Castle of Lousã

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Castle of Lousã
Castelo de Lousã
Lousã e Vilarinho, Lousã, Coimbra in Portugal
View of the outer walls of the Castle of Lousã
Coordinates	40°06′03″N 8°14′08″W / 40.10083°N 8.23556°W / 40.10083; -8.23556
Type	Castle
Site information
Owner	Portuguese Republic
Open to the public	Public
Site history
Built	11th Century
Materials	Granite, Shale, Clay, Cement

The Castle of Lousã (Portuguese: Castelo da Lousã), also known as the Castle of Arouce (Portuguese: Castelo de Arouce), is a classified National Monument situated 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the civil parish of Lousã e Vilarinho, municipality of Lousã. It was constructed in the second-half of the 11th century, on the right margin of the River Arouce.^[1]

In 1080, count Sisnando Davides occupied the settlement of Lousã peacefully (but was later reoccupied by the Moors).^[2] The castle was part of the first defensive lines constructed to protect the access-ways to Coimbra, during the count's stewardship, during the second-half of the 11th century.^[1] The smaller perimeter of the military structure corresponded to this early period, with later expansions associated with the early middle ages.^[1]

It was in 1124, when the Moorish garrison fell and the castle was re-occupied by the forces of D. Teresa, who completed reparation of the defenses.^[2] Eventually, the royal court of Queen D. Mafalda would spend her summers in the settlement and castle.^[2]

During the early years of the Portuguese monarchy, the region occupied an important position owing to its frontier status.^[1] In 1124, Moorish incursions were responsible for taking the castle.^[1] In 1151, a foral was issued by D. Afonso Henriques, owing to its military importance: during the 12th century, there were several raids by Moors across the valley of Zêzere.^[2] By that time, Lousã was no longer a frontier town, owing to the conquest of Santarém, Lisbon and Palmela in 1147. During this time, the kingdom had a policy of settlement that attempted to fix and stabilize the Portuguese population centers and promote further occupation of the land.

The keep tower was constructed during the 14th Century.^[2]

A new foral was issued in 1513 by King D. Manuel.^[1][2] As its military role ceased to be important, the castle fell into disuse.^[1]

Until 1759, the signeurial rights to the region were maintained by the Dukes of Aveiro, but were transferred back to the Crown.^[2]

Between the 1940s and 1960s, the DGEMN Direção-Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais (Directorate-General for the Buildings and National Monuments) promoted substantial remodeling to reinforce the structure.^[1] Rights to the castle and land were ceded to the municipality on 10 August 1957; on 27 April 2019, the re-qualified castle was inaugurated, later to include a newly constructed viewpoint and visitors' center.^[2]

• Almeida, João, Roteiro Monumentos Militares Portugueses (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal
• Larcher, Jorge (1935), Castelos de Portugal (in Portuguese), Coimbra, Portugal{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Correia, Vergílio (1950), O Castelo da Lousã - Centenário Turístico (in Portuguese), Lousã Portugal{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• DGEMN, ed. (17 March 1971), "Castelo da Lousã", Boletim da Direcção-Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais (in Portuguese)
• Gil, Júlio (1986), Os Mais Belos Castelos e Fortalezas de Portugal (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Leal, Pinho (1874), Portugal Antigo e Moderno (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)