Castle of Sortelha

The Castle of Sortelha (Portuguese: Castelo de Sortelha) is a castle in the civil parish of Sortelha in the municipality of Sabugal in the Portuguese Centro region, classified as a National Monument.

The site was probably the location of a pre-existing castro that was Romanized during the Roman epoch. It is considered the oldest constructed Romanesque castle located in the Beira Interior region. The rectangular tower reveals a typology typical of the Roman military architecture, due to its modest dimensions, placement in the center of the courtyard and support by the granite massif. Eighty years later, the first Romanesque Portuguese castles were constructed by the Templars who appropriated the older fortifications that were located near the borders with the Kingdom of León and disputed lands in the Côa Valley.

After a period of abandon, it was re-populated sometime in the 12th century, during the reign of King Sancho. During the reign of his successor (Sancho II), following the model of Évora the settlement was conceded a Foral and a formal castle was built in 1228. It is likely that the walls were erected after the construction of the keep, around the 14th century during the sequence of the reforms initiated by King D. Denis (or later by King D. Fernando, during his battles with the Kingdom of Castille). The fact that the town was issued a new foral (under the reign of King D. Sancho II) and received a fair charter (under King D. Denis) proves the regional importance of the locality.

In the 15th century, the alcalde of the castle was Manuel Sardinha, who was succeeded by Pêro Zuzarte. By 1422, there was a reference to approximately 2130 inhabitants living on the hilltop, from the Rol dos Besteiros. But, by the end of that century (1496), the Inquirição identified less than 144 residents on the site. The sites importance was reversed in 1510, with the renovation of the foral by King D. Manuel, who initiated a campaign of public works at the castle, that included the placement of a Manueline emblem over the main gate. In 1522, the alcadery was given to Garcia Zuzarte, then D. Manuel's custodian.

In 1527, the town was elevated to seat of royal county under the administration of King D. John III, headed by Luís da Silveira, his custodian. The Numeramento (royal census) indicated 383 habitantes.

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

Castle of Sortelha ranks #6,251 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #139 of the 200 mapped in Portugal. Founded 1228, it is older than 74% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 825 atlas entries founded in the 13th century. 4 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Viseu, 69 km away. See how Portugal compares in the castle statistics.

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