Pena de Aguiar Castle

Category: Military Architecture > Castle

District: Vila Real > Vila Pouca de Aguiar > Telões

Location

Pena de Aguiar Castle stands imposingly in the parish of Telões, belonging to the municipality of Vila Pouca de Aguiar. Its position is unique, situated on a vast granite rock on the eastern slope of the Serra do Alvão. This natural elevation provides it with a privileged vantage point, with landscapes stretching across the fertile valley of Vila Pouca de Aguiar.

Reaching the site allows visitors to enjoy unobstructed views of the surrounding nature and the rugged beauty of the mountains.

A Historical Legacy

The history of Pena de Aguiar Castle is long, dating back to times well before its medieval construction. Archaeological remains indicate that human presence in this region began in prehistory. Later, the Romans built a military fort here in the 1st century BC, attracted by minerals such as gold, silver, and lead, and by the importance of the road connecting Aquas Flavias (Chaves) to Lamecum (Lamego).

In the following centuries, the area was inhabited by Visigoths and, from the 8th century, by Muslims. However, it was during the Christian Reconquest that the castle gained its most recognized form, becoming the main defense and center of the Lands of Aguiar. It played a significant role in the formation of Portugal, with references linking it to D. Afonso Henriques and the efforts of D. Gonçalo Mendes de Sousa to relieve it from sieges by Leonese forces. In the 13th century, the castle began to lose its strategic and military importance, being definitively abandoned around the 16th century.

Traces of Medieval Architecture

This is a remarkable example of a rock castle (castelo roqueiro), a fortification that adapts and integrates into the rock where it was built, taking advantage of natural defenses. The dominant style is Romanesque, with its striking characteristics in granite, some stones still displaying marks left by medieval stonemasons. The castle is composed of a structure that includes a barbican, a loophole room, and an acropolis, divided into three distinct spaces.

Two towers stand out: one with a rectangular plan to the north and another to the southeast with five irregular faces, both united by a semicircular wall. It is possible to observe the original openings, including a door in the southeast tower that provided access to the barbican and another in the north wall that connected to a small parade ground. Inside, there is a vaulted compartment that is believed to have been a cistern. The lower walls, circular in design, served as a temporary refuge for populations and their belongings during times of conflict.

Archaeological Revelations

Archaeological interventions carried out at Pena de Aguiar Castle have brought to light a remarkable quantity of objects that help tell the history of the site. Various ceramic and metal artifacts of daily use were discovered, including silver pieces, which reveal the economic activities and life of the communities that inhabited this space. The presence of dart and arrowheads highlights the warlike nature of the fortress, testifying to the confrontations that occurred there over the centuries.

To complement the visit, there is an Interpretive Center nearby, where it is possible to deepen knowledge about the history and archaeological discoveries of the castle. The excavations also identified, about two hundred meters from the castle, remains of a prehistoric settlement with different occupation phases, from Late Prehistory to the Roman era, which emphasizes the antiquity and strategic importance of human occupation in this area.

License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.pt