The Convent of Christ
In 1983, UNESCO awarded the classification of world heritage to the Templar Castle and the Convent of the Knights of Christ in Tomar, a unique monument in the history of the western world. Built on a site that was originally used for Roman worship, this vast monumental complex illustrates seven centuries of Portugal's history and contains several important mementoes of decisive moments in the history of the western world.

Afonso Henriques, our first king, bestowed upon the Knights of the Temple of Jerusalem vast tracts of land between the Mondego and Tagus rivers. Legend has it that, on reaching this region, the Knights were inspired by favourable omens to choose a hill on which to establish a castle and the name that they were to give to it: Tomar. The year was 1160 and D. Gualdim Pais, the Provincial Master of the Order of the Temple, ordered the castle to be built and the region to be settled.

The Order of the Temple was disbanded in 1314 as a result of its persecution by the French king Philip IV, the Fair. However, at the wishes of the Portuguese king D. Dinis, the members of the order, its property and privileges were all totally integrated into a new order - the Militia of the Knights of Christ in 1319. The Templars were thus able to continue their sacred mission of Chivalry in Portugal. Outwardly, the main sign marking the change was to be seen in the Order's cross, which now had straight arms instead of the curved arms of the Templar cross.

Together with Prince Henry the Navigator, the new military Order began to prepare the Portuguese nation for the great enterprise of the maritime discoveries of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Tomar Castle was by then a Convent and the headquarters of the Order, and Prince Henry was made its governor and perpetual administrator. The lay master transformed the knights into navigators whose mission it was to expand the kingdom and spread the faith through the maritime discoveries. This was why the caravels bore the Cross of the Knights of Christ on their sails, and this sign was to be carved into various stone landmarks all around the world.

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Castelo de Tomar

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Ourém Castle is one of Portugal’s most innovative 15th century military architectural works. Commissioned by the Count of Ourém, the grandson of D. Nuno Álvares Pereira, the castle has a compact structure with modern active defensive system, including two large pentagonal towers that served as bulwarks and offered greater resistance to enemy fire.

There is a palatial residence located behind the towers that served as the Counts’ dwelling. It has the form of a wide tower connected to the bulwarks.

On top of the hill, slightly set back from the palace and the castle, is the primitive 12th century castle of “Abdegas”, that bears the ancient name of this settlement.


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Castelo de Ourém

The Castle of Almourol is a medieval castle atop the islet of Almourol in the middle of the Tagus River, located in the civil parish of Praia do Ribatejo, 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from the municipal seat of Vila Nova da Barquinha, in Portugal's Center Region. The castle was part of the defensive line controlled by the Knights Templar, and a stronghold used during the Portuguese Reconquista.

History

It is believed that the castle was constructed on the site of a primitive Lusitanian castro that was later conquered by the Romans during the 1st century B.C.E. It was later remodeled by successive invading forces, including the Alans, Visigoths and the Andalusian Berbers, although it is unclear when the actual castle was established. In excavations carried out in the interior and exterior enclosures, various vestiges of Roman occupation were discovered including coins, millennium markers, and Roman foundations, while medieval remnants such as medallions and two marble columns were also discovered in the castle's vicinity.

The castle of Almourol is one of the more emblematic and cenographic medieval military monuments of the Reconquista, and one of the best representations of the influence of the Knights Templar in Portugal. When it was conquered in 1129 by forces loyal to the Portuguese nobility, it was known as Almorolan, and placed in the trust of Gualdim Pais, the master of the Knights Templar in Portugal, who subsequently rebuilt the structure. The structure was reconstructed, starting in 1171 (from an inscription over the principal gate) and restored during the subsequent reigns.

Losing its strategic place, it was abandoned, resulting in its fall into ruins. In the 19th century, it was "reinvented" by idealistic romanticists, which eventually led to interventions in the 1940s and 1950s, and its adaption as an Official Residence of the Portuguese Republic. During this period, there were many restorations that transformed the physical appearance of the structure, including the addition of crenellations and bartizans.

The DGMEN - Direcção-Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais (Directorate-General of Buildings and National Monuments), the forerunner of the IGESPAR, first intervened on the site in 1939, through the construction of the chemin de ronde in masonry, including reinforced concrete; the dismantlement and reconstruction of the corner of the keep; repair and consolidation of the battlements, including the demolition of the tower's allure, reconstruction of a brick vault under the existing; and reconstruction of the pavement in small stone.

Around 1940-1950, the spaces were adapted for its use as an official residence of the Portuguese Republic. At the end of this short term, the building's furniture was acquired by the Commission for Furniture Acquisition (Portuguese: Comissão para a Aquisição de Mobiliário) in 1955, while an electrical system was installed.

Between 1958 and 1959, there was some consolidation of the keep with concrete straps, a project to diminish the permeability of the courtyard and reconstruction of the interior walls of the tower by the Escola Prática de Engenharia (Practical School of Engineering), as well as the reconstruction of a door that included doorposts and lintels. In subsequent years, other projects followed: in 1959, the façade of one section of wall was repaired; in 1960, with the conclusion of the repairs to the exterior walls, the pavement and road access was improved by the Direcção da Arma de Engenharia de Tancos (Tancos Directorate for the Engineering Arm). However, one roadway that skirted the islet from the quay to the southern end of the castle was reconstructed by the Serviços de Engenharia do Estado Maior do Exército (Army General Staff Engineering Services).

By 1996, the walls had been repaired, sections of the keep were preserved, and the pavement in the castle restored.

21st century and tourism

Owing to water infiltration, the castle began to show some signs of degradation by 2004, including a few of the exterior walls.

Although access to the Portuguese National Monument and fluvial islet is free, visitors to the structure must pay for an inexpensive boat-ride across the river, the only way for visitors to reach the castle.

Architecture

The castle rises over a granite outcropping 18 metres (59 ft) in height, and is approximately 310 metres (1,020 ft) long and 75 metres (246 ft) wide, in the middle of the Tagus River waterway, a few metres below its confluence with the Zêzere River in front of the town of Tancos.

The castle has an irregular rectangular plan consisting of two enclosures: an exterior lower level faces upstream with a traitors' gate and walls reinforced by nine tall circular towers; while the interior enclosure, located at a higher elevation, has walls accessible by the main gate to the main keep. The keep is three stories tall, and includes the original pads that supported the main truss. The remaining sentry towers are irregular, owing to the irregular terrain. The keep is actually an innovation at this castle, appearing in the 12th century after the Castle of Tomar, the principal defensive redoubt of the Templars in Portugal. Similarly, the watchtowers were innovations brought into the western Iberian peninsula by the Templars, and applied in Almourol.

The interior is bisected by several masonry doorways that link the different parts of the castle. Two inscription stones mark the castle's history and its re-edification by Gualdim Pais (over the main gate), as well as its Christian history (from the cross carved into the space above an open window in the keep).

Castle of Almourol

O Castelo de Torres Novas localiza-se na freguesia de Santa Maria, concelho de Torres Novas, no distrito de Santarém, em Portugal.

Em posição dominante sobre a vila, à margem do rio Almonda, integrante da chamada Linha do Tejo, o antigo castelo medieval permanece como ex-libris da povoação.

História

Antecedentes

A primitiva ocupação humana do sítio de Torres Novas é objeto de controvérsias, sendo atribuída por alguns autores tradicionalmente aos Gregos (denominada como Neupergama ou Kaispergama) e aos Romanos (denominada como Nova Augusta). Outros ainda, atribuem a fundação da povoação aos Celtas, em 308 a.C..

A julgar pelos vestígios arqueológicos da presença romana na região, seria plausível admitir uma ocupação militar do outeiro, controlando a via que comunicava Conímbriga a Olisipo (Lisboa). Mais recentemente aqui foram colocadas a descoberto as ruínas de uma povoação romana, a Vila Cardilium.

O castelo medieval

É certo que aqui existia uma povoação Muçulmana à época da Reconquista cristã da Península Ibérica, cuja posse deve ter oscilado ao sabor dos avanços e recuos da linha fronteiriça. Embora se acredite que uma conquista inicial remonte a 1135, perdida em 1137, no contexto da fundação e primeira destruição de Leiria, as fontes documentais são acordes em que Turris foi definitivamente conquistada pelas forças sob o comando de D. Afonso Henriques (1112-1185) em 1148, na seqüência das conquistas de Santarém e Lisboa, no ano anterior. 

Admite-se que o soberano ter-lhe-á promovido reforços nas defesas, ou mesmo iniciado a reconstrução do castelo, quando a povoação terá acrescida à sua toponímia a designação "Novas", distinguindo-a da homônima, no Distrito de Lisboa, que passou a ser conhecida como Torres "Velhas" (Torres Vedras). Desse modo, embora figure como "Torres" em documento de 1159, no testamento do soberano, datado de 1179, já figura como "Torres Novas".

Em 1184, as forças do califa almóada Abu Iacube Iúçufe acamparam no local até hoje conhecido como Arraial, a sudeste da povoação. Dali assaltaram a vila, arrasando a sua fortificação, dirigindo-se em seguida para Santarém. No assédio a esta, vieram a ser derrotados, vindo o emir a falecer em conseqüência dos ferimentos recebidos na ocasião.

Na narrativa da história do culto a Nossa Senhora do Ó no país, surgido nesta povoação, é referido que a imagem aqui adorada também o era sob a designação de Nossa Senhora da Alcáçova, por ter sido recuperada em uma gruta ou concavidade achada pelos trabalhadores quando da abertura dos alicerces para a edificação (ou reedificação) do castelo, por volta de 1187, sob o reinado de D. Sancho I (1185-1211).

Ainda sob o reinado deste soberano, possivelmente com as obras do castelo ainda em progresso, a povoação sofreu novo assalto das forças almóadas, agora sob o comando de Iacube Almançor, irmão do falecido Iúçufe, vindo a cair após um cerco de dez dias (1190). Deixando guarnição em Torres Novas, as tropas daqui se dirigem ao assédio a Tomar. As forças de D. Sancho I devem ter retomado Torres Novas meses mais tarde de tal forma que, visando incrementar o seu povoamento e defesa, o soberano passou-lhe o primeiro foral, a 1 de Outubro desse mesmo ano, determinando a reconstrução da fortificação.

Dinis I de Portugal (1279-1325), com o mesmo fim, fundou entre Tomar e a Golegã as póvoas da Atalaia, Tajeira e Asseiceira. Também doou os domínios de Torres Vedras e o seu castelo à Rainha Santa Isabel, ao encontrá-la em São Bartolomeu de Trancoso. Esses domínios viriam a passar posteriormente aos Infantes e deles ao Infante D. Jorge, conservando-se na Casa de Aveiro, vindo a elevar-se à categoria de ducado de Torres Novas.

Após as lutas com Castela, na segunda metade do século XIV, em particular o assédio de 1372, o castelo sofreu obras de ampliação sob o reinado de D. Fernando (1367-1383), época em que foi ampliada a cerca da vila. Os trabalhos foram iniciados em 2 de Janeiro de 1374, conforme inscrição epigráfica, e concluídos em 1376, conforme outra inscrição epigráfica sobre o antigo Arco do Salvador.

Durante a crise de 1383-1385, aqui se recolheram as forças de João I de Castela, em Outubro de 1384, regressando do baldado cerco a Lisboa naquele ano. No ano seguinte, as forças de João I de Portugal (1385-1433), assaltaram Torres Novas, forçando a guarnição castelhana da vila a recolher-se ao castelo. Meses mais tarde, com os portugueses vitoriosos na batalha de Aljubarrota, Torres Novas tomou o partido por Portugal recebendo como Alcaide-mor a Antão Vasques.

Do século XVIII aos nossos dias

Com a perda de expressão da vila frente a outros núcleos nos séculos seguintes, o castelo mergulhou na obscuridade.

No século XVIII foi severamente abalado pelo terramoto de 1755, de tal modo que veio a ser permanentemente abandonado. Na ocasião ruíram quatro das torres e diversos troços da muralha medieval.

Novos danos foram registados no início do século XIX, durante a Guerra Peninsular, quando da ocupação da vila pelas tropas napoleónicas. Com o crescimento da malha urbana, a cerca medieval foi quase que inteiramente demolida.

Considerado como Monumento Nacional por Decreto publicado em 23 de Junho de 1910), sofreu intervenção de consolidação e restauro na década de 1940, a cargo da Direcção-Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais (DGEMN). Posteriormente, na década de 1970, novas obras vieram a recuperar a Alcaidaria.

Hoje bem conservado, encontra-se aberto à visitação pública. No biênio de 2005-2006, a Câmara Municipal promoveu um novo projeto de recuperação física e paisagística do monumento e seu entorno, visando dotar a cidade de uma área de lazer valorizando o seu elemento histórico e patrimonial mais importante. O projeto contemplou a construção de circuitos pedonais, ajardinamento e reflorestamento, iluminação, entre outras intervenções.

Em meados de 2011 a muralha fernandina começou a ser recuperada, no âmbito do programa de ação "Regeneração Urbana do Centro Histórico". Ao custo de 308 mil euros, a intervenção passa pela limpeza da muralha, nomeadamente a remoção de vegetação, enchimento das juntas entre as pedras e reconstrução nos pontos em que se encontra degradada. Os trabalhos iniciaram-se pelo troço entre os Paços do Concelho e a Igreja do Salvador.

Características

O castelo, de planta aproximadamente retangular, apresentava muralhas guarnecidas primitivamente por nove torres, delimitando a praça de armas.

A cerca da vila era rasgada primitivamente por três portas, hoje desaparecidas, restando apenas um troço da mesma a Leste do castelo.

Castelo de Torres Novas

With an unusual pentagonal layout, the tower in the village of Dornes was built by the Knights Templar on the banks of the River Zêzere as a watchtower and defensive bastion for the region, during the Christian Reconquest.

Built from limestone and slate, on the site of a former Roman tower, the Tower has various military symbols on the edge of the doorway, deriving from its former defensive function. In the 16th century, in a more peaceful period, it was adapted into a belltower for the neighbouring mother church.

Overlooking the waters of the reservoir of Castelo de Bode, the Tower of Dornes today forms part of a spectacular landscape and constitutes one of the most important sightseeing spots in the region.

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Torre de Dornes

The Castle of Abrantes (Portuguese: Fortaleza de Abrantes) overlooks the city of Abrantes, in the municipality of Abrantes in the district of Santarém, Ribatejo, divided between the two civil parishes of São João and São Vicente. It was part of the Reconquista fortifications that made up the Linha do Tejo (English: Tagus Line), a line of castles and outposts during the Middle Ages, recently integrated into a tourist region called the Região de Turismo dos Templários (English: Tourist Region of the Templars).

History

The area of the Abrantes Castle was at one time occupied by a Lusitanian castro structure. It was conquered during the Roman invasion of the peninsula around 130 BC by Consul Decimus Junius Brutus, and occupied for a time by Roman legions after Brutus expanded and remodelled it. Successive invasions by Alans (411), Visigoths (492) and Moors (716) further indicated the strategic importance of this site, justifying the establishment of a permanent military garrison. However, the area and its river did not constitute an important link between the settlements of the Iberian Peninsula until the 12th century.

During the Christian Reconquista (English: Re-conquest), the settlement in the area of Abrantes was taken from the Moors by forces in the service of Afonso Henriques (1112-1185), who restructured the defences of the site to attract settlers into the region. He granted the lands to the Order of Santiago (1172) so that they could watch over and assist pilgrims on the Way of Saint James. Later, it was incorporated into the Linha do Tejo (English: Tagus Line) that the Knights Templar established to control and maintain the lands reconquered from the Muslims. The castle outpost, as well as the castles of Almourol, Castelo Branco, Monsanto, Pombal, Tomar, Torres Novas and Zêzere formed a defensive barrier of garrisons along the middle course of the Tagus River.

As part of this line, Abrantes was able to resist the forces of the Almohad Caliphate under the command of Moroccan Abem Jacob (1179), who retreated after suffering many deaths. Abrantes was rewarded for its heroic resistance by receiving a foral in 1179 and was rebuilt. During the reign of Sancho I (1185-1211), a new attack from the Almoáda, under the command of Caliph Abu Yusuf Ya'qub al-Mansur, was successful in 1191 in retaking all the Christian conquests in the territories south of the Tagus, with the exception of Évora. In 1250, Afonso III (1248-1279) initiated a strengthening of the defences of the castle, including the construction of the prison block and an expansion of the walls, which was brought to completion between 1300 and 1303 in the reign of his successor Dinis. Afonso III donated the village of Abrantes to his wife, Queen Elizabeth of Portugal, beginning a tradition of royal patronage by the Queens of Portugal.

During the Portuguese Interregnum Abrantes allied itself with the Master of Aviz, and fought the forces of Castile in the Battle of Aljubarrota.

A new foral was conferred (1510) during the reign of Manuel I of Portugal (1495-1521). In 1531, the two top floors of the prison block were destroyed by the 1531 Lisbon earthquake.

In the second half of the 16th century, the Abrantes Castle entered into decline, particularly during the 1580 Portuguese succession crisis. In the context of the Portuguese Restoration War, in the last quarter of the 17th century, Peter II determined that the castle and its settlement should be reconstructed into a medieval castle-keep, in the style of Vauban. To this end, the medieval walls were lowered and strengthened, and two secondary walls were constructed within the bastions in 1704. By this process of remodelling, which included the construction of the palace of the Marquess of Abrantes (by Rodrigo de Almeida e Meneses, 1st Marquess of Abrantes), making the fortress a key to the Province of Estremadura. Similar expansions were accomplished in 1731 by the military engineer Engeleer, with the construction of the bastions and renovation of the already existing walls.

In the 18th century, the castle's installations were adapted for use as a garrison of a regiment of Royal Cavalry. Between 1792 and 1799, the same quarters were expanded and occupied by a legion commanded by the Marquess of Alorna. By the beginning of the 19th century, during the Peninsular War the castle and town underwent, on two occasions, the passage of Napoleonic troops into Portugal:

on 22 November 1807, it was occupied by troops under the command of Jean-Andoche Junot, who took the title of Duke of Abrantes (March 1808);

in October 1810 it was reoccupied, after the rout of French troops at the Lines of Torres Vedras, under the command of Marshall André Masséna.

In 1809, the fortifications were improved under engineer Manuel de Sousa Ramos, just before they were occupied by Masséna's forces, who destroyed the palace of the Marquess of Abrantes.[1] Afterwards, the castle installations were de-activated as quarters, and converted to a military presidio, resulting in alterations to its structure.

In 1860 repairs were made at the prison block, reinforced by an exterior wall, ordered built by the Baron of Batalhã.

In the middle of the 20th century, the castle's buildings and structures were classified as an Imóvel de Interesse Público (Property of Public Interest) by decree (July 1957) by the Direcção-Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais (DGEMN) (General-Directorate for Buildings and National Monuments).  At the end of the 1960s, remodelling projects were advanced to consolidate and restore the walls of the castle, which continued until the 1970s (and included the partial reconstruction of the detention block).

On 1 June 1992, the fort came under the authority of the Instituto Português do Patromónio Arquitectónico (IPPAR), forerunner of the Instituto de Gestão do Património Arquitectónico e Arqueológico (Decree 106F/92).

In 2002, a program was established to maintain and promote the structure, which included a public tender to renovate the building; the castle was closed between 2002 and 2004 to enable renovations to be carried out. After these were concluded, the castle was formally re-inaugurated on 18 April 2004.

Architecture

The Castle has an imposing position on the right margin of the Tagus River, surmounting a hilltop overlooking the town and local landscape. It is a characteristic hilltop fortification, located on a 197-metre high plateau dominating the town, designed to take advantage of the steep incline of the northeast escarpment. The southern, southeastern and eastern portions of the castle are reinforced by bastions and curtain walls. In addition to the isolated detention and block (in the centre of the grounds), the eastern end of the castle are dominated by the Paços do Marquis, Paços dos Condes and the church of the Santa Maria do Castelo.

The military fort, like other medieval forts, was the centre of power and refuge in case of attack; the community lived outside the walls, in the almedina, a space that includes the two major churches of São Vicente and São João.

The castle is constructed from masonry rock in an irregular polygonal form surmounting a rocky cliff face with steep vertical walls. Originally of Romanesque architecture, it took on aspects of Gothic architecture through successive additions, remodelling and rebuilding after the 13th century. The only remnants of the austere medieval castle are the detention block, the weapons portico (on the north-east angle) and the parapet for lookouts that commanded panoramic views of the region.

The rectangular detention block in the middle of the castle commons originally had three levels, but the two upper levels were destroyed in the 1531 earthquake. Remodelling completed in the 19th century took from the character of the façade.

The first line of walls are reinforced by cylindrical towers and interrupted by vertical openings. The castle's bastions, completed in the 18th century, are distributed around the older part of the settlement of Abrantes.

The old military square, and on the western extent of the castle, are the ruins of the old Paço dos Condes de Abrantes(English: Residence of the Counts of Abrantes). Begun in 1530, by the sheriff of the vila, Diogo Fernandes de Almeida, it was designed to take advantage of the wall to reinforce the structure. The Paços, marked by grandiose architectural elements in the Baroque style, was substantially modified in the 18th century by the first Marquis of Abrantes, Rodrigo Anes de Sá Almeida e Menezes. Of these elements the loggia, consisting of an arcade of 11 perfect spans, aligned symmetrically on two cylindrical tiers, are the most distinctive part of the Abrantes complex.

In the interior, the Church of Santa Maria do Castelo, in the Gothic style has been converted into a museum exhibiting a collection of Roman sculpture, funerary artefacts from the 15th and 16th century, as well as azulejos.