Monuments

Évoramonte Castle
Implanted on one of the high points in the Serra de Ossa, Évoramonte Castle dates back to the 12th century, when the settlement was conquered from the moors by “Fearless Geraldo”. The first charter was granted to the settlement in the 13th century (1248), and subsequently renewed in 1271. In 1306, D. Dinis ordered fortifications to be built around the town. Over the centuries, the settlement progressively lost its importance and power, and the municipality was definitively extinguished in 1855, and its territory distributed between Estremoz, Évora, Arraiolos and Redondo.

The Italian Renaissance style fortress, was commissioned by Duke D. Jaime in the 16th century. It is a unique monument within Portuguese military architecture. It has a regular quadrilateral form, with four imposing circular towers on each corner, surrounded by Manueline sculpted stone ropes. The central pavilion has three noble floors, constituted by monumental rooms with multi-ribbed Gothic vaulted ceilings. It's well worth ascending to the terrace in order to appreciate the views over the region.