São Jorge Castle
São Jorge Castle Saint George's Castle | |
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Castelo de São Jorge | |
Sebastian João Fernandes and Vasco Brás | |
Materials | Stone, Granite, Reinforced concrete |
São Jorge Castle (
History
Although the first fortifications on this hilltop date from the 1st century BC, archaeological excavations have identified a human presence in the Tagus valley as far back as the 8th century BC. The first fortification was, presumably, erected in 48 BC, when Lisbon was classified as a Roman municipality.[4][5][6][7]
The hill was first used by
Kingdom
In the context of the
When Lisbon became the capital of the
The castle and the city resisted the forces of Castile several times during the 14th century (notably in 1373 and in 1383–1384). It was during this period (the late 14th century) that the castle was dedicated to Saint George by King John I, who had married the English princess Philippa of Lancaster.[7] Saint George, the warrior-saint, was normally represented slaying a dragon, and was very popular in both countries.
From 1378 onwards many of the kingdom's records were housed in the
In the beginning of the 15th century, a
As the royal palace, the castle was the setting for the reception by King Manuel I of the navigator Vasco da Gama when he returned from discovering the maritime route to India in 1498. The castle also served as a theater in 1502 when pioneering playwright Gil Vicente staged his Monólogo do Vaqueiro to honor the birth of Manuel I's son and heir, the future João III.[7]
Around the early 16th century, following the construction of the
However, after Portugal regained its independence following the Portuguese Restoration War, the works were taken over by the Portuguese government. On 6 November 1648, Nicolau de Langres was called upon to take over the design, execution and construction of a new fortification that would surround the Castle of Saint George and the city walls of Lisbon. In 1650 the military architect Mateus do Couto was named master builder of the project and reconstruction took on a new formality: although the military engineer João Gillot built new walls in 1652, construction again followed Couto's plans between 1657 and 1733. In 1673, the Soldiers' Hospital, dedicated to São João de Deus (St John of God), was installed on the grounds beside the Rua do Recolhimento. At the end of the 17th century the Recolhimento do Castelo ("Castle Shelter") was constructed along the southeast angle of the courtyard, and in 1733, new projects were initiated by master Custódio Vieira.
The 1755 Lisbon earthquake severely damaged the castle and contributed to its continuing decay: apart from the walls of the old castle, the soldier's hospital and the Recolhimento were left in ruins. The necessity of maintaining a supporting military force within the capital city required expansion of the site's role of garrison and presidio. From 1780 to 1807, the charitable institution Casa Pia, dedicated to the education of poor children, was established in the citadel, while soldiers continued to be garrisoned on site. Inspired by the events of the earthquake and the following tsunami, the first geodetic observatory in Portugal was constructed in 1788 at the top of one of the towers of the castle, later referred to as the Torre do Observatório (Observatory Tower).
Republic
By the 1930s, the Castle had all but disappeared as a distinguishable landmark from Lisbon's skyline, being almost entirely obscured behind and under later annexes and additions.
On 31 May 1942 the castle's operations began to be handled by the city government of Lisbon, which was reaffirmed on 8 June 1979.
In 1998, the semi-rectangular spaces, columns and cistern were adapted into the museum Olissipónia.
On 22 August 2006, Direcção Regional de Cultura Lisboa (DRCLisboa) defined a special protection zone, that included the Castle of São Jorge and the rest of the walls of Lisbon, the Baixa Pombalina and various properties that were already classified as cultural heritage. The Conselho Nacional de Cultura (National Council of Culture) proposed shelving this definition on 10 October 2011, which was supported by
Architecture
The castle is in the centre of Lisbon, on a hill, while many of its walls extend around the citadel into the civil parishes that surround it to the east and south.
The castle's plan is roughly square, and it was originally encircled by a wall, to form a
The remnants of the royal palace are located near the main square, but all that is left are some walls and a few rebuilt rooms such as the Casa Ogival. It now hosts the Olissipónia, a multimedia show about the history of Lisbon.
The medieval castle is located toward the northwest corner of the citadel, at its highest point. Hypothetically, during a
Apart from its main walls, the castle is protected, on its southern and eastern sides, by a
See also
References
- Notes
- ISSN 2183-0924.
- ^ "Sobre a ocupação pré-romana de Olisipo". Actas VI International Congress of Phoenician and Punic Studies: 4.
- ^ "Monumentos". www.monumentos.gov.pt. Retrieved 2019-04-30.
- ISBN 978-84-370-5508-4.
- ISBN 978-84-88236-11-1.
- ISBN 978-1-85109-268-0.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Silva, João; Rodrigues, Albertina (2002), SIPA (ed.), Castelo de São Jorge e restos das cercas de Lisboa (PT031106120023) (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal: SIPA–Sistema de Informação para o Património Arquitectónico, retrieved 28 December 2012
- ^ Saraiva, José Hermano (1995). "Martim Moniz, uma lenda que "ajudou" a conquistar Lisboa". RTP Ensina (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 2022-08-23.
- ^ a b c Vieira da Silva, Augusto (1987). A Cerca Fernandina de Lisboa (Vol. I) (in Portuguese) (2nd ed.). Lisbon: Municipio de Lisboa.
- ISBN 978-0-500-77359-8.
- ISBN 9789728325244.
- ^ "Castle". castelodesaojorge.pt.
- ISBN 9783110542769.
- ^ Ferreira, José Daniel (2005), "Fotografia do Castelo de São Jorge - Lisboa - 1877. Conversa, muita conversa, conversamuitaconversa.blogspot.com. Accessed 28 December 2020.
- ^ Camera Obscuras
- ^ 1:5000 scale Lisbon 1856/58 map foldout
- Sources
- Monteiro, João Gouveia; Pontes, Maria Leonor (2002), Castelos Portugueses. Guias Temáticos (in Portuguese), Lisbon: IPPAR
External links
- General Bureau for National Buildings and Monuments (in Portuguese)