Castle Alter do Chão

Parish of Alter do Chão

Antecedentes

The primitive castle of Alter-do-Chão was built during the Muslim period, probably during the government of Abd al-Rahmann III, as suggested by some rows of construction apparatus, markedly caliphal. This fact ensures the town's status as an important post in the defense and organization of this upper section of al-Andalus, both in the 10th century and later.

It is no surprise, therefore, that its castle was one of the most important Christian fortresses, integrating the movement to reconquer Alto Alentejo from the very beginning. Conquered in the second decade of the 13th century, its settlement was immediately ordered by D. Afonso II (1216), and this process was already in full swing in 1232, the year in which the bishop of Guarda, holder of the territory, issued a settlement charter to the town.

The medieval castle

In the context of the Christian Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, this region was occupied by Portuguese forces since the second decade of the 13th century: Afonso II (r. 1223) orders its repopulation in 1216. Under the reign of Sancho II (r. 1223–1248), the castle is already mentioned in the Charter of Settlement given to Alter do Chão by the Bishop of Guarda, Mestre Vicente Hispano (1232). Still aiming to increase its population, King Afonso III (r. 1248–1279) granted a charter to the town (1249), ordering the rebuilding of its castle.

D. Dinis (r. 1279–1325), visited this town on several occasions, granting it a new Charter (26 August 1292), reformed the following year, granting it, among its privileges, in particular, that it would never have any other lord than the sovereign himself. There is no information, however, that he was involved in fortifying the village.

The current shape of the castle dates back to the reign of Pedro I (r. 1357–1367), who ordered its reconstruction on 22 September 1357, according to the marble epigraphic plaque above the main gate. The sovereign reformed the town's charter in 1359. Fernando I (r. 1367–1383) donated the town's domains to Nuno Álvares Pereira, who in turn donated them to Gonçalo Eanes de Abreu.

Under the reign of João I (r. 1385–1433), this monarch confirmed the domains of the town and its castle to Constable Nuno Álvares Pereira (1428). He bequeathed it, upon his death, to his daughter, who transferred it, through marriage to the Duke of Bragança, to the domains of this House. At this time of succession, a campaign of works on the castle was recorded (1432).

During the reign of João II (r. 1481–1495), the then Duke of Braganza, Fernando II, used this castle as a prison, an argument that would be used against him when he was accused of rebellion and conspiracy against the sovereign and sentenced to death (1483). Manuel I (r. 1495–1521) granted the New Charter to the town (1 June 1512), and the construction of the adintelada door of the mayor's office dates from this period.

From the Restoration War to the present day

At the time of the Restoration War, a barbette was erected on the northeast wall, on which the battlements were rebuilt. During this period, the existence of an urban fence is documented. The town and its castle were conquered and occupied by Spanish troops under the command of João of Austria (1662). The castle was acquired, sometime between 1830 and 1840, by José Barreto Castelino Cota Falcão, who sold it, in 1892, to José Barahona Caldeira de Castel-Branco Cordovil.

In the 20th century, it was listed as a National Monument by Decree published on June 23, 1910. During the celebrations of the III Centenary of the Restoration of Portugal, it was the object of homage, as recorded in an epigraphic inscription (1940). Shortly afterwards, it would change hands again, acquired by Casa Agrícola de Francisco Manuel Pina & Sisters (1942), to be finally acquired by the Fundação da Casa de Bragança, which preserves it to this day.

Following consolidation and restoration work that began in the 1950s, carried out by the General Directorate of National Buildings and Monuments (DGEMN), with resources from the Casa de Bragança Foundation, the castle is now in a good state of conservation, framed by a narrow landscaped strip.

Features

The castle, built at an elevation of 270 meters above sea level, has a quadrangular plan, in the early Gothic style. The wall panels, made of schist and granite, are reinforced by six towers: two with a quadrangular plan, two cylindrical cubelos at the vertices, a quadrangular plan turret in the middle of the northeast panel and a square plan over the gate, in the middle of the southwest panel. The cube at the eastern vertex is crowned by a conical coruchéu. The adarve runs along the top of the walls, protected by battlements, supported, in the eastern section, by corbels. The quadrangular merlons with alternating arrows that crown some of these towers were rebuilt during interventions carried out in the 1940s.

The castle gate, in an ogival arch, is topped by a coat of arms with an epigraphic inscription, which reads:

THE MOST THOUSAND: CCC AND NONITY V YEARS XXII DAYS OF SEPTEMBER THE MOST NOBLE KING DOM PEDRO ORDERED THIS CASTLE OF HIS, D'ALTER DO CHÃO, TO BE BUILT

The year in the inscription corresponds to 1357 of the Gregorian Calendar. Through this gate you can access the parade ground, where the well and cistern open up. In a recessed position in the parade ground, stands the Keep Tower, with a quadrangular plan, rising to 44 meters in height, with the parapet crowned by truncated pyramidal battlements. Internally, it is divided into two floors, with barrel vaulted ceilings reinforced by broken stone arches, lit by barred windows. All the doors of this tower have broken arch lintels.

Adjacent to the Keep is the façade of the old mayor's office and other outbuildings, with its walls punctuated by several doors, windows and an access staircase, which demonstrate that this castle had a residential function. Above the mayor's door, with granite stone jambs, there is another epigraphic inscription, which reads:

THIS WORK WAS ORDERED BY FERNÃO RODRIGUES, VEEDER OF DOM FERNANDO NETO DEL REI AND COUNT OF ARRAIOLOS, IN THE WORLD OF A THOUSAND jjjjc AND X YEARS.