Castel of Guimarães

Location

 The Guimarães Castle is located near

Oliveira do Castelo, Guimarães, in the
Braga district of northern Portugal.
 Curiosities
 It is also known as the castle of S. Mamede and
is located on a small elevation.
 Its origins can be traced back to Countess
Mumadona Dias' construction in the mid-tenth
century;
 For the first time, the castle was linked to
Count D.Henrique at the end of the 11th
century.
 D. Afonso Henriques, Portugal's first monarch,
was born here.
Importance of the castle
 Countess Mumadona Dias, the widow of Count
Hermenegildo Mendes, ordered the construction of

https://em.guimaraes.pt/thumbs/agendacultural2020/uploads/geo_article/image/400/
the Castle of Guimarães to protect the monastery she
had created, the Monastery of Santa Maria, against
Norman and Muslim attacks, as well as the people
who had settled in the area.

d_afonso_henriques_8504_1_2500_2500.jpg
 The construction of this castle was also a way for the
lords of the feudal system to assert their control.
 Importance of the castle

 Count D. Henrique chose Guimarães to establish his court

https://em.guimaraes.pt/thumbs/agendacultural2020/uploads/geo_article/image/400/
a little over a century later.
 D. Henrique is supposed to have chosen this fortress
because of the security it provided. D. Afonso Henriques,
the first king of Portugal, was born at this fortress.

d_afonso_henriques_8504_1_2500_2500.jpg