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GPS 38.71408081515477, -9.133508386508126

The Castle of São Jorge, formerly Paço de Alcáçova, is located in the parish of Santa Maria Maior (Castelo), in the city and municipality of Lisbon, in Portugal.

The first walls of the castle, which was rebuilt several times by different peoples and received different names, date from the 2nd century BC. .João I in the 14th century.

São Jorge Castle has been classified as a National Monument since 1910.

Over time, the castle, as well as the various military structures in Lisbon, was being remodeled, to the point that in the first half of the 20th century it was already in an advanced state of ruin. In the 1940s monumental reconstruction works were undertaken, raising most of the walls and raising many of the towers. For this reason, contrary to what one might think at first sight, the "medieval character" of this military complex is due to this reconstruction campaign, and not to the preservation of the castle's space from the Middle Ages to the present day.

It rises in a dominant position on the highest hill in the historic center, offering visitors one of the most beautiful views over the city and the Tagus river estuary.

History

Background

The primitive human presence in the area dates back to the Iron Age, and archaeological research has brought to light testimonies from at least the 6th century BC, successively by Phoenicians, Greeks and Carthaginians. Historical information, however, begins only in the context of the conquest of Hispania by the Roman legions, when it was called Olisipo. Served, from 139 BC. as a base for the operations of the Consul Décimo Júnio Bruto Galaico, against the groups of Lusitanians dispersed after the murder of their leader, Viriato, when it is admitted that, for this reason, there would have been some kind of defensive structure here. Later, in 60 BC, with the then Propraetor Gaius Julius Caesar completing the definitive conquest of Lusitania, he granted the village the title of Felicidade Júlia (Felicitas Julia), allowing its inhabitants the privilege of Roman citizenship.

Faced with the invasions of the Empire by barbarians, to which the Peninsula was not immune, the city was conquered by the Suevi under the command of Maldras, in the mid-5th century, and, a few years later, by the Visigoths under the command of Eurico, coming to become definitively Visigothic under the reign of Leovigild.

Later, in the 8th century, it would fall under Muslim rule, changing its name to Al-Ushbuna or Lissabona. The descriptions of its geographers refer to the existence of the fortification with its walls, which defended the "quasabah" (alcáçova), the center of political and military power in the city. The so-called "Fence Moura" was built in the late Roman period, having been rebuilt and expanded during the Islamic period.

In the context of the Christian reconquest of the Peninsula, its possession fluctuated with the Christian advances, which targeted it as a target on the banks of the Tagus River. Thus, it was initially conquered by Afonso II of Asturias, in a counter-offensive in 796. At the time, the city was sacked and the Christian forces, too far from their base in the region of Entre-Douro-e-Minho, withdrew in then. An identical success was repeated in the reign of Ordonho III of León, under the command of this sovereign, with the city suffering severe damage.

A member of the domains of the taifa of Badajoz, at the dawn of the 12th century, in the face of the threat posed by the forces of Iúsuf ibn Taxufin, who, coming from North Africa, had passed to the Peninsula aiming at the conquest and reunification of the Almoravids domains, the ruler of Badajoz , Mutavaquil, handed it over, along with Santarém and Sintra, in the spring of 1093, to King Alfonso VI of León and Castile, aiming at a defensive alliance that did not hold. Involved with the defense of his own territories, the Christian sovereign was not able to assist the Moorish ruler, whose territories fell, in the following year, before the invaders. In this way, Lisbon, Santarém and Sintra would remain Muslim domains, now under the Almoravids.

The fortification, in this period, consisted of the Alcáçova with an approximately quadrangular plan of about 60 meters on a side, in a dominant position at the top of the hill, defended by walls approximately 200 meters wide. From this nucleus, whose perimeter roughly corresponds to the limits of the current parish of Castelo, to the east and west, the walls surrounding the village, reinforced by towers and where the doors were torn, descended to the river.

The medieval castle

In the context of the Christian Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, after the conquest of Santarém, the forces of D. Afonso Henriques (1112-1185), with the help of Norman, Flemish, German and English crusaders who were heading to the Holy Land, invested against this Muslim fortification, which capitulated after a hard siege of three months (1147), as narrated in the manuscript "De expugnatione Lyxbonensi", a letter written by an English crusader who took part in the conquest. A legend that emerged later states that the knight Martim Moniz, who stood out during the siege, upon realizing one of the castle doors was ajar, sacrificed his own life by interposing his own body in the gap, preventing its closure by the Moors and allowing access. and the victory of the companions.

As a token of gratitude, the now Christian castle was placed under the invocation of the martyr Saint George, to whom many crusaders dedicated devotion. On the day of the conquest, October 25th, today the "Army Day" is celebrated, an institution that, in the country, has Saint George as its patron saint.

A few decades later, between 1179 and 1183, the castle successfully resisted the Muslim forces that ravaged the region between Lisbon and Santarém.

From the 13th century onwards, with Lisbon becoming the capital of the kingdom (1255), the castle reached its apogee, when it was, in addition to the Royal Palace, the so-called Paço da Alcáçova, bishops' palace, court nobles' hostel and fortification. military. The earthquakes that affected the city in 1290, 1344 and 1356 caused damage. On a military level, it mobilized in the face of the Castilian siege of February and March 1373, when the outskirts of the Capital were looted and set on fire. In that year, work began on the wall of D. Fernando (1367-1383), completed two years later and extending to the Baixa. In the 3rd Fernandine War, the outskirts of the city were once again the target of Castilian attacks, in March 1382.

On January 26, 1383, the castle was handed over to the Count of Barcelos, João Afonso Telo, by its mayor, Martim Afonso Valente.

During the 1383-1385 crisis, Lisbon would be severely besieged by the forces of D. João I of Castile in 1384.

In the functions of Royal Palace, it was the stage for the reception of Vasco da Gama, after the discovery of the sea route to India, at the end of the 15th century, and the premiere, in the 16th century, of the Cowboy Monologue, by Gil Vicente, the first play of Portuguese theatre, commemorating the birth of D. João III (1521-1557).

From the Restoration War to the present day

Along with the city, the castle suffered again with the earthquakes of 1531, 1551, 1597 and 1699. Its history as a Royal Palace ended with its change, still in the 16th century, to the Paço da Ribeira. From then on its dependencies were used as barracks. At the time of the Philippine Dynasty, it was garrisoned again, having been used as a prison.

In the context of the Restoration of Independence, its mayor, Martim Afonso Valente, honoring the oath of loyalty to whom he had rendered homage, only handed over the square to the Restauradores after receiving instructions from Margarida de Savoy, Duchess of Mantua, until then Vice-Queen of Portugal, who ordered him to surrender (1640).

The change of the royal residence to the riverside area, the installation of barracks and the 1755 earthquake contributed to the decline and degradation of the monument. It was the seat of Casa Pia from 1780 to 1807, when it was used as headquarters by Jean-Andoche Junot. Thus, mischaracterized and, in part, banned from Lisbon, it reached the 20th century.

Classified as a National Monument by Decree of June 16, 1910, it underwent major restoration interventions in the 1940s and late 1990s, which had the merit of rehabilitating the monument, recovering its medieval design. It is currently one of the most visited places by tourists in the city of Lisbon. In 2000 and 2009, two projects for a lift connection between Castelo and Baixa were considered by the City Council.

The monument also offers gardens and viewpoints (with emphasis on the Plaza de Armas with the statue of D. Afonso Henriques), the castelejo, the citadel and the esplanade, a camera obscura (Torre de Ulisses, former Torre do Tombo), space exhibition hall, meeting/reception room (Casa do Governador) and thematic shop for its visitors.

Entrance to the castle is free for residents of the municipality of Lisbon.

Characteristics

The castle defends the ancient Islamic citadel, the Alcazar, with twelve gates in its crenellated walls, seven of which face the parish of Santa Cruz do Castelo. To the outside, a section of wall gives access to a barbican tower. Eighteen towers support and reinforce the walls. Through the South Gate, through Rua de Santa Cruz do Castelo, you can access the Praça de Armas.

Full list of Geochaching below:

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