely built of Lioz stone, is among the most sumptuous Baroque buildings in Portugal and at 40,000 m², one of the largest royal palaces. Designed by the German architect João Frederico Ludovice, the palace was built symmetrically from a central axis, occupied by the basilica, and continues lengthwise through the main façade until two major towers. The structures of the convent are located behind the main façade. The building also includes a major library, with about 30,000 rare books. The basilica is decorated with several Italian statues and includes six historical pipe organs and two carillons, composed of 98 bells.
Construction
The exact site was chosen in 1713 and purchased in 1716. Construction began by the laying of the first stone on November 17, 1717 with a grand ceremony in the presence of the king, his entire court and the Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon.
Initially it was a relatively small project for a friary of 13 Capuchin friars, who were to observe strict poverty. However, when the flow of gold and diamonds from the Portuguese colony of Brazil started to arrive in Lisbon in abundance, the king changed his plans and announced the construction of a sumptuous palace along with a much enlarged friary. This immense wealth allowed the king to be a generous patron of the arts.
He appointed an architect João Frederico Ludovice as director of the royal works at Mafra. Ludwig had studied architecture in Rome and knew contemporary Italian art. The extent of Ludwig's responsibility is unclear, as several other architects were involved in this project: the Milanese builder Carlos Baptista Garbo, Custódio Vieira, Manuel da Maia and even his own son António. However the application of the same architectural style over the whole building suggests the work of Ludwig as the head-architect in charge of the Royal Office of Works (Real Obra).
Construction lasted 13 years and mobilized a vast army of workers from the entire country (a daily average of 15,000 but at the end climbing to 30,000 and a maximum of 45,000), under the command of António Ludovice, the son of the architect. In addition 7,000 soldiers were assigned to preserve order at the construction site. They used 400 kg of gunpowder to blast through the bedrock for the laying of foundations. There was even a hospital for the sick or wounded workers. A total of 1,383 workers died during the construction.
The facade is 220 meters long. The whole complex covers 37,790 m² with about 1,200 rooms, more than 4,700 doors and windows, and 156 stairways.
When complete the building consisted of a friary capable of sheltering 330 friars, along with a royal palace and a huge library of 30,000 books, embellished with marble, exotic woods and countless artworks taken from France, Flanders and Italy, which included six monumental pipe organs and the two carillons.
The basilica and the convent were inaugurated on the day of the King's 41st birthday on October 22, 1730. The festivities lasted for 8 days and were of a scale never seen before in Portugal. The basilica was dedicated to Our Lady and to St. Anthony.
However the building was not finished. The lantern on the cupola was completed in 1735. Work continued till 1755, when the work force was needed in Lisbon by the devastations of the Lisbon earthquake.
Later history
The palace was not occupied permanently by the royalty, who considered the rooms too gloomy. Nonetheless, it was a popular destination for the members of the royal family who enjoyed hunting in the nearby game preserve, the Tapada Nacional de Mafra. During the reign of King John VI the palace was inhabited for a whole year in 1807.
The king was responsible for a partial renovation of the building by some well-known artists. However, with the French invasion of Portugal, in 1807, the royal family fled to Brazil, taking with them some of the best pieces of art and furniture in the building. Marshal Junot took up residence in the palace, to be driven out in turn by Wellington.
In 1834, after the Liberal Wars, Queen Maria II ordered the dissolution of the religious orders and the convent was abandoned by the Franciscans. During the last reigns of the House of Braganza, the palace was mainly used as a base for hunting. In 1849 the monastery part of the building was assigned to the military, a situation still in use today.
The last king of Portugal, Manuel II, following the proclamation of the republic, left on 5 October 1910 from the palace to the nearby coastal village of Ericeira on his way to exile. The palace was declared a national monument in 1907.[citation needed] At present, the building is conserved by the Portuguese Institute of the Architectonic Patrimony, which carried out several recovery programs, including the conservation of the main façade. A major restoration of the historical pipe organs began in 1998 with the collaboration of foreign experts and was finished in 2010. The restoration won the Europa Nostra 2012 award.
Description
Façade
The imposing façade, built of local limestone, is 220 m long and faces the town of Mafra. At each end of the façade stands a square tower with a bulbous dome, such as found in Central Europe. The church, built in white marble, is located in the centre of the main façade, symmetrically flanked on both sides by the royal palace. The king, wishing to rival the splendour of Rome, had sought architectural advice from his ambassador to the Vatican, who sent him small-scale models of important Roman religious buildings. The benedictal balcony at its centre is clearly mirrored on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. But this balcony is rather intended for the king, as a symbol of his power, than for the benedictions by a prelate.
The two church towers (68 m high) are inspired by the towers of Sant'Agnese in Agone (by the Roman Baroque architect Francesco Borromini). Their two carillons contain a total of 92 church bells, founded in Antwerp. The story goes that the Flemish bell-founders were so astonished by the size of their commission, that they asked to be paid in advance. The king retorted by doubling the offered amount. These carillons constitute the largest historical collection in the world.
The two towers are connected by two rows of Corinthian columns. The top row contains the statues of St. Dominic and St. Francis, sculpted from Carrara marble, standing in a niche on each side of the balcony. The lower row contains the statues of St. Clara and St. Elisabeth of Hungary.
Royal Palace
The spacious royal apartments are situated on the second floor. The apartments of the king are situated at the end of the palace while the apartment of the queen is 200 m away at the other end. Such was this distance that, when the king left his apartment towards the apartment of the queen, this was announced to the queen by the sound of a trumpet.
As king John VI had taken with him some of the best pieces of art and furniture in the building when the royal family fled in 1808 for the advancing French troops to Brazil, most rooms had to be redecorated in the original style. The Hunting trophy room (Sala dos Troféus) is decorated with numerous skulls of deer, the furniture is constructed of antlers and covered with deerskin and even the candleholders are made of deer antlers.
The Benediction Gallery (Sala da Benção) borders at the upper level of the basilica. The royal family could here attend Mass, seated at a window opening unto the basilica. The bust of John V in this hall is a work of the Italian Alessandro Giusti. The Throne Room, the Guard Room and the Room of Goddess Diana are decorated with murals by artist such as Ciryllo Wolkmar Machado, Bernardo Oliveira Góis and Vieira Lusitano.
Basilica
The church is built in the form of a Latin cross with a length of 63 m. It is rather narrow (16.5 m), an impression accentuated by the height of its nave (21.5 m). The vestibule (Galilee porch) contains a group of large sculptures in Carrara marble, representing the patron saints of several monastic orders.
The interior makes abundantly use of local rose-coloured marble, intermingled with white marble in different patterns. The multi-coloured designs of the floor are repeated on the ceiling. The barrel vault rests on fluted Corinthian semicolumns standing between the side chapels. The chapels in the transept contain altarpieces in jasper made by sculptors from the School of Mafra. The side aisles display 58 marble statues commissioned from the best Roman sculptors of their time. The All Saint's chapel in the transept is screened from the crossing by iron railings with bronze ornaments, made in Antwerp.
The choir has a magnificent giant candleholder with seven lamps sprouting from the mouth of seven rolled-up snakes. Above the main altar, inserting into the ceiling, is a gigantic jasper crucifix of 4.2 m, flanked by two kneeling angels, made by the School of Mafra. The cupola over the crossing was also inspired by the cupola of Sant'Agnese in Agone (by the Roman Baroque architect Francesco Borromini). This 70 m-high cupola with a small lantern atop, is carried by four finely sculpted arcs in rose and white marble.
There are six organs, four of which are located in the transept, constituting a rather uncommon ensemble. There were built by Joaquim Peres Fontanes and António Xavier Machado Cerveira between 1792 and 1807 (when the French troops occupied Mafra). They were made out of partially gilded Brazilian wood. The largest pipe is 6 m high and has a diameter of 0.28 m. King John V had commissioned liturgical vestments from master embroiderers from Genoa and Milan, such as Giuliano Saturni and Benedetto Salandri, and from France. They attest of superb quality and workmanship by their embroidering in gold technique and the use of silk thread in the same colour.
The religious paintings in the basilica and the convent constitute one of the most significant 18th century collections in Portugal. They include works by the Italians Agostino Masucci, Corrado Giaquinto, Francesco Trevisani, Pompeo Batoni and some Portuguese students in Rome such as Vieira Lusitano and Inácio de Oliveira Bernardes. The sculpture collection contains works by almost every major Roman sculptor from the first half of the 18th century. At that time, it represented the biggest single order done by a foreign power in Rome and still is one of the biggest collections in existence.
The parish of Mafra (Santo André de Mafra) and the Royal and Venerable Confraternity of the Most Blessed Sacrament of Mafra (Portuguese: Real e Venerável Irmandade do Santíssimo Sacramento de Mafra) have their headquarters in the Basilica.
On 10 November 2020, Pope Francis granted a canonical coronation to the image of Our Lady of Solitude of the basilica, guarded by the Confraternity of the Most Blessed Sacrament.
Library
The Rococo library, situated at the back of the second floor, is truly the highlight of this palace, rivalling the grandeur of the library of the Melk Abbey in Austria. Built by Manuel Caetano de Sousa, this library is 88 m long, 9.5 m wide and 13 m high. The magnificent floor is covered with tiles of rose, grey and white marble. The wooden bookshelves in Rococo style are situated on the sidewalls in two rows, separated by a balcony with a wooden railing. They contain over 36,000 leather-bound volumes, attesting of the extent of western knowledge from the 14th to the 19th century. Among them, are many valuable bibliographical jewels, such as incunabula. These beautiful finished volumes were bound in the local workshop (Livraria) in the rocaille style (also by Manuel Caetano de Sousa).
The library is known for homing bats which protect the books from insect damage.
The Library was used in Gulliver's Travels (1996) as the Great Chamber of War for the Emperor of Lilliput.
Convent
The rectangle behind the church and the palace houses the friary of the Franciscan friars of Arrábida Order (Ordem de São Francisco da Província da Arrábida) with cells for about 300 friars in long corridors on several floors. Between 1771 and 1791 this monastery was occupied by the Hermit Friars of St. Augustine.
Mafra School of Sculpture
The Mafra School of Sculpture was founded during the reign of king Joseph I of Portugal, successor of king John V. As the Mafra National Palace had a great need for sculptors, local and from abroad, it became the location of a sculpture academy headed by the Italian Alessandro Giusti (1715–1799).
Among the teachers were several important sculptors, such as José de Almeida (1709–1769), Claude de Laprade (1682–1738) and Giovanni Antonio da Padova (who created most of the statues for the cathedral of Évora).
The academy was awarded many commissions by the Augustinians from the monastery, resulting in the many marble statues and retables in marble and jasper in the basilica. This academy produced several generations of Portuguese sculptors, such as Joaquim Machado de Castro (1731–1822).
Cultural influence
A major reference to the construction of the palace is made in the novel Baltasar and Blimunda (Memorial do Convento), written by the Portuguese Nobel laureate José Saramago. The main character, Baltasar, born in Mafra, works on the construction of the palace. Saramago makes a detailed description of the building process, including the transport of a giant stone from the quarry to the building site (which Baltasar assists with), depicting it as a torture for those who helped build the palace.

Palace of Mafra

Castelo de Torres Vedras is a castle in Torres Vedras, Portugal. Characterized by a mix of Gothic and Manueline features, it is classified by IGESPAR as a Site of Public Interest.

History

Use of the castle area goes back to Roman times as evidenced by the existence of two Roman cisterns, tombstones, coins and other artifacts. Primitive fortifications date back to the time of the Goths. Its first walls were constructed by North Africans (known as Moors) during the time of Muslim control of Portugal. These walls were destroyed during the Christian reconquest when the castle was seized in 1148 by Afonso I of Portugal, but were immediately rebuilt. In 1288 King Denis ordered that the defences be strengthened and extended and Ferdinand I of Aragon ordered further improvements in 1373. 

The Castle of Torres Vedras has served as a temporary residence for several Portuguese kings. It was here that King John I gathered the Council that decided on the conquest in 1415 of Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in North Africa, that marked the beginning of the outward-looking policies of Portugal. In 1510, Torres Vedras received a municipal charter (Foral), and six years later King Manuel I, ordered reconstruction of the castle. Around 1520, the Palace of the Alcaides was constructed by the Chief Magistrate, João Soares de Alarcão. It remains the dominant feature of the castle, despite being in ruins. In 1589, during the Philippine dynasty (1581-1640), forces of António, Prior of Crato commanded by Sir Francis Drake disembarked in Peniche and briefly took the Castle of Torres Vedras.

The castle suffered heavy damage from the 1755 earthquake, particularly the Palace of the Alcaides and some of the walls. In 1809, it was integrated into the Lines of Torres Vedras, which were defensive lines established by the Duke of Wellington to protect against French invasion during the Peninsular War. Together with the Fort of São Vicente on a hill immediately to its north, the castle, with about 500 soldiers, guarded the main road between Coimbra and Lisbon. As part of the adaptation by the British Royal Engineers for this purpose the castle door was demolished. During the Liberal Wars (or Portuguese Civil War), sections of the walls facing east and some turrets on the north side were rebuilt. During the so-called Little Civil War in 1846, it served as barracks for the troops of the Count of Bonfim and was bombarded by the forces of the Duke of Saldanha, which caused the almost total ruin of the Palace. Despite its poor condition, the castle continued to function as a barracks until the end of the 19th century.

In 1929, the Ministry of War transferred the property to the municipality of Torres Vedras. In 1955 there was a collapse of part of the wall to the northwest. In 1957 the castle was classified as a Property of Public Interest and this was followed by several repairs being carried out but there remained the danger of collapse to part of the walls, which happened in 1963, leading to additional repairs.

Castelo de Torres Vedras

The Fort of Olheiros (also known as the Fort of Canudo) was a small fort in the town and municipality of Torres Vedras, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. Situated at 105 metres above sea level, it was the most northerly of all the forts and other military facilities built in 1809-10 under the orders of the Duke of Wellington during the Peninsular War, and commonly known as the Lines of Torres Vedras.

History

152 forts, redoubts and other defences, forming three lines of defence, were constructed over 80 kilometres, reinforcing the natural obstacles that the land offered and making maximum use of the existing topography. All sites were given numbers and the Fort of Olheiros was No. 23. Incorporating a windmill that was already on the site, it is situated a few hundred metres to the northwest of the much larger Fort of São Vicente, which is considered to have been the most important of the forts constructed for the Lines. Olheiros fort is an irregular polygon of seven sides, around 45 metres long by 19 metres wide. It has a pronounced stone-lined dry moat, with access having originally been over a drawbridge. There were eleven gun emplacements and a store for the munitions. In addition to covering the River Sizandro valley, as support to three forts in the Varatojo mountains and the Fort of Grillo, it was also designed to defend the western side of the Fort of São Vicente. It is believed that the fort’s garrison would have totalled 180 soldiers.

Forte de Olheiros

The Fort of São Vicente (St. Vincent) is located in the town and municipality of Torres Vedras, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. In 1809 it was the first of 152 forts, redoubts and other defences to be developed as part of three defensive lines between the Atlantic Ocean and the River Tagus that were designed by the Duke of Wellington to protect the Portuguese capital, Lisbon, from possible invasion by French troops during the Peninsular War. These came to be known as the Lines of Torres Vedras. Together with the Fort of Alqueidão, it is considered the most important fortress of those constructed for the Lines.

History

Following the Treaty of Fontainebleau signed between France and Spain in October 1807, which provided for the invasion and subsequent division of Portuguese territory into three kingdoms, French troops under the command of General Junot entered Portugal, which requested support from the British. Thus, in July 1808 troops commanded by the Duke of Wellington, at the time known as Arthur Wellesley, landed in Portugal and defeated French troops at the Battles of Roliça and Vimeiro. This forced Junot to negotiate the Convention of Cintra, which led to the evacuation of the French army from Portugal. In March 1809, Marshal Soult led a new French expedition that advanced south to the city of Porto before being repulsed by Portuguese-British troops and forced to withdraw.

However, the threat of further invasions by the French led Wellington, on October 20, 1809, to order the construction of defensive lines in order to protect Lisbon from Napoléon Bonaparte's troops. Work on the Fort of São Vicente as part of the first line of defence began on November 8, 1809, at more or less the same time as improvements to the Fort of São Julião da Barra, close to Lisbon, and construction of the new Fort of Alqueidão to the southeast of Torres Vedras near Sobral de Monte Agraço, under the overall supervision of Colonel Richard Fletcher who was commander of the Royal Engineers. A total of 152 forts, redoubts and other defences forming three lines of defence were eventually constructed over 80 kilometres, reinforcing the natural obstacles that the land offered and making maximum use of the existing topography. In addition to protecting Lisbon, the defensive lines were also designed to cover Wellington’s own retreat and possible evacuation from a beach close to the Fort of São Julião da Barra, if his troops were overwhelmed by French forces.

The third French invasion was headed by Marechal Masséna. He was defeated in September 1810 by the Anglo-Portuguese army commanded by Wellington at the Battle of Buçaco. Despite this he forced the allies to retreat to the Lines of Torres Vedras, where a stalemate ensued for several months. He eventually had to retreat due to lack of food and supplies, withdrawing to the Spanish border. Thus the Fort of São Vicente did not see action during the Peninsular War. It finally saw action in 1846 when, during the so-called Little Civil War, it was the scene of a battle between the attacking troops of the Duke of Saldanha and the besieged forces of the Count of Bonfim. This was the only time a force has directly attacked one of the fortifications of the Lines. After the Convention of Gramido in 1847 brought peace to Portugal, most of the forts ceased to have any military function and were allowed to gradually fall into ruin.

Tourism

The Fort of São Vicente has not undergone major alterations since construction, and restoration work has been faithful to the original design. A Lines of Torres Vedras Interpretation Centre, which is sited in the chapel at the fort, was opened in July 2017. It includes a model of the means by which signals were exchanged between the forts of the lines and also presents a short video describing the history of the Lines.

Fort of São Vicente

The Palace of Sintra (Portuguese: Palácio Nacional de Sintra), also called Town Palace (Palácio da Vila), is located in the town of Sintra, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. It is a present-day historic house museum.
It is the best-preserved medieval royal residence in Portugal, being inhabited more or less continuously from at least the early 15th century to the late 19th century. It is a significant tourist attraction, and is part of the cultural landscape of Sintra, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.
History
Middle ages
It was one of two castles at what is now Sintra in the Moorish Al-Andalus era that began with the Umayyad conquest of Hispania in the 8th century. The other, now known as the Castelo dos Mouros (Castle of the Moors), located atop a high hill overlooking modern Sintra, is now a romantic ruin.
The castle now known as Sintra National Palace, located downhill from the Castelo dos Mouros, was the residence of the Islamic Moorish Taifa of Lisbon rulers of the region. The earliest mention in a source is by Arab geographer Al-Bacr. In the 12th century the village was conquered by King Afonso Henriques, who took the 'Sintra Palace' castle for his use. The blend of Gothic, Manueline, Moorish, and Mudéjar styles in the present palace is, however, mainly the result of building campaigns in the 15th and early 16th centuries.
Chapel
Nothing built during Moorish rule or during the reign of the first Portuguese kings survives. The earliest surviving part of the palace is the Royal Chapel, possibly built during the reign of King Dinis I in the early 14th century. The palace chapel has a tiled floor with tiles in the apse laid to resemble a carpet. The walls are painted in patterned squares that look like tiles and depict the Holy Ghost descending in the form of a dove. The wooden ceiling is decorated in geometrically patterned Moorish latticework.
Early palace
Much of the palace dates from the times of King John I, who sponsored a major building campaign starting around 1415.
Most buildings around the central courtyard - called the Ala Joanina (John's Wing) - date from this campaign, including the main building of the façade with the entrance arches and the mullioned windows in Manueline and Moorish styles called biforas, the conical chimneys of the kitchen that dominate the skyline of the city, and many rooms including:
The Swan Room (Sala dos Cisnes) in Manueline style, named so because of the swans painted on the ceiling. The number of painted swans, the symbol of the house of the groom, Philip the Good of Burgundy, equals to the bride's, Infanta Isabel, age – 30.
Magpie Room (Sala das Pegas); the magpies (pegas) painted on the ceiling and the frieze hold the emblem por bem (for honour) in their beaks. This relates to the story that the king John I was caught in the act of kissing a lady-in-waiting by his queen Philippa of Lancaster. To put a stop to all the gossip, he had the room decorated with as many magpies as there were women at the court (136).
Patios: the early wing of the palace features courtyards embellished with tiles and featuring Islamic style water pools.
John I's son, King Duarte I, was very fond of the Palace and stayed long periods here. He left a written description of the Palace that is very valuable in understanding the development and use of the building, and confirms that much of the palace built by his father has not changed much since its construction. Another sign of the preference for this Palace is that Duarte's successor King Afonso V was born (1432) and died (1481) in the Palace. Afonso V's successor, King John II, was acclaimed King of Portugal here.
Medieval palace
Bedroom-Prison of King Afonso VI. This room in the medieval section of the Palace, with its original tiled floor, was the prison of Alfonso VI until his death in 1683.
16th century
Arab Room (Sala dos Árabes) is a tiled room with a Moorish style fountain in the center.
Kitchens. The pair of extraordinary kitchens are large rooms each with a wall of ovens and cooking stoves above which, in place of a ceiling, rise an enormous pair of conical chimneys that taper as they reach skyward.
The Coat of Arms Room, in Manueline style, the most magnificently decorated room in the palace, features the heraldic symbols of the Portuguese noble families, and is one of the most artistically significant heraldic room in Europe.
The other major building campaign that defined the structure and decoration of the palace was sponsored by King Manuel I between 1497 and 1530, using the wealth engendered by the exploratory expeditions in this Age of Discoveries. The reign of this King saw the development of a transitional Gothic-Renaissance art style, named Manueline, as well as a kind of revival of Islamic artistic influence (Mudéjar) reflected in the choice of polychromed ceramic tiles (azulejos) as a preferred decorative art form.
King Manuel ordered the construction of the so-called Ala Manuelina (Manuel's Wing), to the right of the main façade, decorated with typical manueline windows. He also built the Coats-of-Arms Room (Sala dos Brasões) (1515–1518), with a magnificent wooden coffered domed ceiling decorated with 72 coats-of-arms of the King and the main Portuguese noble families. The coat-of-arms of the Távora family was however removed after their conspiracy against king Joseph I. According to one source, "this new confidant style encompassed Gothic, Renaissance and Mudéjar influences which was later named after the King – Manueline".
King Manuel also redecorated most rooms with polychromed tiles specially made for him in Seville. These multicoloured azulejo tile panels bear Mudéjar motifs.
Modern times
In the following centuries the palace continued to be inhabited by Kings from time to time, gaining new decoration in the form of paintings, tile panels and furniture. A sad story associated with the palace is that of the mentally unstable King Afonso VI, who was deposed by his brother Pedro II and forced to live without leaving the residence from 1676 until his death in 1683.
The ensemble suffered damage after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake but was restored in the "old fashion", according to contemporary accounts. The biggest loss to the great earthquake was the tower over the Arab Room, which collapsed. At the end of the 18th century, Queen Maria I redecorated and redivided the rooms of the Ala Manuelina.
During the 19th century, Sintra became again a favourite spot for the Kings and the Palace of Sintra was frequently inhabited. Queen Amélia, in particular, was very fond of the palace and made several drawings of it. With the foundation of the Republic, in 1910, it became a national monument. In the 1940s, it was restored by architect Raul Lino, who tried to return it to its former splendour by adding old furniture from other palaces and restoring the tile panels. It has been an important historical tourist attraction ever since.

Sintra National Palace

The Seteais Palace (Portuguese: Palácio de Seteais) is a neoclassical palace located in Sintra, on the Portuguese Riviera, operating as a luxury hotel known as the Tivoli Palácio de Seteais Hotel. The palace is a national landmark and is included in the UNESCO Cultural Landscape of Sintra World Heritage Site listing.
Etymology
Jose Alfredo mentions in “Seteais fields” that this field is very old and has always been an integral part of the precinct behind the palace. Some people believe that its name comes from the tradition of shouting “ai” on the road where its echo is repeated 7 times. On the other hand, a very old manuscript by an anonymous author kept in Sintra library mentions that the origin of the word of Seteais derives from the land named Centeais where rye (Portuguese: Centeio) was being cultivated.
History
The Seteais Palace was built between 1783 and 1787 for the Dutch consul Daniel Gildemeester, on lands granted by the Marquis of Pombal.
Although Daniel Gildemeester had a land in the neighborhood of Quinta da Alegria property, there was not any house to live in. So Gildemeester had lived in the Palace of Marquis of Pombal as a tenant during summer. He started to build his own mansion close to the property (Monserrate Palace) of his friend British consul Gerard de Visme in order to leave the Palace of Marquis of Pombal.
The consul chose to build his house on the border of an elevation, from which the vast landscape around the Sintra hills could be admired. The palace was surrounded with a large garden with fruit trees.
In 1797, some years after the consul's death, his widow sold the palace to Diogo José Vito de Menezes Noronha Coutinho, 5th Marquis of Marialva. The palace was enlarged between 1801 and 1802, probably by neoclassical architect José da Costa e Silva, author of the São Carlos Theatre in Lisbon. The palace was turned into a symmetrical U-shaped building, with the consul's house becoming one of its wings. The cornice of the buildings that compose the main façade was decorated with typical neoclassical motifs like vases, busts and reliefs of garlands. The gardens of the palace were remodelled following romantic trends.
The old and the new wings were connected in 1802 by a neoclassical arch, built in honour of Prince regent John VI and Princess Carlota Joaquina, who visited the palace in that year. The monumental arch, decorated with the bronze effigies of the royal pair and a commemorative Latin inscription, is attributed to architect Francisco Leal Garcia.
The walls of several inner rooms of the palace were decorated with frescos attributed to French painter Jean Pillement and his followers. Painted motifs include exotic vegetation and mythological characters, typical of the neoclassical taste.
After changing hands several times, the palace was acquired by the Portuguese government in 1946. The Seteais Palace has been used as a luxury hotel since 1954 but its original characteristics have been preserved.

Seteais Palace

Quinta da Regaleira is a quinta located near the historic centre of Sintra, Portugal. It is classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO within the "Cultural Landscape of Sintra". Along with the other palaces in the area such as the Quinta do Relógio, Pena, Monserrate and Seteais palaces, it is considered one of the principal tourist attractions of Sintra.
The property consists of a Romantic palace and chapel, and a luxurious park that features lakes, grottoes, wells, benches, fountains, and a vast array of exquisite constructions. The palace is also known as "The Palace of Monteiro the Millionaire", which is based on the nickname of its best known former owner, António Augusto Carvalho Monteiro. The palace was designed by the italian architect Luigi Manini.
History
The land that is now Quinta da Regaleira had many owners over the years. It belonged to the Viscountess of Regaleira, a family of wealthy merchants from Porto, when it was sold in 1892 to Carvalho Monteiro for 25,000 réis. Monteiro was eager to build a bewildering place where he could collect symbols that reflected his interests and ideologies. With the assistance of the Italian architect Luigi Manini, he recreated the 4-hectare estate.
In addition to other new features, he added enigmatic buildings that allegedly held symbols related to alchemy, Masonry, the Knights Templar, and the Rosicrucians. The architecture Manini designed evoked Roman, Gothic, Renaissance, and Manueline styles. The construction of the current estate commenced in 1904 and much of it was completed by 1910.
The estate was later sold in 1942 to Waldemar d'Orey, who used it as private residence for his extensive family. He ordered repairs and restoration work for the property. In 1987, the estate was sold, once again, to the Japanese Aoki Corporation and ceased to serve as a residence. The corporation kept the estate closed to the public for ten years, until it was acquired by the Sintra Town Council in 1997. Extensive restoration efforts were promptly initiated throughout the estate. It finally opened to the public in June 1998 and began hosting cultural events. In August of that same year, the Portuguese Ministry of Culture classified the estate as "public interest property".
Palace
The Regaleira Palace (Portuguese: Palácio da Regaleira) bears the same name as the entire estate. The structure's façade is characterised by exuberantly Gothic pinnacles, gargoyles, capitals, and an impressive octagonal tower.
The palace contains five floors (a ground floor, three upper floors, and a basement). The ground floor consists of a series of hallways that all connect the living room, dining room, billiards room, balcony, some smaller rooms, and several stairways. In turn, the first upper floor contains bedrooms and a dressing room. The second upper floor contains Carvalho Monteiro's office, and the bedrooms of female servants. The third upper floor contains the ironing room and a smaller room with access to a terrace. Finally, the basement contains the male servants' bedrooms, the kitchen (which featured an elevator for lifting food to the ground floor), and storage rooms.
Chapel
The Regaleira Chapel is a Roman Catholic Chapel, and stands in front of the palace's main façade. Its architecture is akin to the palace's. The interior of the chapel is richly decorated with frescoes, stained glass windows and lavish stuccoes. The frescoes contain representations of Teresa of Ávila and Saint Anthony, as well as other religious depictions. Meanwhile, the floor itself offers depictions of the armillary sphere of the Portuguese discoveries and the Order of Christ Cross, surrounded by pentagrams. Despite its relatively small size, the chapel has several floors.
Park
Much of the four hectares of land in the surrounding estate consists of a densely treed park lined with myriad roads and footpaths. The woods are neatly arranged in the lower parts of the estate, but are left wild and disorganised in the upper parts, reflecting Carvalho Monteiro's belief in primitivism. Decorative, symbolic, and lively structures can be found throughout the park.
Tunnels
The park also contains an extensive and enigmatic system of tunnels, which have multiple entry points that include: grottoes, the chapel, Waterfall Lake, and "Leda's Cave," which lies beneath the Regaleira Tower. The "Initiation Well" (see next section) connects to other tunnels via a series of underground walkways.
Initiation Wells
The Initiation Wells (also called initiatic wells or inverted towers) are two wells on the property that better resemble underground towers lined with stairs. These wells never served as water sources. Instead, they were used for ceremonial purposes that included Tarot initiation rites. The tunnels described above connect these wells to one another, in addition to various caves and other monuments located around the park.
Of the two wells, the larger one contains a 27-metre spiral staircase with several small landings. The spacing of these landings, combined with the number of steps in the stairs, are linked to Tarot mysticism. Other references may be to Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism or Knights Templar rituals. The smaller well contains straight stairs that connect a series of ring-shaped floors to one another. This well is also called the 'Unfinished Well'.
Lakes, fountains, and the aquarium
Bodies of water can be found in several places in the park. Two artificial lakes and several fountains were added by Monteiro. One of the most interesting and extravagant among them is the Aquarium, built as if it were naturally embedded in a large boulder. It was once considered the most important naturalist property in Regaleira. However, the Aquarium is no longer used and is poorly maintained.

Quinta da Regaleira

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 Castle of the Moors (Portuguese: Castelo dos Mouros) is a hilltop medieval castle located in the central Portuguese civil parish of Santa Maria e São Miguel, in the municipality of Sintra, about 25km northwest of Lisbon. Built by the Moors in the 8th and 9th centuries, it was an important strategic point during the Reconquista, and was taken by Christian forces after the fall of Lisbon in 1147. It is classified as a National Monument, part of the Sintra Cultural Landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

History

The castle was constructed during the 8th and 9th centuries, during the period of Muslim Iberia, as the central place in a territory that was primarily agricultural, and which was necessary to protect its population.

In 1031, after the loss of Córdoba to the Almoravid dynasty, the king of Badajoz opted to transfer to Alfonso VI of León and Castile a few territories on the Iberian peninsula (among them Sintra) in order to gain an alliance with the Christian king. This transfer did not result in any security, and the castle was lost to the invading Almoravid.

After the conquest of Lisbon (1147) by forces loyal to Afonso Henriques, the castle surrendered voluntarily to Christian forces. Afonso Henriques entrusted the castle's security to 30 inhabitants, granting them privileges in the foral (charter) signed by the monarch in 1154. The charter suggested that settlers should occupy and inhabit the castle, as a mechanism for guaranteeing the region's security and development.

During the second half of the 12th century, the chapel constructed within the walls of the castle became the parish seat. This was followed by the remodelling and construction under the initiative of King Sancho I of Portugal.

In 1375 King Ferdinand I of Portugal, under the counsel of João Annes de Almada, ordered the rebuilding of the castle. While the structure was well fortified by 1383, its military importance was progressively diminishing as, more and more, the inhabitants were abandoning the castle for the old village of Sintra.

While the chapel was still being used a centre of religious activities at the beginning of the 15th century, by 1493 this chapel was abandoned and later only used by the small Jewish community of the parish. This was followed in the 16th century by the transfer of the ecclesiastical parish of São Pedro from the castle to the new parochial church in the village. The Jews occupying and using the structures in the castle were expelled by Manuel I of Portugal, and the castle was completely abandoned.

The 1755 Lisbon earthquake caused considerable damage to the chapel and affected the stability of the castle. Visiting the chapel, Francisco de Almeida Jordão described the chapel (in 1768) as having a "principal door in the east, and in the south another smaller door, and a window...An addition to a painted image on the altar, there was another of rock which, already exists in the hermitage of Santa Eufémia, where they took it".  An 1830 lithograph by Burnett immortalized the chapel's place in the Castle.

By 1838 the towers were already in ruins, when in 1840 Ferdinand II of Portugal took up the task of conserving and improving the condition of the castle, in which he committed 240 réis annually. He consolidated the walls, reforested the spaces, created nooks and manicured spaces and conserved the chapel. Along the south flank of the chapel he built a monument to collect the bones discovered during the public works, planting a tree in the central nave of the chapel. These reforms in the enclosure were overseen by Baron von Eschewege, but likely made the archaeological exploration of the territory considerably difficult.

At the end of the 19th century the administrator of the Forestry Service, Carlos de Nogueira, authorized several projects in the castle and chapel.

In 1939 the DGEMN became involved in the reconstruction of the castle walls, in addition to the lateral door of the chapel.

With an eye towards a fledgling tourist market, in 1954 a few of the cliffs were cleared to establish a picnic area near the castle, and in 1965 a transformer was installed to provide illumination.

In 1979 archaeological excavations in the Chapel of São Pedro were begun by the cultural services of Portugal, which discovered the existence of medieval funerary tombs, dating to the turn of the 13th century.

A dispatch by the Ministry of Culture, on 26 June 1996, declared the area of the Castle as a zone of special interest (Portuguese: Zona Especial de Protecção do imóvel).

During the summer of 1986, scouts were involved in projects to consolidate the walls with cement and clean the grounds, supported by the CMS.

In 2001 there were various interventions associated with cleaning the property, clearing undergrowth and forest overgrowth, and the installation of an electrical box along one of the walls.

Architecture

It is situated on the top of the Sintra Mountains, where it has a panoramic view of the municipality of Sintra, and on a clear day Mafra and Ericeira. It is accessible from Santa Maria e São Miguel by a protected gate and turnstile, or across a road accessway to the Palace of Pena. The castle is located in the limits of the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park, in the north flank of the Sintra Mountains, where the slopes are at most 40% gradients, with accented or moderate variation. The Serra da Sintra, known locally, consists of an eruptive massif with an abundance of granite, sienitos, gabros and dioritos rock formations, with soils consisting of litólicos, húmicos, câmbicos, normais, de granito (Mng).

The climate is characterized by low temperatures and elevated precipitation, due to its proximity to the sea, its relief and dense vegetation. The local vegetation is dense and diverse, with a large percentage exotics introduced during the 16th century by D. João de Castro, and in the 19th century by Ferdinand II and Francis Cook. Further, the fauna is characterized by a similar diversity, and was integrated into the royal estates and hunting grounds, including the Tapada dos Bichos, Tapada do Inhaca, Tapada do Borges, Pinhal do Prior and Tapada do Forjaz, Pinhal do Sereno, Pinhal do Tomado and Pinhal do Vale dos Anjos.

Within the proximity of the castle are many other sites, including the Garden of Pena (Portuguese: Parque da Pena), the Estate of Penha Verde (Portuguese: Quinta da Penha Verde), the Estate of Regaleira (Portuguese: Quinta da Regaleira), the Estate of Relógio (Portuguese: Quinta do Relógio) and the Park of Monserrate (Portuguese: Parque de Monserrate), among others. The Moorish Castle and other properties in the region act as a principal focus of tourism, the principal activity in this region.

Castle

The castle is an irregularly planned military outpost that follows a 450-metre perimeter on top of a mountainous cliff, oriented southwest to northwest. It consists of a double line of military walls that meanders over the granite terrain of the promontory. Its place on the hilltop, surrounded by and including the natural and exotic vegetation, accentuates the Romantic character of the place. The Moorish Castle, due to its geographic place and design, was considered, along with Santarém, one of the principal points of the military plan of Belata (the Muslim province which corresponds to the Ribatejo and Estremadura). The property was remodelled and expanded over time, resulting in a Romantic-era ruins, that included damage caused over time and the public works of Ferdinand II. The towers, which initially included two floors, has a modified appearance, without many of the internal divisions or roofing typical of the period. However, the location of the turrets seem to coincide with the design represented in the engravings of Duarte de Armas.

The outer walls open near Abelheira (west of Tapada dos Bichos), from a main access door, where several paths wind around the hilltop of the castle. A second ring of walls reinforces the castle with both circular and square turrets, thick wall battlements and railings, and crowned with pyramid-shaped merlons. At this second wall is the main entrance to the castle, protected by two turrets and battlements. Near these secondary walls and entrance are the main ruins of the old buildings, corresponding to the cellars, animal pens and cistern. The subterranean cistern, accessible from a three-metre accessway, is 18 metres long by 6 metres wide, and 6 metres in height, where water was collected from openings on its "roof". The interior walls are punctuated by five rectangular towers and one circular tower, surmounted by pyramidal merlons, while surrounding these structures are remnants of older constructions. A small door, normally covered in underbrush, opens to the northern façade of the castle, corresponding to the Traitors Gate, accessing the main "military square" with the structure. In the southwest corner is the highest tower, known as the royal tower.

Along the perimeter of the castle exist various bins or silos, originating from the Arab occupation, many of which are plant covered.

Chapel

A chapel with rectangular nave and narrow, lower presbytery lies outside the secondary wall, not too far from the entrance. These ruins were constructed of limestone and masonry, and the interior is accessible from the western or southern façades. The southern wall is highlighted by an arched doorway, supported by colonnades and decorative capitals, with vegetation or fantastical animal motifs (gryphons and basilisks). The northern façade, with a 1.5 metre opening, corresponds to a primitive door, elevated owing to the accentuated terrain. A triumphal arch based on double columns, based on the similar portal in the south, includes carved capitals with phytomorphic bezels and vestiges of a door. The main chapel has a cradle vault with remains of frescoes, representing a halo in the sky with a figure corresponding to the patron saint, surrounded by floral and geometric motifs, all surrounded by a frieze with geometric designs. Alongside the area designated for the oratory, is a small rectangular niche for religious equipment. The fact that the chapel was located within the walls of the castle led to the tradition that the structure served as mosque prior to the Reconquista. Although it is likely that there may have existed a place of worship for the Muslim population, there is no specific association with this building.