Evora Castle

Parish of Évora

Antecedentes

Although it is believed that the primitive occupation of the site of present-day Évora dates back to prehistoric times, its settlement reached its peak at the time of the Roman invasion of the Iberian Peninsula, when there was an opidon called Ebora Cereal (in Latin: Eboras Cerealis).

Loyal to Emperor Julius Caesar, it achieved greater regional importance when it received important public works, becoming known as Liberalidade Júlia (c. 60 BC), as evidenced by the important archaeological remains, including the ruins of a temple in honour of the Emperor and the remains of walls in Largo da Misericórdia and next to Passeio de Diana.

With the advent of Christianity, the city became the seat of a bishopric from the 4th century. Its importance remained during the Visigothic period, when it became a center of coinage. During this period, its defenses were expanded, as evidenced by three of the towers erected at the time, including the so-called Sisebuto Tower. Its features were not significantly altered during later Muslim rule.

The medieval castle

At the time of the Christian À época da Reconquista of the peninsula, Évora was initially taken by the forces of " Afonso I of Portugal (1159). Recaptured shortly after by the Muslims, its definitive conquest would only be achieved by the legendary Geraldo Sem Pavor, in 1165, with the help of the first knights of the Order of Calatrava, founded in Castile two years earlier, and who, in Portugal, received the name of Friars of Évora for having settled here. Documents indicate that as early as 1181 these knight-monks were known as the Order of Évora, and around half a century later they were renamed the Military Order of Aviz, when they chose those domains as their headquarters.

During the reign of Sancho I of Portugal (1185-1211), it was with the help of these knights that the city resisted the assault of the forces of the Almohad Caliphate commanded by Iacube Almançor (1191), when the Portuguese borders were pushed back to the line of the River Tagus.

Although the beginning of significant works to expand Évora's defences are attributed to the reign of Denis of Portugal (1279-1325), it is more correct to attribute them to that of Afonso IV of Portugal (1325-1357), a monarch who resided here for long periods and from where he set off for the battle of Salado (1340). Documents in the Chancellery of D. Pedro I (1357-1367) are the first to mention the town's enclosure, referring to work on the barbican, ditches and walls. These works were completed during the reign of Fernando I of Portugal (1367-1383), which leads some authors to refer to the external defense of the town as the Fernandine fence. During this reign, the Porta do Raimundo (1373) is mentioned in documents for the first time.

It is said that, under the influence of D. Leonor Teles, the bastard son of D. Pedro I, D.João, Master of the Military Order of Aviz, was detained in the Castle of Évora in 1382, allegedly accused of a conspiracy against the monarch, hatched with the collaboration of Gonçalo Vasques de Azevedo. D. João only managed to obtain his freedom by appealing to the intercession of the Earl of Cambridge, son of Edward III of England and brother of the Duke of Lancaster, commander of the English troops then in Portugal due to Fernando I of Portugal's claims to the throne of Castile.

With the outbreak of the crisis of 1383-1385, the castle's chief warden, Álvaro Mendes de Oliveira, took the side of D. Leonor:...on that very day Diogo Lopes Lobo and Fernão Gonçalves d'Arca, and João Fernandes, his son, who were some of the great men there, rose up and went to fight the castle, climbing on top of the Cathedral, and even from the butcher's shop, which are high places, and from there they threw many arrows at those who were in the castle, which was very strong with towers and walls and surrounded by a cave and very difficult to take without great effort. And to make them more tenacious, they took the women and children of those inside and put them on top of their carts, all tied together, which was a game that children often played in such cases; and they arrived at the castle gate, shouting to those above to come out and abandon him, or else they would burn all their women and children. (FernãoLopes. Chronicle of D.João I) Once the surrender was obtained by this stratagem, the castle was subjected to depredations, with the population slaughtering all those who, provenly or not, they considered to be supporters of the queen. Among those who perished in this way, the abbess of the nuns of São Bento stood out, mercilessly dragged from the Cathedral, where she had taken refuge.

The old fence was expanded during the reign of Afonso V of Portugal (1438-1481), recording the diversion of taxes collected for other purposes: thus, on April 14, 1445, it was determined to spend 15,000 white reais on clothing for the Senate, during the reception of D. Joana, Queen of Castile; Later, in 1449, the sovereign did not authorize the taxes levied for the construction of the wall to be applied to bridges and roads.

In the 16th century, the original opening, with a perfect ashlar arch, which allowed access to the north of the fence, was replaced by another, given the cramped dimensions of the first. Also in that century, the Porta da Alagoa was given by Sebastian, King of Portugal (1568-1578) as a viewpoint for the nuns of the Convent of Santa Helena do Monte Calvário (1571).

From the Restoration War to the present day

In the context of the Portuguese Restoration War, Évora's defenses were modernized, receiving bastioned lines, transforming it into a stronghold. It fell, however, to the siege and assault of the Castilian forces under the command of D.João de Austria (May 1663, when the Porta da Alagoa was ruined), to be reconquered a month later, on June 24, by Portuguese troops.

At the time of the Peninsular War, insufficiently garrisoned and lacking ammunition, it was unsuccessful in resisting the onslaught of the French troops under the command of General Louis Henri Loison.

Also in that century, the 16th-century span that allowed access to the North was demolished and replaced by the current one, through which traffic on the road from Évora to Arraiolos passes (1845); Later, the Porta do Raimundo was demolished and replaced (1880).

Its defences (see Walls of Évora) are classified as a National Monument by Decree published on 4 July 1922.

In 1945, the small Turret to the southwest was almost completely rebuilt.

At the end of 1993, work began on opening a bush-hammered marble door in the wall between the two Turrets to the southwest, near the Postigo dos Penedos, clearly marking the contemporaneity of the work, to provide a pedestrian connection between the western area outside the walls and the city's Historic Centre.

Évora, which some have defined as a museum city, is a testament to various artistic styles, endowed as it has been with works of art over time. Thus, since 1986, the complex has been classified as a Common Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

Features

The city wall, with characteristics from the late Middle Ages, remains in its essential lines, with well-preserved sections and significant architectural elements. The most notable are the so-called Porta de Avis (mentioned in 1353), the Porta de Mendo Estevens (Porta do Moinho de Vento), the Porta da Alagoa (defended by a tower), the Porta de Alconchel (the city's main gate, protected by two large turrets). The stretch of wall between the Portas da Alagoa and Portas do Raimundo remained intact during subsequent periods, not being altered in the construction campaigns of the 17th and 18th centuries. The Porta da Alagoa, however, is currently very disfigured by successive reconstructions. The so-called Porta do Raimundo, demolished in 1880, was rebuilt as a revivalist composition.