Macedo de Cavaleiros

Coordinates: 41°32′20″N 6°57′39″W / 41.53889°N 6.96083°W / 41.53889; -6.96083
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Macedo de Cavaleiros
Municipality
The reservoir formed by the Azibo Dam, in the Paisagem Protegida da Albufeira do Azibo
The reservoir formed by the Azibo Dam, in the Paisagem Protegida da Albufeira do Azibo
UTC±00:00 (WET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+01:00 (WEST)
Postal code
5340
Area code278
PatronSão Pedro
Websitehttp://www.cm-macedodecavaleiros.pt/

Macedo de Cavaleiros (Portuguese pronunciation: [mɐˈseðu ðɨ kɐvɐˈlɐjɾuʃ] ⓘ) is a city and municipality in northeastern Portugal, in Bragança District. The population in 2011 was 15,776,[1] in an area of 699.14 km2.[2]

History

During antiquity, the region was occupied by the

Zamora.[3]

Origin of Name

The name Macedo de Cavaleiros came from a combination of concepts. The first from the Portuguese term for apple (Portuguese: maçã), since the region was acclaimed for its fertile lands and apple orchards (Portuguese: macedos).[4] It was also associated with the knight (Portuguese: cavaleiro), Martim Gonçalves de Macedo, who saved John, the Master of Aviz during the Battle of Aljubarrota.[4] During the battle on 14 August 1385, John was attacked by Álvaro Gonçalves de Sandoval, the Castilian striking down the nobleman. Macedo swiftly intervened, killing the assassin and saving the future King. King John recognized and was grateful to the knight, whose family coat-of-arms after the Battle began to appear with a blue sash and a silver apple.[4]

During the Inquirições (English: Inquiries or inventory) of King Afonso, in 1258, the territory of Macedo belonged to the knights Nuno Martins and Mendes Gonçalves. At the time it was a small settlement, relatively unimportant if compared to neighbouring Nozelo, Vale Prados, Cortiços, Sezulfe and Pinhovelo, which received their forals before Macedo de Cavaleiros. It was only after the 14th century that references to Macedo dos Cavaleiros began to appear in official documents.

Around 1722, King John V designated Macedo as a Quinta, equivalent to a small estate, indicating the size of this region.

The municipality of Macedo de Cavaleiros was created in 1853, from the administrative remains of Chacim and Cortiços municipalities, and ten years later the settlement of Macedo was proclaimed a vila (English: town). To this time, the space were listed as royal lands, then established by John V for the House of Braganza.[4]

Current affairs

Growth during the 20th century has been the result of immigration, resulting from the expansion of raillines and interlinking of circulatory avenues in the northeast of Portugal.

Retornados) that occurred during the middle of the 20th century.[4]
As a consequence, the town of Macedo de Cavaleiros was elevated to the status of city in 1999.

Macedo de Cavaleiros was formerly served by the

Tua
. The northern part of the line, including Macedo de Cavaleiros station, closed in 1991.

Geography

The view of the Azibo Protected Landscape, and aspects of the hilltops the circle the communities of Macedo de Cavaleiros

Physical geography

The municipality of Macedo de Cavaleiros is situated in the northeast region of the Trás-os-Montes, within the district of

Vimioso.[3] It occupies the central part of the district, in a transitional zone between the distinctly different Terra Fria (Cold Lands) and Terra Quente (Hot Lands).[3] The median altitude in the municipality is between 600 and 700 metres, marked in the north by the Serra de Nogueira, in the centre by the Serra de Ala and Serra do Cubo, and in the south by the Serra de Bornes and the Monte de Morais.[4][5]

Ecoregion/Protected areas

A vast part of the municipality (24.4%) is incorporated within the Natura 2000 initiative, with particular reference to the Morais Massif, considered the "umbigo do mundo" (Portuguese: navel of the world), due to the number of rare plant species.[4] The Morais Massif occupies approximately 12,878 hectares (49.72 sq mi); it is serpentine geomorphological space with important geological and biological qualities. The Morais ophiolite is an uplifted section of rock from the boundary between the earth's crust and mantle. The Paisagem Protegida da Albufeira do Azibo (English: Protected Landscape of the Azibo Dam), is a unique environment: the result of the construction of the Azibo Dam between 1980 and 1982, that has resulted in an area of 4,987 hectares (19.25 sq mi): a mixture of both human and natural habitats, that includes species of aquatic and migratory birds.[4] The lake created by the construction of the dam provided conditions for nautical sports, in addition to the creation of two beaches, and later, support facilities for golf, pedestrian trails and bike paths.

Climate

The municipality is divided into two climatic regions: Terra Fria (English: Cold Lands), to the north, an area of cold winters and hot dry summers; and the southern part of the municipality, referred to as Terra Quente (

Mirandela, susceptible to lower winter temperatures and warm summers, commonly above 40 °C.[5]

Human geography

The municipality consists of the following parishes:[6]

Demographics

Population of
Macedo de Cavaleiros
(1864 - 2011)
YearPop.±%
1864 17,208—    
1900 19,200+11.6%
1930 19,781+3.0%
1960 26,199+32.4%
1981 21,608−17.5%
1991 18,930−12.4%
2001 17,449−7.8%
2011 15,776−9.6%

Economy

The tertiary sector represents 58% of the economic activity in this territory; secondary activities, localized mostly in the industrial zone of the city, represent 22% of the activities of the region.[4] Similarly, agricultural production (21% of the workforce are farmers), is involved in cultivation and animal husbandry. The climatic conditions in the region, and the fertility of its soils has allowed the cultivation and production of wine, cereals, olive and chestnut oils, in addition to the raising of cattle, sheep and goats in many of its fields.[4]

Religion

The Roman Catholic faith community is integrated into the

Miranda do Douro, at a time when the local population was less than 900 inhabitants.[3]

References

  1. ^ "Instituto Nacional de Estatística". Archived from the original on 15 November 2016. Retrieved 9 July 2014.
  2. ^ "Áreas das freguesias, concelhos, distritos e país". Archived from the original on 5 November 2018. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Castro, António Pimenta de (2002), "Concelhos: Macedo de Cavaleiros", in Barroso da Fonte (ed.), Dicionário dos mais ilustres Trasmontanos e Alto Durienses (in Portuguese), vol. 3, Torre de Moncorvo, Portugal, p. 656, archived from the original on 20 May 2011, retrieved 16 May 2011{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Câmara Municipal, ed. (2011), Caracterização histórica e geográfica do concelho (in Portuguese), Macedo do Cavaleiros, Portugal: Câmara Municipal do Macedo de Cavaleiros, archived from the original on 2 July 2011, retrieved 9 May 2011
  5. ^ a b Câmara Municipal, ed. (2008), Índice: Cãmara Municipal de Macedo de Cavaleiro (PDF) (in Portuguese), Macedo de Cavaleiro, Portugal: Câmara Municipal do Macedo de Cavaleiro, archived from the original (PDF) on 31 March 2012
  6. ^ Diário da República. "Law nr. 11-A/2013, pages 552 64-65" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Retrieved 9 July 2014.
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