As the first capital of the nation and birthplace of its first king,
Guimarães is one of Portugal's most historic cities, and its World
Heritage medieval streets with well-preserved monuments make it one of the
most attractive places to visit in the country.
The imposing medieval castle, with eight crenellated towers 28m (92ft) high, was built in the 10th century
to protect the population from attacks by the Moors and the Normans. It was
then extended to its present size in the 12th century by Afonso Henriques,
the first king of Portugal, who was baptized in the small Romanesque chapel
next to the castle.
Across from the chapel is the Palace of the Dukes of Bragança, built
in the 15th century as a medieval palace, with 39 unusual brick chimneys
showing strong Northern European influence. It was used as recently as a
few decades ago during the Salazar dictatorship as an official residence for
the president. Inside is an impressive banqueting hall with a splendid
wooden ceiling, and an extensive collection of portraits, furniture, carpets, and porcelain
dating mainly from the 17th and 18th centuries.
Among the several churches in Guimarães, the finest is São Francisco
Church on the south side of the city gardens. Built in 1400 in Gothic
style, it was restored in the 18th century and features a series of
magnificent tiles and an elegant Renaissance cloister and fountain.
From the castle, the beautiful cobbled Rua de Santa Maria has
remained essentially unchanged for centuries, and leads down into the heart
of the old town, where there are superbly restored historic buildings. One
of those buildings is the former 16th-century Baroque convent of Santa
Maria, now serving as the City Hall.
At the end of the street are two delightful squares with outdoor cafes and
balconied houses, Praça de Santiago and Largo da Oliveira.
At Largo da Oliveira is the old Town Hall and the Church of Nossa Senhora
da Oliveira, with a Gothic shrine erected in 1340 standing before
it. There are many legends about its origins, but a popular story says it
marks the legendary spot where Wamba, elected king of the Visigoths, refused
his title and drove a pole into the ground swearing that he would not reign
until it blossomed, and it then sprouted immediately.
In the church's Romanesque cloister is the Alberto Sampaio Museum,
exhibiting some outstanding religious art. The biggest treasures are a
tunic worn by João I in the Battle of Aljubarrota in 1385 and a silver
altarpiece reportedly taken from the defeated Spanish king.
Another noteworthy collection is that of Martins Sarmento Museum,
consisting of fascinating finds (from jewelry to Lusitanian granite
warriors) from the Celtic settlement of Citania de Briteiros.
Citania de Briteiros was inhabited from about 300BC to 300AD and
its ruins were discovered in 1875. This fascinating archeological site is
open to visitors (also easily accessible from Braga), with
the foundations of more than 150 stone huts, with two of them having been
restored to show their original appearance. Objects unearthed in the
excavations such as fragments of painted pottery, carved stones, weapons,
and jewelry, are also on display in a museum dedicated to these Iron Age
settlements called "castros" in the village of Briteiros, not too far from
Guimarães. If you visit the site, don't miss this museum, as well as Guimarães' Martins
Sarmento Museum.
To experience medieval Guimarães, visit the city in the first week of
August for a festival of medieval art and costume. The three-day
celebration dates from the middle of the 15th century, and includes a
torchlight procession and a medieval parade.
It is possible to visit the city on a daytrip from Porto or Braga, but it
is worth staying at the pousada in town. The
award-winning hotel is a 12th-century monastery set on a hill overlooking the city, with an elaborate
rococo façade.
Guimarães was declared a World Heritage Site because:
"Guimarães is of considerable universal significance by virtue of the
fact that specialized building techniques developed there in the Middle Ages
were transmitted to Portuguese colonies in Africa and the New World,
becoming their characteristic feature. The early history of Guimarães is closely associated with the establishment
of Portuguese national identity and the Portuguese language in the 12th
century. An exceptionally well-preserved town, Guimarães illustrates the
evolution of particular building types from the medieval settlement to the
present-day city, and particularly in the 15th-19th centuries."
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