Villages of portugal. In stone captivity - the town of monsanto - portugal

| Monsanto - the most Portuguese village in Portugal

Monsanto - the most Portuguese village in Portugal

The small village of Monsanto is proudly called "the most Portuguese village in Portugal". The Portuguese proverb: “in Monsanto you never know whether a stone is born from a house or a house from stone” very accurately reflects the originality of the local “architecture”. The boulders really serve as the walls and roofs of some houses, and the narrow and winding streets are very similar to the giant slalom track with flags made of huge granite blocks. Every tourist who comes here does not leave the feeling that he was in a fairy tale. Small houses with red-tiled roofs and green wooden doors hid under huge granite boulders, and the narrow streets seemed to be carved out of stone by a skillful giant master. The fairy-tale giants themselves live nearby and are about to appear from behind the mountain to pick up their scattered toy stones.

The village of Monsanto is located 300 km from Lisbon. It has a very long history. Archaeologists have found evidence that Romans and Arabs lived here. Then the village was conquered from the Moors by the first king of Portugal, who presented it in 1165 to the Order of the Templars. They built a fortress here. The work was supervised by the famous master of the Order in Portugal - Gualdim Pais. The original Templar fortress has not been preserved, but most likely it was similar to its contemporaries - the castles of Tomar and Almourol. These two citadels have survived to this day in their original form, in contrast to the fortress above "the Portuguese village itself." Which, by the way, is understandable, because “he who owns Monsanto owns the world” (local saying). There have been many who wish to take possession of this “key to the world” over the past 800 years.

Already at the end of the 13th century, at the direction of King Dinis (1279-1325), the first reconstruction and strengthening of the castle's defenses had to be carried out. During the reign of Manuel I (1495-1521), the fortress and city walls were seriously modernized again. The head of the work, Duarte de Armas, reinforced the walls with five towers, of which only one partially survived - the main one (donjon). The improvement of the citadel continued in the 17th - 19th centuries. That was the time of numerous sieges of Monsanto by the armies of the Spanish kings.

At the very beginning of the XIX century. the French managed to capture the castle, but soon the Portuguese troops under the command of the Marquis de Minash regained control of the fortress. In 1813, the last large-scale modernization of the citadel was undertaken. During the reconstruction, the towers, which had become unnecessary by that time, were demolished. Instead, they built three new cannon positions to protect the entrance gate, as well as a bastion parallel to the wall line. A few years later, on Christmas night, a misfortune happened - a powder warehouse exploded. This led to the collapse of a small section of granite rock and the disappearance of part of the wall. However, the garrison was withdrawn from Monsanto only in 1853, when the place finally lost its former strategic importance. Since then, the fortress has not been rebuilt or restored, so every stone in its imposing ruins keeps the true spirit of history.

The inner courtyard of the citadel is well preserved. Here you can wander around the giant rainwater cistern, climb the stairs leading to the parapet and see the remains of the chapel of Nossa Señora (Santa Maria) do Castelo (substantially rebuilt in the 17th century). From the height of the imposing walls, truly dizzying views open up of the village of Monsanto, the peaks of the Serra da Estrela floating in the distance and the reservoir on the Ponsul River.

Outside the castle, an original two-story bell tower is stuck to a huge boulder. It belongs to the modest one-nave Romanesque chapel of San Miguel, of which only the walls remain. The graceful portal of this temple is decorated with capitals, presumably from the 12th century. From the chapel, you can go to the other side of the Holy Mountain and, guided by the signs on the stones, return to the village, thus closing the “circle of honor”.

In the village itself, besides the Tower of Lucano (XV century), there are several other interesting buildings: the Misericordia Church (XVI century) - rebuilt several times; Church of San Salvador (Savior) - the date of foundation of the temple is unknown. The facade belongs to the XVII-XVIII centuries. Inside there is a carved altar and several curious images of saints.

Not far from the car park rises the Clock Tower (Torre do Relogio) or Torre Lucano (Torre de Lucano). It is crowned by a replica of the Silver Rooster, the award Monsanto received for winning the 1938 competition for the most "Portuguese village".

You can finish your tour of Monsanto at a local restaurant, one of the halls of which is located inside a small cave formed by two granite blocks. The terrace of the restaurant offers pleasant views of the surroundings of the mountain village.

There are guest houses in Monsanto where you can stay overnight.

Tradition Monsanto

On the Day of the Holy Cross (Festa da Santa Cruz) - May 3, if it is the "red day" of the calendar (or on the first Sunday after May 3), a colorful procession leaves from the Lucano Tower to the castle. This tradition is directly related to one of the legends about the siege of the castle. Some sources refer the events to the time of the siege of the village by the troops of the Roman Praetor Lucius Emilius Paulo (end of the 2nd century BC), others transfer them closer to the era of the Moors (1230), others even closer to the wars with Castile. But the essence of the story remains unchanged, which is as follows:

“The enemy besieged the castle for seven long years, and its defenders were left with only one skinny cow and some grain. Then one of the women offered to deceive the enemy in a very non-trivial way. The cow was fed with the remnants of wheat and thrown from the height of the fortress walls onto the heads of enemies. When this "shell" fell down, grain fell from the torn belly of the cow. This "joke" of the inhabitants of Monsanto so impressed the leader of the enemy army that he ordered the siege to be lifted and retreat.

The episode with the cow is believed to have taken place on May 3rd. Therefore, on this very day, all the inhabitants of the village put on old festive clothes, pick up marathon dolls * and solemnly ascend to the castle with songs. The procession is followed by a white pot adorned with wildflowers. It symbolizes the savior cow and therefore annually flies down from the walls of the fortress.

How to get to Monsanto

Monsanto is located 277 kilometers northeast of Lisbon and 306 kilometers south of Porto. You can get to the medieval town from the A23 and A1 (E80) motorways when traveling from Lisbon and from the A25 motorway when driving from Porto. Free parking is located at the entrance to Monsanto.

From Lisbon, Porto and more major cities Portugal, you can get to Monsanto by public transport. True, with a change in the city of Castelo Branco (Castelo Branco). A rail link connects Lisbon and Porto with Castelo Branco; trains depart from 8:00 to 19:30 every hour. Travel time is about three hours from Lisbon (trains depart from the Gare do Oriente station) and five hours from Porto.

You can also get to Monsanto by bus from Lisbon, Porto and other major cities in Portugal, also with a change in Castelo Branco.

Monsanto is a small village in Portugal. It is located three hundred kilometers from Lisbon. Probably, each of us at least once came across unsurpassed pictures of this village with its extraordinary buildings. Surely, they saw the fortress built by the Templars or examined the grandiose boulders.

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The village occupies a rather picturesque place on the slope of a mountain almost eight hundred meters high, and the name of this, to be precise, granite rock is translated as “Holy Mountain”. The village was founded in the distant twelfth century.

The locals decided that the boulders represent historical value and during construction they built up the free space between them, in a word - the people used stones as walls, roofs, foundations and, in fact, as the main building material. And one cannot but agree with this, because the stone is nothing more than granite.

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All this makes us imagine an excerpt from some film about ancient people, about the formation of man, about his development and go into deep philosophical thoughts. But this is not what our article is about. As a result, from under the firm but creative hand of man, the world saw unique buildings in which the gracefulness of nature and the exquisite creativity of human hands are intertwined. Even the locals themselves say that it is impossible to make out where the stone ends and the hut begins.

Due to the lack of active archaeological sites a huge number of questions remain unanswered. But archaeologists are not embarrassed by this fact and they confidently assert that the Romans, as well as the Lusitans and Arabs, lived in this village. In turn, this is confirmed by the objects of everyday life of primitive man found in the area. Archaeologists were invited, who did not conduct deep excavations and came to the conclusion that people have lived in these parts since the Paleolithic.

In addition, it was the first king of Portugal who conquered the settlement from the Moors. And then the Templars appear in history, to whom the king presented this village as a gift. It was they who built the fortress mentioned above on the top of the hill, they later rebuilt it, erecting a defensive wall around it.

Just imagine that this fortress has withstood more than one era, more than one leadership, generational change, bad weather and even climate change. But unfortunately in the nineteenth century it was destroyed as a result of the explosion of a gunpowder warehouse, on Christmas Day, but unfortunately the reason remained unknown.

All this betrays the village a certain mystery, walking along the narrow streets you imagine yourself as one of the children's company, who, with wooden sticks in their hands, imagine themselves to be the knights of the round table and win in a seemingly hopeless battle.

The most Portuguese village in Portugal

By the way, Monsanto is also called the “Most Portuguese village of Portugal”, and this is no accident, as the symbol of this title is none other than a silver rooster. He, according to the locals, controls all the entrances and approaches to the territory, which is guarded from the tower, which can be seen at the entrance to the village.

Although some Portuguese argue that Monsanta is completely different from most local villages. Others argue that this is the only settlement of its kind that repulsed many attacks of the French conquerors, and did not break from long sieges and remained in Portugal.

No matter how radically different opinions local residents, but all of them are undeniably proud of their village and are trying in every possible way to tell tourists fascinating historical details.

Vibrant colors and stunning scenery

We will not delve into history and pay attention to the beauty of nature, the brightness of the colors with which she paints her stunning landscapes. Anyone who has visited at least once in Monsant will never forget this beauty. From the very beginning, looking at the locals, you understand that they prefer a measured and calm rhythm of life. They frankly admire the landscapes that open their eyes every day and no matter how much they live there every day, new notes of sophistication and incomparability of mother nature appear in this beauty.

Walking along the small streets, you get the feeling that you are walking along the fairy-tale path of the city where giants live and you are always afraid that at this very moment the huge head of an unknown fairy-tale monster will appear from behind another rock. When meeting local residents, one would like to ask how long they have been living here, hoping to hear the unique, slightly fabulous and mysterious story of their generation, which was initiated by valiant warriors.

The legend of the village of Monsant

I would also like to tell one fascinating legend that describes the cunning and ingenuity of the people who lived there long before us. So, it was some year after the seven-year siege of the fortress, the inhabitants ate everything that was from the provisions, only one cow and a sack of grain remained.

The besieged sighed heavily, realizing that the end was very close and the remaining cow would not delay this moment much. But then, to the surprise of everyone, a certain woman suddenly proposed a completely risky plan, namely, she offered to feed the cow to the full with the remaining grain and give it to her opponents. It would seem why? But the woman was unusually wise and the plan worked.

"How?" - you ask. It would seem very simple, having fed the four-legged animal, they threw the cow on the heads of the enemies. Opponents, crazy from such an act, could not help but pay attention to the full stomach of the animal and decided that if, after so many years, Monsant is able to feed the animal for slaughter, then there is not the slightest sense in continuing this battle and the troops retreated, leaving the village undefeated.

Portugal is amazing beautiful country located on the very edge of Europe. Its sights, landscapes and Mediterranean climate invariably attract many tourists from all over the world. Nestled along the coast seaside resorts. On the huge vineyards grow selected clusters for the production of the famous port wine. The amazing architecture of cities is always pleasing to the eye. Numerous magnificent palaces and impregnable castles remind of the glorious and powerful past. Just 40 kilometers from Lisbon is the most extreme point Europe - Cape Roca. In ancient villages, sometimes it seems that time has stopped here. There is absolutely unique place that is unlike anything else in the world. This is the village of Monsanto, which is located on a mountain in the historic province of Beira Baixa. It is rightfully considered the most colorful and most Portuguese village in Portugal.

Not only is this village very ancient, its main attraction are huge granite boulders. They are here everywhere. During the construction of houses, the boulders were not removed, but became part of the dwelling. Many houses had granite walls - floors and even roofs could be granite.

At the beginning of the 12th century, the Portuguese king donated the village to the Order of the Knights Templar, who immediately built a fortress on the top of the hill. It was a powerful structure that stood for many centuries, and successfully survived many sieges and natural disasters. But in the 19th century, the fortress ceased to exist: for some unknown reason, a powder warehouse exploded on Christmas night. Only two citadels survived this explosion and have come down to us in their original form.

The village is located near the Spanish border at an altitude of 760 meters above sea level. It still retains its medieval character. Only 800 people live here. These people have an amazing life: there are no fields and gardens here. Not only flowers, but also tomatoes are grown exclusively in pots. The main mode of transport is donkeys.

In the mountains of Portugal, you can find many incredible villages with stone houses, windmills and foggy surreal landscapes. The village of Monsanto, to which this report is dedicated, is probably the most touristic village in Portugal. It is located between Porto and Lisbon (277 km from the capital), not far from the border with Spain and the highest mountain range of Portugal, Serra da Estrela. Tourists come here at any time of the year different countries, to see what kind of village it is, built among huge stone boulders and giving itself the title of "The Most Portuguese Village in Portugal".

The title went to Monsanto after winning the 1938 competition, when the village received a silver rooster as a prize. A copy of that rooster now flaunts on the city tower.

In the description of the village, the first lines are occupied by the fact that during the construction of houses, the inhabitants used stone boulders as walls, attaching houses to them .. indeed - why not - the result turned out to be very peculiar and harmonious, everything has been holding and standing firmly since the 12th century .

A local attraction is the ruins of an old castle that has stood here since the founding of the village and collapsed in the 18th century when lightning hit the ammunition depot.

Monsanto legend

In such a mountainous area, it was quite difficult to conquer a village, well, when it was customary to conquer territories. And in this regard, Monsanto has its own legend.

In one of the next wars, after 7 years of siege, the Monsanto castle ran out of food and left one last cow and a sack of grain. The inhabitants, of course, were sad about this, but one strange woman proposed a crazy plan, which for some reason the people supported. The hungry cow was fed with grain and, with cheerful cries, was thrown right on the heads of the enemy.

Enemy heads looked at this madness and decided that since these people have heaps of food after 7 years of the siege, it is pointless to continue waiting. Enemies gathered and left home with nothing. Thus the siege was lifted, and the day of liberation, May 3rd, is now celebrated in Monsanto under the name "Day of the Holy Cross." Residents dressed in festive national costumes walk in a festive procession to the castle, carrying a white pot decorated with flowers, symbolizing a cow. After the rituals, this pot is thrown off the castle wall to the ground.

How to get to Monsanto

Monsanto is located 270 km from Lisbon and 300 km from Porto. Coordinates: 40.038837, -7.115110. You can get here:

• By renting a car or a bike is the most convenient and desirable option, because on the road you can see enough of other beautiful places in Portugal, choosing whatever you like.
• By bus or train from Lisbon (approx. 3 hours) or Porto (5 hours) to Castelo Branco and then by bus to Monsanto. Buses from Castelo Branco to Monsanto run daily at 12.25 and 17.15, except weekends and holidays, and on Sundays at 11.40.

Monsanto (Monsanto) - an unusual village in Portugal is located on the slope of the mountain Mons Sanctus (translated as "Holy Mountain"), at an altitude of about 800 meters. According to some reports, the first settlers settled on this site as early as the 12th century.

From the moment they settled on Mount Mons Sanctus, the inhabitants gradually built up the space between huge boulders, as a result of which, over several centuries, the village turned into a stone labyrinth with narrow streets. No two houses are the same in the village, making Monsanto a unique architectural structure that has been built for over eight hundred years.

Monsanto is called "the most Portuguese village in Portugal", and for good reason. In 1938, Portugal held a national competition for the title of the most "native" locality countries where the village of Monsanto won the prize by an overwhelming number of votes. The prize was a silver rooster, which is still emblazoned on the roof of the tower (Torre de Lucano) in the center of the village.

By the way, the main attraction of the village is a dilapidated castle, which was built by the Templars in 1165. This castle has become truly impregnable; for eight hundred years, numerous invaders have not been able to conquer it. The castle would have been safe and sound to this day, if not for one unfortunate mistake of the powder workers, which led to a powerful explosion and partial destruction of the fortress.

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