Castle of Marvão

The Castle of Marvão

The Castle of Marvão (Portuguese: Castelo de Marvão), is a medieval castle located in the village of Marvão in the district Portalegre in Portugal.

The castle is part of the Serra de São Mamede Natural Park. The castle sits on the north face of the sierra, in a dominating position over the village, overseeing the strategic importance for the stream line on the River Sever, which is a tributary of the river Tajus. This fact let to interest of monarchs in several remodeling touches.^[1][2] Its name is a derivative of the Muslim knight Ibn Marwan.^[3]

The castle and the village has been praised for its simplicity. The village has generated significant tourist interest in recent years. It was included in the #1 New York Times bestselling book, '1000 Places to see Before you Die ^[4][5]

History

Pre history

Little is known about the prehistoric settlement of the area. When the Romans came into the Iberan Peninsula, the troops were interested in the village because it is nearby to the Roman road linking to Cáceres Santarém and a bridge that crossed the river Sever

Early medieval era

There is a good deal of information in the early Middle Ages. The area saw the presence of the Swabians, Visigoths and the eventually the Umayyad Arabs. Its initial construction can be traced to 8th century Islamic knight, Ibn Marwan.^[6]

Medieval castle

Afonso I of Portugal (1112–1185) conquered the area and town from the Moors in 1166. When the demarcation of the Castelo Branco term came (1214), Marvão already included in Portuguese lands. Sancho II (1223–1248) granted the town a chater in 1226. This was done to ensure the maintenance of the town as a outpost in the populated territory and and use as a forward watch against repeated attacks against the kingdom of Castile at this time. The castle briefly fell into Almohad hands in the 1190s.

D. Afonso III (1248–1279) donated the domain Marvão the knights of the Order of Malta (1271), later awarded to his son, Afonso Sanches, along with landlords Arronches, Vide and Portalegre Castle. For this reason, at the beginning the reign of King Dinis (1279–1325), the village and its castle found themselves involved in the dispute between the sovereign and the Dom Afonso been conquered by the forces of the sovereign in 1299. at the end of the matter, the fields of Marvão, Portalegre and Arronches were exchanged by Sintra and Ourém, remaining the first held by the sovereign. This confirmed the charter Marvão 1226 and undertook her expansion and strengthening of defenses, especially the construction of the keep, begun in 1300.

During the reign of Ferdinand I of Portugal (1367–1383), the king established Marvão for immunity (1378). His death immediately sparked the 1383-1385 Portuguese succession crisis, the thing was included into the ranks of the Order of Avis.The new sovereign and his successors granted many privileges to the village in 1407, 1436 and 149 aimed at increasing its settlement and defense. At that stage, they have also proceeded to increase the reinforcements to the walls, with turrets dating back to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

War of Reconstruction to the present day

During the war for Portuguese independence, the war encouraged the remodeling of the castle and strengthening of the defenses of Marvão, including upgrading the artillery to the modern day. The first phase of these works developed between 1640 and 1662 when Abbot Joao Lady undertook the reconstruction of a section of the wall and big holes that were in ruins, provided the repair of the castle gates and other repairs needed for the conservation and protection of village. It suffered two sieges by Spanish forces in 1641 and 1648. An account of Nicholas of Langres at the time, said that the garrison of infantry and cavalry in this Portuguese fort came from Castelo de Vide, Marvão counting with about 400 inhabitants.

In the early 18th century, the Marvão fortress was conquered by the Spanish Army in 1704, only to be retaken by Portuguese troops under the command of John Earl in 1705. The village suffered a Spanish assault in 1772.

In the opening the 19th century Peninsular War, it was occupied by French troops, releasing in 1808. Later, during the Liberal Wars in the episode known as the Patuleia War, was occupied by the liberal forces (December 12, 1833). It later suffered harassment of miguelistas troops the following year (1834).

The castle is classified as a National Monument by Decree published on 4 July 1922. In 1938, the government intervened, at the initiative of the Directorate General for National Buildings and Monuments (DGEMN), and began in 1938 repairs, renovation, reconstruction, insect, cleaning and painting of the castle, continuously maintaining its structure today. Since then, with the support of the League of Friends of Marvão Castle and City Hall, this heritage site has been kept in good condition. Visitors are offered guided tours of the archaeological core of armory in the castle premises.

Caracteristics

The medieval castle seen in Marvão today mostly post-dates the year 1299, and features numerous characteristic features of a crusader-era castle: a tall central keep with raised entrance on the first floor; a series of lower, outlying turrets (some semi-circular); high-placed arrow-slits; open spaces to aid the sheltering and assembly of villagers and troops; a well, and huge rain-collecting cistern to supply water to both keep and the wider castle in the event of siege; bent entrances (both on the village and castle gates) to slow down invaders in the event of breached gates; a series of narrow killing zones (notably, in the triple gate on the village-side of the castle); extensive crenellated battlements and curtain walls that enhanced the natural defences provided by the escarpments of Marvão's rock

The legend of Our Lady of the Star

In the eighth century, the Muslim armies were quickly taking over land. Unable to resist the advance of the Muslims in the region, the inhabitants of Marvão abandoned their lands to seek refuge in the mountains of Asturias, where they kept alive the Christian resistance. Before leaving, they tried to hide the sacred images. At the time of the Reconquista, after more than four centuries, a shepherd guided by a star, went to a field where he found among the rocks an image of Our Lady. As a sign of devotion, a memorial was erected in this place a Franciscan convent (Convento de Nossa Senhora da Estrela) and Our Lady become protective of the castle. With respect to this particular devotion, the image is credited to a miracle. Late at night, when the Castilian forces, led by two traitors, stealthily approached the castle for an assault, a woman's voice was heard shouting a call to arms. As the guards warned the garrison, the frightened Spaniards were seen fleeing down the slope.

References

1. "Marvão". www.avesdeportugal.info. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
2. "Marvão, Portugal: Medieval Castle Renovation or Destruction?". Forbes. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
3. "Município de Marvão". www.cm-marvao.pt. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
4. Greenfield, Beth (2007-04-29). "Seeing for Miles From a Village High in the Sky". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
5. "Marvão - Alentejo, Portugal - 1000 Places to See Before You Die on Waymarking.com". www.waymarking.com. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
6. "Marvão Castle". Travel in Portugal. Retrieved 2016-02-11.

Coordinates: 39°23′47″N 7°22′47″W / 39.39639°N 7.37972°W