Castle of Lindoso

Parish de Lindoso

Background

Lindoso Castle is one of the most important Portuguese military monuments, due to its strategic location (guarding the course of the River Lima near the border with Spain, on an inland line between the Peneda and Gerês mountains), but also due to the technical and stylistic innovations that its construction introduced into the panorama of medieval Portuguese military architecture.

Although its origins are still debated, there is little doubt that the medieval fortress that has survived to this day is a work of the reign of Afonso III of Portugal, since it does not appear in the Inquisitions of 1220 and, on the contrary, is named in those of 1258. At the same time, its main door, with a pointed arch and facing the town, bears the monarch's coat of arms on its axis, an excellent propaganda element, but also a clear indicator of the patronage and historical landmark that generated it.

The medieval castle

Some authors claim that the toponym Lindoso derives from the Latin "Limitosum" (limiter, border, extreme). Although there is no information about the primitive human occupation of its site, this toponym is not mentioned in the Inquirições of 1220, which occurs in those of 1258. It is understood, for this reason, that it was built from scratch during the reign of Afonso III of Portugal, as part of the effort to reinforce the defensive system of the borders, undertaken by that sovereign. The obligations of the inhabitants of the town included providing the mayor with food under certain circumstances, and he was forbidden from committing any abuses against these same inhabitants.

The castle was reinforced and expanded during the reign of D. Dinis I of Portugal, from 1278 onwards.

The War of Restoration of Independence

At the time of the Restoration of Portuguese independence, it regained importance due to its border location. Therefore, in the context of the Portuguese incursions into Galicia by the military forces of the General of Arms of Entre-Douro-e-Minho, D. Gastão Coutinho, the Lindoso Castle was used as a support base for the incursions of the troops under the command of Vasco de Azevedo Coutinho and Manuel de Sousa de Abreu (September 1641). With the development of the Portuguese Restoration War, it underwent modernization works, which would be completed around 1666 (date inscribed on the lintel of one of the doors), just three years after it fell into the hands of Spanish troops, and was later reconquered by the Portuguese. It is believed, however, that the work dragged on for a few more decades, as the completion of the main ravelin, which defends the main entrance, dates back to 1720.

From the 19th century to the present day

It is believed that its garrison was on standby at the time of the Napoleonic Wars, when, in 1809, French troops under the command of General Soult were concentrated in Ourense, in preparation for the invasion. This, however, occurred along another stretch of the border.

With peace, the strategic-defensive function was lost, and it was left unguarded, entering a process of ruin.

In the 20th century, the complex was classified as a National Monument by Decree published on 23 June 1910.

The intervention of the public authorities began in the 1940s, through the Directorate-General for National Buildings and Monuments (DGEMN), having carried out, among other works, the reconstruction of sections of the wall and Battlements as well as the demolition of some structures in the parade ground. Recently, archaeological prospecting work was also carried out, as part of a broader project to study the region.

Although they cannot be dated precisely, the remains of the mayor's residence, the garrison barracks, the chapel, the cistern and a kiln can be seen today.

Features

The nucleus of the medieval castle that has come down to us has a similar layout to that of Lanhoso Castle, Arnóia Castle and several others in this region. It is made up of stone masonry walls, the top of which is surrounded by a parapet. There are two doors in these, one to the north, close to the tower, and another to the south, accessed by a wooden drawbridge. This last gate has a round arch on the inside and a broken arch on the outside, and is flanked by two rectangular turrets.

Inside, the Plaza de Armas opens up, in which, to the north (Spanish side), stands the keep, with a quadrangular plan, with a doorway above ground level, divided internally into two floors and crowned by Battlements with truncated pyramidal tops.

The adaptation of the castle's defensive perimeter to artillery fire in the 17th century was materialized by a surrounding line of bastion-type walls, with a star-shaped plan, whose parapets have embrasures at strategic points, with cylindrical Bartizan topped by semi-spherical domes at the vertices. The complex was accessed through a gate topped with boulders, preceded by a drawbridge and surrounded by high embankments and ditches. A ravelin provides defense of the main entrance.