Evoramonte Castle

Evoramonte is a little fortified village about 1/2 hour away from our home base of Evora. In the morning, when we set out eastward towards Elvas, we saw this little castle high on the hill. Coming back, it called us to come visit, so we did.

Its “velha” or medieval centre is about 400 m up on top of the Serra D’Osa hill. The walls were added around the village in 1306 and the turrets in the 16th Century. Incredibly about 400 people still live in the ver old and tiny, white houses with tiny doors (4’ high?) trimmed in yellow.

We have seen several castles and forts by now and this one was different from the rest. It is little and in very good shape. We could almost imagine people living in it, but it was drafty! As it was an extremely windy day and the castle sits on the top of the hills, the strong winds enter through any cracks or crevices. Wooden doors or shutters rattled and brought a little reality to how people used to live in such a castle. We are not sure how well the big fireplaces warmed the cold rooms.

We were able to climb to the top of the windy turret and once again, have an amazing view of the farms and fields below. The castle is formed by four turrets arranged in a square. Little concrete rope bows decorate the sides of the castle. A symbol of the Braganca family, I read. The. The knot symbolizes fidelity.

The place has its importance in the history of Portugal, because that is where the Convention of Evoramonte was signed, a document that ended the Portuguese Civil War in 1834.Read more