Castle of Palmela, Setúbal

Discover the Castelo dos Cavaleiros da Ordem de Santiago da Espada Castle in Palmela, Setúbal.

Castle of Palmela
© Càmara Municipal de Palmela

Palmela Castle, or Castillo de los Caballeros de la Orden de Santiago de la Espada, is located in Palmela, Setúbal.

It’s a Medieval defense fortress, successively conquered, destroyed and rebuilt by the Arabian and Christian troops.

Nowadays this National Monument features a Pousada. However in the past, it was part of an ancient network made up of seven control bastions located around two big estuaries whose control was so important for the economic development and the security of the kingdom.

In 1172, the warrior monks of the military Order of Santiago da Espada lived in here and founded the monastery, as you can contemplate inside nowadays.

Since 1210, after its destruction by the troops of Almanzor and the following reconstruction by the Christians, several monks settled down in here and founded the Chapter of the order.

Castelo de Palmela
© Celestino Manuel

The interior wall belongs to this period, too. It’s the first defense element of the three that make up the fort, as well as two cylindrical fortified towers strategically pointed. The tower of the homage is from the 14th century.

The second walled enclosure dates back to the beginnings of 15th century. It was built due to the arguments between kings and nobles and the increasing threat about the expansion of the Castilian power. Its walls are located around the square, the monastery and the Igreja de Santiago Church.

The third walled perimeter was built to adapt the fortress to defense requirements, due to the appearance of the artillery during the War of Restoration against the king of Spain in the 17th century. It’s an irregular line of thick walls interrupted by protrusions and bastions. It doesn’t almost have right angles to parry projectiles.

Inside the fortress, at the bottom of the tower of the homage, it’s possible to find the ruins of the Renaissance Igreja de Santa Maria do Castelo Church, destroyed during the 1755 earthquake.

The Church of Santiago, located inside the walled area, was erected in 1483 and it’s adorned with a late Gothic style. It’s inside, composed by three parts with five sections of vault held by attached pillars, houses some interesting tombstones, like the Humanist Dom Diogo de Gouveia’s one, prior of the monastery and rector of the University of Paris; or Dom Jorge de Lancaster’s one, duke of Coimbra.

More information:

Location:

Castelo de Palmela, Setúbal.

Mapa Interactivo:

Palmela

What to see:

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