Castle of Belver

The Castle of Belver (Portuguese: Castelo de Belver) is a Portuguese castle in the civil parish of Belver, municipality of Gavião, district of Portalegre, in central Portugal.

Belver was the first castle and most important to be constructed by the Hospitallers in Portugal during the Middle Ages. It was built in order to defend the access-way along the Tagus River, and donate by Sancho I under the condition that a castle be constructed. In 1194, King Sancho conceded this region of the Northern Tagus River, then known as Guidintesta, or Guidi in testa (or still of Costa), to Afonso Paes, prior of the Order of the Hospitallers. By so doing, the King hoped to stabilize the Christian-Muslim frontier along the Tagus River, leaving the Templar to almost monopolize their power along the frontier lands.

The King began referring to the construction of the Castle and the surrounding as Belver. In his later testament, King Sancho transferred the title of the Castle to the Hospitalers. By 1210, construction was far enough advanced to allow the permanent occupation and defence. The testament while identifying its existence, also made it clear that the Castle was one of the six repositories of the nation's wealth, thereby providing ample proof of the Castle's defences, albeit located in a frontier outpost. The final construction was completed in 1212.

Between 1336 and 1341, Belver fell under the most important command of the Hospitallers, while still not seat nor official House, which continued to reside in the town of Leça do Balio. Even as the head of the Order transferred his rule to the parish of Flor da Rosa, in the municipality of Crato, creating the priorship of Crato, the Castle of Belver (and its community) did not progress more than a provincial stronghold.

The fortress remained intact over the following centuries, preserving many of the primitive Romanesque military motifs of the period. In fact, the castle was systematically adapted to military conditions of the time, while garrison accommodations were improved. After becoming King, John I of Portugal renewed the Castle's important military role, and in the face of Castilian conflicts, had the Castle's defenses expanded and rehabilitated, under the direction of Nuno Alvares Pereira (in 1390). In the 16th century, the Chapel of São Brás, was completed.

Text adapted from “Castle of Belver” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Castle of Belver ranks #4,828 of 8,133 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #70 of the 205 mapped in Portugal. Founded 1194, it is older than 79% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 563 atlas entries founded in the 12th century. 2 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Tomar, 41 km away. See how Portugal compares in the castle statistics.

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Read the full history on Wikipedia ↗