The (Co-)Cathedral of Castelo Branco or Church of Saint

Michael (archangel) Michael, also called Saint Michael the Archangel, Archangel Michael and Saint Michael the Taxiarch is an archangel and the warrior of God in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The earliest surviving mentions of his name are in third- and second- ...

() is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Latin

Co-cathedral A co-cathedral is a cathedral church which shares the function of being a bishop's seat, or ''cathedra'', with another cathedral, often in another city (usually a former see, anchor city of the metropolitan area or the civil capital). Instances o ...

and former

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

in Castelo Branco, Portugal. It is the second official seat of the Catholic

Diocese of Portalegre-Castelo Branco The Diocese of Portalegre–Castelo Branco () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic church in Portugal. It has carried this name since 1956, when the historical diocese of Portalegre was renamed. It is a suffragan of the archdiocese of Lisbon ...

, as the bishopric's two-part title suggests, ranking after the

Cathedral of Portalegre A cathedral is a church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations with an episcop ...

History

Much of the cathedral was built in the style of the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

, in the 17th century. It lost its status as a cathedral in 1881 when the Diocese of Castelo Branco (founded 1771) was absorbed by the then Diocese of Portalegre (which also adopted its title). It was restored as co-cathedral in 1956. Since 12 September 1978, it is protected as one of the National monuments of Portugal.

References

Sources and external links

GCatholic with Google satellite map
{{coord, 39, 49, 36, N, 7, 29, 28, W, region:PT-30_type:landmark_source:kolossus-itwiki, display=title Roman Catholic cathedrals in Portugal National monuments in Castelo Branco District Cathedral Castelo Branco Tourist attractions in Castelo Branco District Buildings and structures in Castelo Branco, Portugal