2848 PORTUGAL (Viseu) - Soar Door in Viseu

Located approximately 50km East of the Atlantic ocean and surrounded by a number of mountains, Viseu was populated throughout history by a series of cultures, that include the Romans, Suebs, Visigoths and Moors. During the Middle Ages, the city often served as seat for Visigothic nobles (such as King Roderic), and is considered one of the probable birthplaces of Afonso Henriques. Following his successful defense of his hereditary rights, and supported by nobles and clergy, Afonso Henriques founded the Kingdom of Portugal in 1139.

0340, 2068 PORTUGAL (Leiria) - Monastery of Batalha (UNESCO WHS)

0340 Monastery of Batalha - facade and main entrance

 

Posted on 23.09.2012, 24.11.2015
Founded by King João I to celebrate his victory in the Battle of Aljubarrota (August 14, 1385), that put an end to the attempt of John I of Castile to annex Portugal, Batalha is now a town with 7,500 inhabitants, located 118km north of Lisbon. Mosteiro Santa Maria da Vitória (known as the Monastery of Batalha - Monastery of the Battle) is a Dominican convent also founded by João I, but which was completed on circa 1517, its construction spanning on the reign of seven kings and combining the efforts of fifteen architects (of whom only eight actually worked). 

2068 Monastery of Batalha - The portal
of Capelas Imperfeitas

 

It is one of the best and original examples of Late Gothic architecture in Portugal, with strong elements of English Perpendicular, intermingled with the Manueline style. The ornate convent has been put up in limestone from Porto de Mós, that has turned yellow ochre in the course of time. As with all Dominican churches, this church has no bell tower. It is vast and narrow, and its interior gives a sober and bare impression by its complete lack of ornaments and statues in the nave. The western façade, facing the square with the equestrian statue of general Nuno Álvares Pereira, is divided in three by buttressess and pilasters.

1818-1820 PORTUGAL (Santarém) - Convent of Christ in Tomar (UNESCO WHS)

1818 Tomar - The castle of the Knights Templar

Tomar lies in the most fertile region of Portugal and is one of country's historical jewels. Under the modern city lies the Roman city of Sellium. After the conquest of the region from the Moors in the Portuguese Reconquista, the land was granted in 1159 as a fief to the Order of the Knights Templar. Its Grand Master in Portugal, and Tomar's somewhat mythical founder, Gualdim Pais, laid in 1160 the first stone of the Castle and Monastery that would become the headquarters of the Order in Portugal. The Templars ruled from Tomar a vast region of central Portugal which they pledged to defend from Moorish attacks and raids.

1819 Tomar - Convent of Christ
The Chapter House Window

After the Order was dissolved in the 14th century, its Portuguese branch was turned into the Knights of the Order of Christ, which supported Portugal's maritime discoveries of the 15th century. Henry the Navigator was the Governor of the Order, and it is believed that he used the resources and knowledge of the Order to succeed in his enterprises in Africa and in the Atlantic. The cross of the Order of Christ that was painted in the sails of the caravels that crossed the seas, and the Catholic missions in the new lands were under the authority of the Tomar clerics until 1514.

1820 Tomar - Detail of the round church, view from the nave

In the reign of Manuel I of Portugal the convent took its final form within the Manueline renaissance style. With the growing importance of the town as master of Portugal's overseas empire, the leadership of the Order was granted to the King by the Pope. King John III demilitarised the order, turning it into a more religious order with a rule based on that of Bernard of Clairvaux. The Convent of Tomar, originally conceived as a symbolic monument of the Reconquest, became, from the Manueline period, an inverse symbol: that of the opening of Portugal to external civilizations.

0336, 1729 PORTUGAL (Braga) - Historic Centre of Guimarães (UNESCO WHS)

0336 Historic Centre of Guimarães - Guimarães Castle

 

Posted on 19.09.2012, 10.07.2015
In one of the old towers of Guimarães, city often referred to as Cidade Berço (The Cradle City), it is written Aqui nasceu Portugal (Portugal was born here). Nothing more true, because here has established his capital Vimara Peres (820-873), first Count of Portugal, who reconquered from the Moors the area from the Minho River to the Douro River, but especially because its near took place the Battle of São Mamede (24 June 1128), in which Afonso Henriques defeated his mother and her lover, establishing himself as sole leader. After 11 years, the same ruler defeated the Almoravid Moors in Battle of Ourique, and proclaimed himself king of Portugal, to confirm the Portuguese independence from the Kingdom of León.

1729 Historic Centre of Guimarães - Palace of the Dukes of Braganza

Although so closely linked to the birth of independent Portugal, Guimarães hadn't the chance to be its capital, because in 1131, so with 8 years before proclaimed himself king, Afonso Henriques moved the capital to Coimbra. In 950 or 951, Mumadona Dias, Countess of Portugal, founded, on her property in Vimaranes (as it was called then Guimarães) a monastery under São Mamede's invocation. It originated the fixation of people in the area known as vila baixa (downtown). She initiated also the construction of the Guimarães Castle on the hill area which became known as vila alta (uptown), to defend the settlement from Moors and Norman raids. The castle became the official royal residence from 1139 until circa 1200.

1590 PORTUGAL (Lisbon) - Bairro da Sé in Lisbon

The municipality of Lisbon, the capital and the largest city of Portugal, included 53 freguesias (civil parishes) until November 2012, when a new law reduced the number of them to 24. Locally, the inhabitants may more commonly refer to the spaces of Lisbon in terms of historic bairros (neighbourhoods). These communities have no clearly defined boundaries and represent distinctive quarters of the city that have in common a historical culture, similar living standards, and identifiable architectural landmarks. The oldest bairro of Lisbon is Alfama, which spreads down the southern slope from the Castle of São Jorge to the River Tagus. Its name, derived from the Arabic Al-hamma, means fountains or baths.

1546 PORTUGAL (Santarém) - A young mower in Ribatejo

The Ribatejo is the most central of the traditional provinces of Portugal, crossed by the Tagus River (Ribatejo translates to "shores of Tagus"), with no coastline or border with Spain. The region contains some of the nation's richest agricultural land, and it produces most of the animals used in the Portuguese style of bullfighting. In 1976 the province was dissolved, and most of the area was incorporated into the Santarém District. The traditional clothes of Portuguese women varies from a region to other, but they have in common bright and vivid colors, and the kerchief, an obligatory part of the national costume.

1437 PORTUGAL (Braga / Viana do Castelo) - Woman spinner of Pêrre linen

Entre Douro e Minho is one of the historical provinces of Portugal which encompassed, as the name suggests (Between-Douro-and-Minho), the country's northern Atlantic seaboard between the Douro and Minho rivers, practically the area which included the current Viana do Castelo, Braga and Porto districts. In 1936, when Portugal was divided into 13 official provinces, Entre Douro e Minho was split into Minho Province and Douro Litoral Province. Minho, dissolved in 1976, included the districts of Braga and Viana do Castelo, and had the capital in the city of Braga. Minho has substantial Celtic influences and shares many cultural traits with neighbouring Galicia in Spain. Perre is a parish in the municipality of Viana do Castelo, situated on the right bank of the river Lima.

1390 PORTUGAL (Faro) - Castle of Silves

Situated on a hill above the Arade River, navigable in historical times, and bordered to the south by the Atlantic Ocean, Silves was possibly founded during the times of Roman domination. Former capital of the Algarve, it was one of the most important towns of western Al-Andalus. Silves Castle (Castelo dos Mouros, Moorish Castle), located on the top of the hill and built between the 8th and 13th century, is one of the best preserved of the Moorish fortifications in Portugal. In the next hundred years, the fortification was strengthened by Moors and passed twice, for brief periods, under Christian dominion, until  Afonso III of Portugal definitively conquered it.

1313 PORTUGAL (Coimbra) - University of Coimbra - Alta and Sofia (UNESCO WHS)

In Coimbra are many archaeological structures which date back to the Roman era (the well-preserved aqueduct and cryptoporticus for example), and also buildings from the period when it was the capital of Portugal (1131-1255), but this city is best known for its University. During the Late Middle Ages, with the decline of Coimbra as the political centre of the Kingdom of Portugal, it began to evolve into a major cultural centre, helped by the university finally established there in 1537. The university, one of the oldest in Europe,  influences educational institutions of the former Portuguese empire over seven centuries, receiving and disseminating knowledge in the fields of arts, sciences, law, architecture, town planning and landscape design. It demonstrates also a specific urban typology, which illustrates the far-ranging integration of a city and its university.

1243 PORTUGAL (Lisbon) - A shoeshiner in Lisbon in 1987

In Western civilization, the occupation of shoeshiner was probably one of the most ephemeral, appearing in the early 20th century and disappearing in most European countries before its conclusion. However, shining shoes still is an important source of income for many children and families throughout the world. Some shoeshiners offer extra services, such as shoe repairs and general tailoring. Although this occupation is generally regarded with condescension, quite a lot well-known and high profile people started their working life as shoeshiners, including singers and presidents, such as James Brown, The Godfather of Soul, the human rights activist Malcolm X, or the brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

0103, 0377, 1220 PORTUGAL (Lisbon) - Monastery of the Hieronymites and Tower of Belém in Lisbon (UNESCO WHS)

0103 Monastery of the Hieronymites in Lisbon

Posted on 06.11.2012, 21.01.2012, 13.09.2014
In the 15th and 16th centuries, as the result of pioneering the Age of Discovery, Portugal established a global empire (the first in history), becoming the world's major economic, political and military power. Most of the Portuguese expeditions left from Lisbon, which has become one of the richest cities in Europe. Standing at the entrance to its harbour, the Hieronymites Monastery, exemplifies Portuguese art at its best, and the nearby Belém Tower, is a reminder of the great maritime discoveries that laid the foundations of the modern world. Both constructions were erected at the peak of Portugal's territorial expansion and of its economic and cultural flowering.

0377 Tower of Belém in Lisbon (1)

 

In 1496, Manuel I the Fortunate requested to the Holy See a authorisation to build a large monastery on the banks of the Tagus, just outside Lisbon, but the construction of the Hieronymites Monastery (or Jerónimos Monastery) began only in 1501, being completed 100 years later. Huge amounts of money was spend for this project, more accurate a sizeable part of Vintena da Pimenta, a 5% levy on income from trade with Africa and the Orient, or the equivalent of 70 kg of gold per year. Replacing a church dedicated to Santa Maria de Belém, it has a façade that extends for more than 300m, and is one of the most prominent monuments of the Manueline-style architecture.

1220 Tower of Belém in Lisbon (2)

One of the main king's reasons for building this monastery was his desire to have a pantheon for the Avis-Beja dynasty, of which he was the first monarch. Manuel chose the Order of St. Jerome, or Hieronymites, to occupy the monastery. Their role, amongst other things, was to pray for the soul of the monarch and provide spiritual assistance to the seafarers and navigators who departed from the Restelo shorefront to discover new worlds. This religious community occupied the monastic spaces until 1833, when religious orders were dissolved in Portugal and the monastery was vacated.

0475, 1088 PORTUGAL - Fado, urban popular song of Portugal (UNESCO ICH)

João Martins - "Fado Corrido" com Amália Rodrigues, 1964

Posted on 17.01 2013 and 24.05.2014
The Portuguese word fado comes from the Latin fatum (fate, in English). How can sound and what lyrical themes can tackle a musical genre that is called so? In Portuguese popular belief, fado is characterized by mournful tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor, and infused with a sentiment of resignation, fatefulness and melancholia, linked to the word saudade (a permanent, irreparable loss and its consequent life lasting damage).

Fado Painted Tiles - Street Wall Art, Lisbon

The fado's history can be traced to the 1820s, but probably it had much earlier origins. It was generally sung by one person, accompanied by the portuguese guitar and the classical guitar, but today the the fadista may be accompanied by a string quartet or a full orchestra. There are two main varieties of fado, namely those of the cities of Lisbon (a more popular style) and Coimbra (a more classic style). According to tradition, to applaud fado in Lisbon you clap your hands, while in Coimbra one coughs as if clearing one's throat. In 2011, UNESCO inscribed Fado, urban popular song of Portugal on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

0682 PORTUGAL (Faro) - A traditional street in a town in Algarve

Algarve, the southernmost region of mainland Portugal, now Faro District, had no institutions, special privileges, or autonomy, but was considered always one of the jewels of the Portuguese Crown. From  Afonso III (r. 1248-1279) until the proclamation of the Portuguese Republic (1910) all the Portuguese monarchs bore the title of King of Portugal and Algarve. It extend south of the Tagus valley to the southern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, the length of the south-facing coastline being approximately 155km, and beyond the Cape St. Vincent it stretches a further 50km to the north.

0620 & 0621 PORTUGAL (Porto) - Historic Centre of Oporto (UNESCO WHS)

Located along the hillsides overlooking the Douro river estuary in northern Portugal, Porto is one of the oldest European centres, with a 2,000-year history. At the beginning an outpost of the Roman Empire, Portus Cale (considered to stand at the origin of the name "Portugal"), the town became, with the arrival of the barbarians, an important administrative and trading centre, and was established as part of the Castilian realm in the 11th century, after a short period of Moorish domination.

The first period of expansion came with the construction in 1374 of a new town wall protecting the two urban nuclei - the original medieval town and the extramural harbour area. In 1387 it was the site of the marriage of John I of Portugal and Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt, which has been concluded with a military alliance between Portugal and England, in effect even today (the world's oldest recorded military alliance). Between 15th and 17th centuries it played a crucial role in the Portuguese Age of Discovery. In 1996 Historic Centre of Oporto was designed an UNESCO World Heritage Site, because "is a townscape of high aesthetic value, with evidence of urban development from the Roman, medieval, and Almadas periods. The rich and varied civil architecture of the historic centre expresses the cultural values of succeeding periods - Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Neoclassical and modern."

Undoubtedly, all these are important, but probably that the city is known first for port, the fortified wine produced in the Douro Valley. In the 13th century it was already transported to Porto in flat sailing vessels named barcos rabelos (in the first postcard). Although not in use anymore, still today we can admire these graceful vessels belonging to the Port Wine Companies in the banks of the Douro river. Every year on June 24, St. John's Day, is held a race of Rabelo boats, an important and popular event of the festivities of Porto city.

0529 PORTUGAL (Madeira) - Spectacular Funchal Harbour

The first territorial discovery of the Portuguese Age of Discovery (1419), Madeira is a archipelago located in the north Atlantic Ocean, at 400km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands. Since 1976, the three islands of the archipelago (Madeira, Porto Santo, and the Desertas) form, together with Savage Islands, one of the two Autonomous regions of Portugal (the other being the Azores), currently the second richest region of the country, after Lisbon. Noted for its wine, flowers, landscapes and embroidery artisans, as well as for its annual New Year celebrations that feature the largest fireworks show in the world, Madeira is a popular year-round resort.

0520 PORTUGAL (Lisbon) - Elevador da Glória

Elevador da Glória (the Glória Funicular) is a funicular that links Baixa (Restauradores Square) with Bairro Alto (Jardim / Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara), in Lisbon, and, according to the website cliqlisbon.com "is the most comfortable way to get to the interesting points of Lisbon located on the higher altitudes of the city and normally accessible only through the very steep streets." Operated by Carris (Companhia Carris de Ferro de Lisboa), it was opened to the public in 1885, at first as a water-powered system, replaced in 1886 by a steam-power one, and finally electrified in 1915 . In 2002 it was designated a National Monument, and transports annually over 3 millions of people.

0488 PORTUGAL - The flag of the country

The portuguese flag, adopted on 30 June 1911, is a 2:3 rectangle divided vertically into green at the hoist (2/5 of the flag’s length) and red at the fly (3/5). Centered in this partition is a coat of arms consisting on an armillary sphere charged with the traditional portuguese shield. The use of green represented a radical republican-inspired change that broke the bond with the former religious monarchical flag. Actually, red and green had been established as the colours of the Portuguese Republican Party. The symbolism was added later, green being associated with the hope of the nation, and red with the blood of those who died defending it.