Castle in Tomar

Tomar, Estrada do Convento, 6

Castles of Portugal One of the most ancient and unusual is the castle of the Order of the Templars in Tomar, built in 12 century near the monastery and the ancient round church, it became not only a reliable protection of the knights from the Arab encroachments, but also one of the first castles with strange round towers at that time.

Kelush Castle

Queluz, Avenida Engenheiro Duarte Pacheco

Castles of Portugal In the vicinity of the capital there is a castle that is absolutely not like all those that are found in P Ortuglia is Kelush. It is so refined and so generously decorated that many who saw it speak of it as the younger brother of the Parisian Versailles.

Obidos Castle

Obidos, Estrada da Cerca

Castles of Portugal Castle Óbidos can be called one of the most popular places in Portugal. It is not for nothing that this attraction is included in almost all tourist routes. Castle Óbidos in the homonymous town of Leiria County.

Castle of St. George in Lisbon

Lisboa, Rua Flores de Santa Cruz, 3

Castles of Portugal In the historic center of Lisbon stands the majestic and slightly formidable castle-fortress of St. George, it is from here that the construction of the Portuguese capital began, and the history of the castle itself is more than two thousand years old. Once upon a time a fortress on a hill on the banks of the Tagus was erected by the Romans.

Sintra Castle

Sintra, Estr. da Pena, 12

Castles of Portugal In particular, this is the castle on one of the hills near the town of Sintra - Palacio da Pena - not just one of the most grandiose castles of the country, but also one of its main attractions. It is listed in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List as the best example of Romanticism in architecture.

It's amazing how such a small country as Portugal could accommodate a huge number of castles. In the Middle Ages there were about one hundred and seventy, to this day about a hundred have survived, and all of them are Portuguese monuments of national importance.

It so happened that the Portuguese Kingdom had to protect its possessions for centuries from encroachments of other states, and indeed simply from pirate raids, so the castles were mostly defensive in nature - almost all of them are built on inaccessible hills and are surrounded by a moat and high stone walls.

The castle is hardly the first such castle it can be considered a Moorish fortress (9th century) near modern Sintra. It is located in the middle of the forest, on a high hill, and is surrounded by massive battlements. In the castle itself was all in order to survive the long siege, for example, a huge reservoir for drinking water, which has survived to our days.

Today, in Portugal, a significant part of the castles has the status of not only a historical heritage, but is also unusual hotel complexes, so-called pomads. The very first castle that was turned into a hotel is Obidos in the town of the same name. The cost of living here does not exceed the cost for a room in a good four-, five-star hotel, but most importantly - there is a special atmosphere of the distant Middle Ages.

Along with some severity, many of the castles of Portugal are also characterized by a special elegance and chic.

Nevertheless, the wealth of the country, the presence of such vast colonies as, for example, Brazil, where gold was extracted by hundreds of kilograms, could not but incline the Portuguese nobles to craving for luxury. Therefore, along with some severity, many of the castles of Portugal are also distinguished by a special grace and chic. In addition, many of them contain elements of the unique architectural style of Manueline, which took place exclusively in Portugal.

Portugal is a wonderful country, a quiet European province, most recently completely unknown to tourists, and where still it is possible to avoid crowds .Rest in it will pleasantly surprise the virgin nature, national customs, local hospitality, developed tourism infrastructure, resorts on the ocean, severe coastal rocks, sandy beaches, the sea of ​​flowers, the richest historical heritage and its ancient cathedrals, fortresses, palaces and castles attracting everyone here. year millions of tourists from all over the world .

Portugal is the country of the oldest culture and the richest architectural traditions, which can rightly be called a castle country, a stone chronicle of national history..Locks were built in different epochs and centuries and were used mainly for military purposes: castles of feudal lords, hospitaliers, templars, royal castles .The buildings of Romanesque time reflect the formidable spirit of battles for independence .In the liberated territories, churches, fortresses and fortified castles were intensively built to protect the lands from Castile and the Moors, who constantly want to seize the neighboring state..

Medieval castles are scattered throughout the small square of Portugal: in the province of Alentejo, Tomara, Bataille, Obidushe, Alkobas and other .Virtually every city and even small populated centers had a medieval stone castle .Almost one hundred and fifty locks have reached our days .Many of them are already ruins, and some, perfectly restored, now act as museums or turned into hotels ("pausadas" - pousadas) .Portuguese public is concerned about the salvage and conservation of castles that have become unusable - outstanding monuments of medieval culture and expressive artistic image of the country .

Despite the characteristic for military architecture of the severe simplicity and inaccessibility, castles, closely related to nature, surprisingly attractive, romantic and some fabulous.

Castles in Portugal were built on the hills and had a certain similarity: walls reinforced with square (sometimes round) towers, completed with Moorish sawtooth teeth, rectangular dungeon massifs with serrated ends of impressive sizes .Despite all their similarities, Portuguese medieval castles are perceived in different ways, given the different scales, creation time, architectural features and natural surroundings .Despite the characteristic for military architecture of the stark simplicity and inaccessibility, castles, closely related to nature, surprisingly attractive, romantic and some fabulous .

In view of the fact that for most of its history, Portugal threatened the invasion of Spain, the castles retained their military qualities. So now you can see them in their original form, as they were constructed: powerful, rude, practical and impregnable, with almost no comfort.

One of the most famous in Portugal is Pena Castle, hidden in the mountains, attracting crowds of tourists every day with its unique architecture. Touching the history of the Knights-Crusaders is possible when visiting the Templar monastery Convento de Criste or the picturesque castle Almourol (transferred to the Ministry of Defense of Portugal), which is on the list of national monuments of the country.

Only by including in your journey through Portugal acquaintance with the stone medieval castles, which are real fortresses, you can appreciate the whole charm of this country and understand its history and originality.