Castle of Ansiães

Parish de Selores

Background

With a geographical location that gives it excellent natural defense conditions, Ansiães Castle presents us with a thousand-year-old history, which began around the 3rd millennium BC. In a dominant position on a granite massif, originally for defence purposes, far from the town, in the Douro River valley, it is part of the Douro Sul Tourism Region.

The site was first occupied by humans in the Chalcolithic period, by various peoples in succession, from the Romans to the Muslims, who were responsible for the original walling of the town, but it was completely abandoned around the 9th century.

The medieval castle

In the mid-11th century, at the time of the Christian À época da Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, the town was part of the domains of the Kingdom of León, when it received, in 1055, 1057 or 1065, a Charter from King Ferdinand the Great, aiming at its repopulation.

As part of the domains of Portugal, this charter was confirmed in 1160 by King Afonso Henriques (1112-85) and, successively, in 1198 by Sancho I (1185-1211), in 1219 by Afonso II (1211-23) and, in 1510, by Manuel I (1495-1521). The growth of the town and its regional importance were recognized by the Carta de Feira, received in 1277 from Afonso III of Portugal (1248-79). Some authors argue that a significant part of its walled enclosure was possibly built during the reign of D. João I (1385-1433).

From the 15th century to the present day

Here was born the valiant Lopo Vaz de Sampaio, captain of Kochi (1524-1526) and Governor-General of the Portuguese State in India (1526-1529).

At some point in the 17th century or later, the structure underwent modernization work, of which we know the so-called Fortim do Cubo and the ravelin. We also received the names of the Torre dos Lameiros, the Torre do Sol, the Porta de São Francisco, the Porta de São João and the Porta da Fonte Vedra. From then on, the town and its defenses lost ground to other centers in the region, a process that became more pronounced in the following centuries, culminating in its ruin.

At the beginning of the 20th century, it was listed as a National Monument by Decree published on June 23, 1910. In the 1960s, it underwent consolidation and restoration work, carried out by the General Directorate of National Buildings and Monuments (DGEMN).

Atualmente o imóvel encontra-se afeto à Direcção Regional do Porto do Instituto Português do Património Arquitectónico (DRP-IPPAR). Diante do seu estado geral, bastante degradado, foram empreendidas novas obras no âmbito de um projeto de recuperação do castelo e da vila, orçados em 800 mil Euros (recursos do IPPAR, com uma participação comunitária de 75%), cuja primeira fase deverá estar concluída e disponível ao público até ao final de 2006, através de visitas guiadas. Um Centro de Recepção de Turismo está sendo erguido extra-muros, junto à Igreja de São João Baptista e, futuramente, o espólio recolhido pelos trabalhos de prospecção arqueológica será exibido nas instalações de um Centro Interpretativo, a ser edificado no centro histórico, pela Câmara Municipal.

Features

This medieval castle was spread out within an oval-shaped wall, reinforced by five quadrangular towers, two of which defended the main gate, the so-called Porta de São Salvador. In addition to the keep, divided internally into two floors, the upper one with windows, this perimeter housed the cistern of the surrounding town, and the foundations of old buildings, arches, cornerstones and lintels can still be seen today. The only preserved building is the small Church of São Salvador de Ansiães, in Romanesque style.

Outside the castle walls was the urban area, delimited by a second exterior wall extending over 600 m, reinforced by three quadrangular towers. Only a few sections of the eastern and southern sectors remain of this outer fence. In total, the castle as a whole occupies an area of approximately 9,594 hectares.