Estremoz () is a municipality in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. The population in 2011 was 14,318,Instituto Nacional de Estatística
/ref> in an area of 513.80 km². The city Estremoz itself had a population of 7,682 in 2001. It is located in the

Alentejo Alentejo ( , , ) is a geographical, historical, and cultural region of south–central and southern Portugal. In Portuguese, its name means "beyond the Tagus" (). Alentejo includes the regions of Alto Alentejo Province, Alto Alentejo and Bai ...

region.

History

The region around Estremoz has been inhabited since pre-historic times. There are also vestiges of

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

Visigoth The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied barbarian military group united under the comman ...

and

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

occupation. During the

Reconquista The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged ag ...

, Estremoz was captured in the 12th century by the army of knight Geraldo Sem Pavor (''Gerald the Fearless''), who had also conquered neighbouring

Évora Évora ( , ), officially the Very Noble and Ever Loyal City of Évora (), is a city and a municipalities of Portugal, municipality in Portugal. It has 53,591 inhabitants (2021), in an area of . It is the historic capital of the Alentejo reg ...

. However, Estremoz was soon retaken by the

Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...

and only in the mid-13th century was it reconquered by the Portuguese King Sancho II. An important strategic site between the Kingdoms of

and Castile, Estremoz received a charter (

fuero (), (), (), () or () is a Spanish legal term and concept. The word comes from Latin , an open space used as a market, tribunal and meeting place. The same Latin root is the origin of the French terms and , and the Portuguese terms and ...

) in 1258 from Afonso III after the Moors were driven out a second time, which promoted Christian colonization in the area. King

Dinis Denis (, ; 9 October 1261 – 7 January 1325), called the Farmer King (''Rei Lavrador'') and the Poet King (''Rei Poeta''), was King of Portugal from 1279 until his death in 1325. Dinis was the eldest son of Afonso III of Portugal by his second ...

rebuilt the castle as a royal palace, further promoting the area. His widow, Dowager Queen

Elizabeth of Portugal Elizabeth of Portugal (''Elisabet'' in Catalan, ''Isabel'' in Aragonese, Portuguese and Spanish; 1271 – 4 July 1336), also known as Elizabeth of Aragon, was Queen of Portugal from 1282 to 1325 as the wife of King Denis. She is venerated as ...

, died in Estremoz castle on July 4, 1336, shortly after mediating a peace treaty between her son

Alfonso IV of Portugal Afonso IVEnglish: ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', or ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese), ''Alfonso'' or ''Alphonso'' (Portuguese-Galician languages, Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin). (; 8 February 129128 May 1357), called the Brave (), w ...

and grandson

Alfonso XI of Castile Alfonso XI (11 August 131126 March 1350), called the Avenger (''el Justiciero''), was King of Castile and León. He was the son of Ferdinand IV of Castile and his wife Constance of Portugal. Upon his father's death in 1312, several disputes ...

. Her grandson

Pedro I of Portugal Peter I (; 8 April 1320 – 18 January 1367), known as Peter the Just () or Peter the Cruel (), was King of Portugal from 1357 until his death in 1367. Early life Born on 8 April 1320 in Coimbra, Peter was the fifth child of Afonso of Portug ...

died in the Franciscan monastery at Estremoz in 1367. During the 1383–1385 Crisis,

Nuno Álvares Pereira '' Dom'' Nuno Álvares Pereira, OCarm (; 24 June 1360 – 1 November 1431) was a very successful Portuguese general who had a decisive role in the 1383–1385 Crisis that assured Portugal's independence from Castile. He later became a my ...

established his headquarters in Estremoz, then defeated the Castilian forces at the Battle of Atoleiros. During the

Portuguese Restoration War The Restoration War (), historically known as the Acclamation War (''Guerra da Aclamação''), was the war between Portugal and Spain that began with the Portuguese revolution of 1640 and ended with the Treaty of Lisbon in 1668, bringing a forma ...

(1640–1668), Portuguese forces (including from Estremoz) defeated the Castilians in the nearby and decisive Battles of Ameixial (1663) and

Montes Claros Montes Claros is a Municipalities of Brazil, Brazilian municipality located in the northern region of the Federative units of Brazil, state of Minas Gerais. Situated north of the state capital, Belo Horizonte, it lies approximately away. The mun ...

(1665).

Geography

Administratively, the municipality is divided into 9 civil parishes ('' freguesias''): * Ameixial (Santa Vitória e São Bento) * Arcos * Estremoz (Santa Maria e Santo André) * Évora Monte (Santa Maria) * Glória * São Bento do Cortiço e Santo Estêvão * São Domingos de Ana Loura * São Lourenço de Mamporcão e São Bento de Ana Loura * Veiros

Economy

Together with the two other marble towns, Borba and

Vila Viçosa Vila Viçosa () is a town and a municipality in the Évora (district), District of Évora, Alentejo in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 8,319, in an area of 194.86 km². The municipal holiday is August 16. Parishes Administratively, th ...

, Estremoz is internationally known for its fine to medium

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

that occurs in several colours: white, cream, pink, grey or black and streaks with any combination of these colours. Especially the pink marble (Rosa Aurora and Estremoz Pink) is in high demand. This marble has been used since Antiquity as a material for

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

and

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

. The first exports in Roman times were probably for the construction of the Circus Maximus of Emerita Augusta, in modern-day

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The Portuguese navigators exported this marble to Africa, India and Brazil. The marble from this region was used in famed locations such as the Monastery of Jerónimos, the Monastery of Batalha, the Monastery of Alcobaça and the Tower of Belém. There is so much marble around Estremoz that it is used everywhere; even the doorsteps, pavements and the cobble stones are made out of marble. This marble is even converted into

whitewash Whitewash, calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, asbestis or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes ...

for painting the houses. Portugal is the second largest exporter of marble in the world, surpassed only by Italy (

Carrara Carrara ( ; ; , ) is a town and ''comune'' in Tuscany, in central Italy, of the province of Massa and Carrara, and notable for the white or blue-grey Carrara marble, marble quarried there. It is on the Carrione River, some Boxing the compass, ...

marble). About 85% of this marble (over 370,000 tons) is produced around Estremoz. In the quarries marble blocks are cut from the rock with a diamond wire saw, a durable steel cable with a series of circular diamond beads. The initial conduit for the wire is made by drilling a horizontal hole and a vertical hole of which the ends meet exactly inside the rock. The wire saw may need a day to cut through the marble. The Estremoz marble has been designated by the

International Union of Geological Sciences The International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) is an international non-governmental organization devoted to global cooperation in the field of geology. As of 2023, it represents more than 1 million geoscientists around the world. About Fo ...

as a

Global Heritage Stone Resource The Global Heritage Stone Resource (GHSR) designation seeks international recognition of natural stone resources that have achieved widespread utilisation in human culture. Details of the "Global Heritage Stone Resource" proposal were first provid ...

Architecture

Archaeological

* Atalaia das Casas Novas/Atalaia da Frandina

Civic

* Café Aguias d'Ouro () * Estremoz Caixa Geral dos Depósitos () * Estremoz Postal, Telegraph and Telephones (CTT) () * Jailhouse of Estremoz () * Municipal Palace/Hall of Evoramonte () * Municipal Palace/Hall of Estremoz () * National Tuberculosos Assistance Dispensary ()

Military

* Castle of Estremoz () * Castle of Evoramonte () * Castle of Vieros ()

Religious

* Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Conceição () * Chapel of Nossa Senhora dos Mártires () * Chapel of Santa Margarida () * Convent of the Congregation () * Convent of Santo António () * Convent of São Francisco () * Cross of the Misericórdia () * Cross of São Francisco () * Hermitage of Nossa Senhora da Conceição ()

Notable people

* Etienne de Brito (1567–1641) a Roman Catholic prelate, Archbishop of Cranganore and Titular Bishop of Salona * Francisco de Melo (1597–1651) a Portuguese nobleman who served as a Spanish general. * João de Sousa Carvalho (1745– c.1798) the foremost Portuguese composer of his generation. * António de Spínola (1910–1996) a Portuguese military officer, author and conservative politician * Rita Rato (born 1983) a Portuguese politician and director of the Cadeia do Aljube museum * Paulo Sérgio (born 1968) a Portuguese retired footballer with 331 club caps

References

External links

*
Official websitePhotos from Estremoz
{{authority control Municipalities of Portugal Cities in Portugal