CASTELO MELHOR
41° 01' 39" N; 7° 03' 54" W
Castelo Melhor is a Portuguese parish in the municipality of Vila Nova de Foz Côa, with an area of 36.41 km² and 228 inhabitants (2011). Its population density is 6.3 inhabitants/km².It has a railway station, formerly part of the Douro line. It was deactivated in 1988.
THE CASTLE
History
Background
It is believed that the primitive occupation of this place goes back to a pre-Roman castro.
the medieval castle
At the time of the Christian Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, with the region having been conquered by the forces of the Kingdom of León, the village received, from the hands of King Alfonso IX of León, its first Charter (1209), when the sovereign determined rebuilding and strengthening its defences.
Part of the territory of Ribacôa, disputed in León by the King of Portugal, D. Dinis (1279-1325), its definitive possession for Portugal was ensured by the Treaty of Alcanices (1297). This sovereign, from then on, sought to consolidate its borders, having the Castelo de Alfaiates, Castelo de Almeida, Castelo Bom, Castelo Melhor, Castelo Mendo, Castelo Rodrigo, Castelo de Pinhel, Castelo of Sabugal and the Castle of Vilar Maior.
New work to expand and reinforce the defense of this border town took place during the reign of King Fernando (1367-1383), in the context of the campaign he undertook against Castile.
During the War of Restoration of Portuguese independence, light works of modernization and reinforcement were carried out, adapting the defensive structure to the modern artillery fire.
Characteristics
Crowning the hill, the castle has a circular plan, with the wall devoid of merlons, reinforced by three turrets. The door is torn in it, in a broken arch. Inside, in the main square, there is a cistern with a circular plan.
The village, guided by two main streets, over the centuries came to surpass the walls. In its small central square, the church stands out.
