Versão portuguesa aqui.

GPS 39.462243570298924, -8.383772644197585

Almourol Castle is located in the parish of Praia do Ribatejo, municipality of Vila Nova da Barquinha, district of Santarém, Centro region (Beiras region), in Portugal, although its location is often attributed to Tancos, as it is the nearest village and where you can see it better.

Built on a granite outcrop 18 meters above water level, on a small island measuring 310 meters long and 75 meters wide, in the middle course of the Tagus River, a little below its confluence with the Zêzere River, at the time of the Reconquista it was part of the so-called Linha do Tejo, the current Tourism Region of the Templars. It constitutes one of the most representative examples of military architecture of the time, simultaneously evoking the beginnings of the kingdom of Portugal and the Knights Templar, an association that reinforces its aura of mystery and romanticism.

With the extinction of the Order of the Temple, the castle of Almourol becomes part of the heritage of the Order of Christ (which was the successor in Portugal to the Order of the Templars).

Almourol Castle has been classified as a National Monument since 1910.

History

Background and toponymy

Although the authors are not unanimous about the primitive human occupation of this site, believing that it dates back to a prehistoric castro, archaeological research has brought to light testimonies from the Roman period (coins from the 1st century BC) and from the medieval period (medals). Some authors also identify, in some sections at the base of the walls, examples of Roman-type building apparatus.

From the 3rd century onwards, the site was occupied by other groups, namely the Alans, the Visigoths and the Muslims, the latter from the 8th century onwards. In the thirteenth century, the fortification already existed, which they called Al-morolan (high stone).

It is not possible to specify the origin of its name, just as it is difficult to clarify the meaning and the spelling of which variations are known: Almoriol, Almorol, Almourel, Almuriel. Other authors establish a connection with the term Moron, which Strabo would have referred to as a city located on the Tagus, or with the term Muriella, which appears in the description of the delimitation of the Bishopric of Egitânia and Corretânea.

The medieval castle

At the time of the Christian Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, when this region was occupied by Portuguese forces, Almourol was conquered in 1129 by D. Afonso Henriques (1112-1185). The sovereign handed it over to the Knights of the Knights Templar, who were then in charge of populating the territory between the Mondego River and the Tagus, and of defending the then capital of Portugal, Coimbra.

In this phase, the castle was rebuilt, having acquired, in general lines, its current features, characteristics of the Templar architecture: quadrangular spaces, high walls, reinforced by adjoining towers, They had 9 towers and a higher one and in the window facing the east has a Templar cross. Dominated by a keep. An epigraphic plaque, placed over the main gate, states that its works were completed in 1171, two years after the completion of the Castle of Tomar, built by order of Gualdim Pais, son of Paio Ramires. The same architectural characteristics are also present in the Castle of Idanha, Monsanto, Pombal, Tomar and Zêzere, its contemporaries.

Under the care of the Order, constituted in the seat of a Commendation, the castle became a nerve center in the Tagus area, controlling the trade in olive oil, wheat, pork, fruit and wood between the different regions of the territory and Lisbon. It is also believed that there would have been a village associated with the castle, on one or both banks of the river, since, in 1170, a charter was granted to its residents.

With the advance of the reconquest to the south and the extinction of the Order of the Templars in 1311 by Pope Clement V during the reign of D. Dinis (1279-1325), the structure passed to the Order of Christ, later losing importance, having undergone several changes.

From the 18th century to our days

Victim of the 1755 earthquake, the structure was damaged, undergoing further changes during the romanticism of the 19th century. At that stage, and in line with the current philosophy of valuing the works of the past in the light of an ideal poetic vision, the castle was subject to tampering of a decorative nature, including the uniform crowning of the walls with battlements and merlons.

The castle was handed over to the Portuguese Army in the second half of the 19th century, under the responsibility of the commander of the Practical School of Engineering in Tancos, which is used to this day.

In the 20th century, it was classified as a National Monument of Portugal by Decree of 16 June 1910. At the time of the Portuguese Estado Novo, the complex was adapted as an Official Residence of the Portuguese Republic, where some important official events took place. To this end, new interventions were promoted in the 1940s and 1950s, reinforcing aspects of an ideology of nationality cultivated by the regime at the time.

At the beginning of June 2006, two new docks for tourist boats were inaugurated: one on the right bank of the Tagus River and another in the south of the island.

In September 2013, work began to improve the walls and intervene in the keep of Castelo de Almourol to create a museum space.

The works, which will last for six months and involve an investment of around 500,000 euros, will focus on several areas of disintegration of the walls and towers, with their waterproofing, water drainage and improvement of the walls.

The intervention in the keep will focus on the replacement of the current terrace, the placement of a metal staircase for vertical circulation and the installation of an exhibition system of contents related to the Templars, aiming to preserve and protect the monument and providing it with better conditions of accessibility and circulation.

It is currently possible to visit the Castle of Almourol and take trips on the Tagus River, adding value and interest to visits to the Monument. From Tancos, Arripiado and Vila Nova da Barquinha.

Characteristics

The construction, in granite stonework and mortar masonry, has an irregular (organic) plan, reflecting the irregularity of the terrain, and is divided into two levels, a lower exterior and a higher interior.

The first level is accessed through the main entrance where there are tombstones that make reference to the intervention by Gualdim Pais and where the name of the worker and the year in which the intervention took place are mentioned. In this space, the walls have nine high circular towers (four equidistant to the west, and five to the east) and here you can also find the betrayal door and traces of what must have been a well. Going up some steps and going through another door, you enter the second level, the highest interior area where the quadrangular keep, a characteristic element of the Templars, erected in the 12th century, stands. This three-story structure now only has the footings as an original element (on which the wooden framework would be supported) and a cross above the window, a symbol adopted by the Templars. Here, the walls crowned by merlons and arrow slits have stairs that provide access to the top of the wall and the path that runs along it, the adarve. Communication between the different parts of the castle can be done through several passages of stonework. Across the islet, other paths were built, allowing not only the path that embraces the castle, but also the possibility to glimpse the surrounding landscape from various perspectives.

The epigraphic question

Over the main door of the castle, an epigraphic inscription dating from the era of 1209 (1171), mentions, in addition to the birthplace of Gualdim Pais and his military action against Muslims in Egypt and Syria, his rise to the leadership of the Order of Temple in Portugal and subsequent construction of the castles of Pombal, Tomar, Zêzere, Cardiga and Almourol (…factus domus Templi Portugalis procurator, hoc construxit castrum Palumbare, Tomar, Ozezar, Cardig, et hoc ad Almourol), showing that, in that year, the Almourol castle was, like the others mentioned, already built. However, a second inscription, over the inner door, informs that it was in the era of 1209 that Gualdim Pais built the Castle of Almourol. A third inscription, over the door of the sacristy of the church of the Convent of Tomar, also dated from 1209, similar to the first, except in the enumeration of the castles, which also includes those of Idanha and Monsanto, which shows that this third was later than the first, since these last two castles were built after 1171.

Legends

There have been several popular stories exacerbating the romanticism associated with the Templar castle, among which:

In the early days of the Reconquista, D. Ramiro, a Christian knight, was returning proudly from battles against the Muslims when he found two Moorish women, mother and daughter. The young woman was carrying a pitcher of water, which, frightened, she dropped when the knight rudely asked her to drink. Enraged, he had just taken the lives of the two women when a young Moor appeared, the son and brother of the victims, who was soon taken prisoner. D. Ramiro took the captive to his castle, where he lived with his wife and daughter, whom the Moorish prisoner soon planned to murder in retaliation. However, if the mother began to administer a slow-acting poison, she ended up falling in love with the daughter, whom the father planned to marry with a knight of his faith. Corresponded by the young woman, who had meanwhile become aware of her father's plans, the lovers left the castle and disappeared forever. Legend has it that, on the nights of São João, the couple can be seen embracing at the top of the keep and, at their feet, begging forgiveness, the cruel D. Ramiro. (in: PINHO LEAL, Augusto Soares d'Azevedo Barbosa de. Ancient and modern Portugal: geographic, statistical, chorographical, heraldic, archeological, historical, biographical and etymological dictionary of all cities, towns and parishes in Portugal and a large number of villages… (12 vols.). Lisbon: 1872 et seq.)

An Arab lord of Almourol was betrayed by the Christian knight with whom his daughter fell in love, and to whom she revealed the secrets of entering the castle. The knight used the information to set up an ambush and the emir and his daughter chose to throw themselves from the walls into the river rather than be held captive.

The heroic knight Palmeirim de Palmeirim de England was hit by a big storm that forced the ship he was traveling on, from England to Constantinople, to dock on the Portuguese coast, anchoring in the Douro River. Landing in the city of Porto, the knight became aware of the adventures of some knights who had engaged in combat with the giant Almourol, who in his castle in the middle of the Tagus River guarded the beautiful princess Miraguarda and her ladies. In search of adventures, Palmeirim moves south, where, on the banks of the Tagus, the Castle of Almourol can be seen in the distance. Approaching, he sees the end of the fight between two knights in a square near the castle, recognizing the winner as the Sad Knight, with whom he had already dueled. As a sign of victory, the Sad Knight joins his shield to that of others who had already obtained it. On this shield was portrayed his lady, the beautiful princess Miraguarda, with whom the Palmeirim fell in love. As the fight between the Palmeirim and the Sad Knight takes place, night falls, ending the fight without a winner. The Sad Knight is taken to the castle to treat his wounds, while the Palmeirim goes to look for help in a nearby village. Neither one nor the other, however, reached the favor of the princess, who advised the first to withdraw and give up new combats for a year, while the Palmeirim resumed its path to Constantinople. After this feat, the giant Almourol was attacked and defeated by another giant, Dramusiando, under whose protection the beautiful princess and her court remain from now on.

Versão portuguesa aqui.

GPS 39.462243570298924, -8.383772644197585

Almourol Castle is located in the parish of Praia do Ribatejo, municipality of Vila Nova da Barquinha, district of Santarém, Centro region (Beiras region), in Portugal, although its location is often attributed to Tancos, as it is the nearest village and where you can see it better.

Built on a granite outcrop 18 meters above water level, on a small island measuring 310 meters long and 75 meters wide, in the middle course of the Tagus River, a little below its confluence with the Zêzere River, at the time of the Reconquista it was part of the so-called Linha do Tejo, the current Tourism Region of the Templars. It constitutes one of the most representative examples of military architecture of the time, simultaneously evoking the beginnings of the kingdom of Portugal and the Knights Templar, an association that reinforces its aura of mystery and romanticism.

With the extinction of the Order of the Temple, the castle of Almourol becomes part of the heritage of the Order of Christ (which was the successor in Portugal to the Order of the Templars).

Almourol Castle has been classified as a National Monument since 1910.

History

Background and toponymy

Although the authors are not unanimous about the primitive human occupation of this site, believing that it dates back to a prehistoric castro, archaeological research has brought to light testimonies from the Roman period (coins from the 1st century BC) and from the medieval period (medals). Some authors also identify, in some sections at the base of the walls, examples of Roman-type building apparatus.

From the 3rd century onwards, the site was occupied by other groups, namely the Alans, the Visigoths and the Muslims, the latter from the 8th century onwards. In the thirteenth century, the fortification already existed, which they called Al-morolan (high stone).

It is not possible to specify the origin of its name, just as it is difficult to clarify the meaning and the spelling of which variations are known: Almoriol, Almorol, Almourel, Almuriel. Other authors establish a connection with the term Moron, which Strabo would have referred to as a city located on the Tagus, or with the term Muriella, which appears in the description of the delimitation of the Bishopric of Egitânia and Corretânea.

The medieval castle

At the time of the Christian Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, when this region was occupied by Portuguese forces, Almourol was conquered in 1129 by D. Afonso Henriques (1112-1185). The sovereign handed it over to the Knights of the Knights Templar, who were then in charge of populating the territory between the Mondego River and the Tagus, and of defending the then capital of Portugal, Coimbra.

In this phase, the castle was rebuilt, having acquired, in general lines, its current features, characteristics of the Templar architecture: quadrangular spaces, high walls, reinforced by adjoining towers, They had 9 towers and a higher one and in the window facing the east has a Templar cross. Dominated by a keep. An epigraphic plaque, placed over the main gate, states that its works were completed in 1171, two years after the completion of the Castle of Tomar, built by order of Gualdim Pais, son of Paio Ramires. The same architectural characteristics are also present in the Castle of Idanha, Monsanto, Pombal, Tomar and Zêzere, its contemporaries.

Under the care of the Order, constituted in the seat of a Commendation, the castle became a nerve center in the Tagus area, controlling the trade in olive oil, wheat, pork, fruit and wood between the different regions of the territory and Lisbon. It is also believed that there would have been a village associated with the castle, on one or both banks of the river, since, in 1170, a charter was granted to its residents.

With the advance of the reconquest to the south and the extinction of the Order of the Templars in 1311 by Pope Clement V during the reign of D. Dinis (1279-1325), the structure passed to the Order of Christ, later losing importance, having undergone several changes.

From the 18th century to our days

Victim of the 1755 earthquake, the structure was damaged, undergoing further changes during the romanticism of the 19th century. At that stage, and in line with the current philosophy of valuing the works of the past in the light of an ideal poetic vision, the castle was subject to tampering of a decorative nature, including the uniform crowning of the walls with battlements and merlons.

The castle was handed over to the Portuguese Army in the second half of the 19th century, under the responsibility of the commander of the Practical School of Engineering in Tancos, which is used to this day.

In the 20th century, it was classified as a National Monument of Portugal by Decree of 16 June 1910. At the time of the Portuguese Estado Novo, the complex was adapted as an Official Residence of the Portuguese Republic, where some important official events took place. To this end, new interventions were promoted in the 1940s and 1950s, reinforcing aspects of an ideology of nationality cultivated by the regime at the time.

At the beginning of June 2006, two new docks for tourist boats were inaugurated: one on the right bank of the Tagus River and another in the south of the island.

In September 2013, work began to improve the walls and intervene in the keep of Castelo de Almourol to create a museum space.

The works, which will last for six months and involve an investment of around 500,000 euros, will focus on several areas of disintegration of the walls and towers, with their waterproofing, water drainage and improvement of the walls.

The intervention in the keep will focus on the replacement of the current terrace, the placement of a metal staircase for vertical circulation and the installation of an exhibition system of contents related to the Templars, aiming to preserve and protect the monument and providing it with better conditions of accessibility and circulation.

It is currently possible to visit the Castle of Almourol and take trips on the Tagus River, adding value and interest to visits to the Monument. From Tancos, Arripiado and Vila Nova da Barquinha.

Characteristics

The construction, in granite stonework and mortar masonry, has an irregular (organic) plan, reflecting the irregularity of the terrain, and is divided into two levels, a lower exterior and a higher interior.

The first level is accessed through the main entrance where there are tombstones that make reference to the intervention by Gualdim Pais and where the name of the worker and the year in which the intervention took place are mentioned. In this space, the walls have nine high circular towers (four equidistant to the west, and five to the east) and here you can also find the betrayal door and traces of what must have been a well. Going up some steps and going through another door, you enter the second level, the highest interior area where the quadrangular keep, a characteristic element of the Templars, erected in the 12th century, stands. This three-story structure now only has the footings as an original element (on which the wooden framework would be supported) and a cross above the window, a symbol adopted by the Templars. Here, the walls crowned by merlons and arrow slits have stairs that provide access to the top of the wall and the path that runs along it, the adarve. Communication between the different parts of the castle can be done through several passages of stonework. Across the islet, other paths were built, allowing not only the path that embraces the castle, but also the possibility to glimpse the surrounding landscape from various perspectives.

The epigraphic question

Over the main door of the castle, an epigraphic inscription dating from the era of 1209 (1171), mentions, in addition to the birthplace of Gualdim Pais and his military action against Muslims in Egypt and Syria, his rise to the leadership of the Order of Temple in Portugal and subsequent construction of the castles of Pombal, Tomar, Zêzere, Cardiga and Almourol (…factus domus Templi Portugalis procurator, hoc construxit castrum Palumbare, Tomar, Ozezar, Cardig, et hoc ad Almourol), showing that, in that year, the Almourol castle was, like the others mentioned, already built. However, a second inscription, over the inner door, informs that it was in the era of 1209 that Gualdim Pais built the Castle of Almourol. A third inscription, over the door of the sacristy of the church of the Convent of Tomar, also dated from 1209, similar to the first, except in the enumeration of the castles, which also includes those of Idanha and Monsanto, which shows that this third was later than the first, since these last two castles were built after 1171.

Legends

There have been several popular stories exacerbating the romanticism associated with the Templar castle, among which:

In the early days of the Reconquista, D. Ramiro, a Christian knight, was returning proudly from battles against the Muslims when he found two Moorish women, mother and daughter. The young woman was carrying a pitcher of water, which, frightened, she dropped when the knight rudely asked her to drink. Enraged, he had just taken the lives of the two women when a young Moor appeared, the son and brother of the victims, who was soon taken prisoner. D. Ramiro took the captive to his castle, where he lived with his wife and daughter, whom the Moorish prisoner soon planned to murder in retaliation. However, if the mother began to administer a slow-acting poison, she ended up falling in love with the daughter, whom the father planned to marry with a knight of his faith. Corresponded by the young woman, who had meanwhile become aware of her father's plans, the lovers left the castle and disappeared forever. Legend has it that, on the nights of São João, the couple can be seen embracing at the top of the keep and, at their feet, begging forgiveness, the cruel D. Ramiro. (in: PINHO LEAL, Augusto Soares d'Azevedo Barbosa de. Ancient and modern Portugal: geographic, statistical, chorographical, heraldic, archeological, historical, biographical and etymological dictionary of all cities, towns and parishes in Portugal and a large number of villages… (12 vols.). Lisbon: 1872 et seq.)

An Arab lord of Almourol was betrayed by the Christian knight with whom his daughter fell in love, and to whom she revealed the secrets of entering the castle. The knight used the information to set up an ambush and the emir and his daughter chose to throw themselves from the walls into the river rather than be held captive.

The heroic knight Palmeirim de Palmeirim de England was hit by a big storm that forced the ship he was traveling on, from England to Constantinople, to dock on the Portuguese coast, anchoring in the Douro River. Landing in the city of Porto, the knight became aware of the adventures of some knights who had engaged in combat with the giant Almourol, who in his castle in the middle of the Tagus River guarded the beautiful princess Miraguarda and her ladies. In search of adventures, Palmeirim moves south, where, on the banks of the Tagus, the Castle of Almourol can be seen in the distance. Approaching, he sees the end of the fight between two knights in a square near the castle, recognizing the winner as the Sad Knight, with whom he had already dueled. As a sign of victory, the Sad Knight joins his shield to that of others who had already obtained it. On this shield was portrayed his lady, the beautiful princess Miraguarda, with whom the Palmeirim fell in love. As the fight between the Palmeirim and the Sad Knight takes place, night falls, ending the fight without a winner. The Sad Knight is taken to the castle to treat his wounds, while the Palmeirim goes to look for help in a nearby village. Neither one nor the other, however, reached the favor of the princess, who advised the first to withdraw and give up new combats for a year, while the Palmeirim resumed its path to Constantinople. After this feat, the giant Almourol was attacked and defeated by another giant, Dramusiando, under whose protection the beautiful princess and her court remain from now on.