The Castle of Paderne () is an ancient

fortification A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

located in the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

of Paderne,

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Albufeira Albufeira (, ), officially the City of Albufeira (), is a List of cities in Portugal, city and Concelho, municipality of Faro District in the Algarve region of southern Portugal. The population in 2021 was 44,158, in an area of . The city proper ...

, in the Portuguese

Algarve The Algarve (, , ) is the southernmost NUTS statistical regions of Portugal, NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities (concelho, ''concelhos'' or ''município ...

. It was constructed in the later 12th century by

Berbers Berbers, or the Berber peoples, also known as Amazigh or Imazighen, are a diverse grouping of distinct ethnic groups indigenous to North Africa who predate the arrival of Arab migrations to the Maghreb, Arabs in the Maghreb. Their main connec ...

, in an area around inland. The edifice is located just from the resort town of

, along a bend in the Quarteira River. It is believed to be one of the original castles that occupy the shield of the Portuguese national flag.

History

Around the middle of the 2nd century, the Roman conquered the Lusitanian castro, which had developed between Neolithic and Cacholithic. The settlement was transformed into a military outpost and, eventually, politico-administrative centre named ''Paderne'' or ''Paderna''.H. Catarino (1994), p.73–87 Its location on a rocky peninsular bend was of strategic importance, as it controlled the ancient Roman road ''Via Lusitanorum'' crossing the Quarteira River on the south. The Roman villa was conquered by the Moors by 713. On this site, the

Almohads The Almohad Caliphate (; or or from ) or Almohad Empire was a North African Berber Muslim empire founded in the 12th century. At its height, it controlled much of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) and North Africa (the Maghreb). The Almohad ...

constructed a fortification. Concerned with advancing Christian armies from the north, the Almohads began an intensive period of military construction and fortification in the Algarve (in Paderne, Faro,

Loulé Loulé () is a city and Concelho, municipality in the region of Algarve, Faro District, district of Faro, Portugal. In 2021, the population of the entire municipality was 72,373 inhabitants, in an area of approximately . The municipality has two p ...

and Silves and many other locations). The depopulation of the Muslim countryside, caused by Christian raids, while avoiding outright conflict, resulted in the construction of these types of fortifications, which were used secure relative safety for their citizens in the interior of the Algarvean Barrocal (mountains). In 1189, Paderne surrendered to King Sancho I after the conquest of Silves, undertaken with help from northern crusaders. In 1191 Muslim forces of the Almohad dynasty under the command of Caliph Abu Yusuf Ya’qub al-Mansur recaptured the castle and surrounding lands. In 1248, D. Paio Peres Correia took the castle for the Crown of Portugal, during the reign of Afonso III. The forces of Peres Correia massacred all Muslim inhabitants within Paderne castle. It was shortly after these events that a chapel was built: likely on the ruins of a

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

. Following a series of restorations, King

Denis of Portugal 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 ...

donated the castle to the Master of the Order of Avis, D. Lourenço Anes, as an attempt to make it a viable military and economic centre. But these attempts were tentative and, nonetheless, futile. Owing to its isolation and state of ruin, in 1858, the castle was abandoned and its hermitage (local parish church, dedicated to ''Nossa Senhora da Assunção'') was deactivated. On 10 March 1998, the fort and dependencies were transferred to ''Instituto Português do Património Arquitectónico'' (IPPAR), the Portuguese Institute of Architectural Patrimony. The IPPAR contracted the company Terracarta in order to create a three-dimensional design of the property. Further, the monument and terrains were purchased by the institute for 29.000.000$00

escudo The escudo ( Portuguese: 'shield') is a unit of currency which is used in Cape Verde, and which has been used by Portugal, Spain and their colonies. The original coin was worth 16 silver . The Cape Verdean escudo is, and the Portuguese escudo ...

s. A public tender was issued on 29 January 2002, under PROAlgarve, for the ''Recuperation of the Castle of Paderne'', under the auspices of the IPPAR. The candidate entity was responsible for the recuperation of the walls, in taipa, the archaeological study and museological assessment of the site, including the old dependencies within the courtyard, the drainage of the monument, and lastly, the consolidation of the ruins of the Hermitage of Nossa Senhora da Assunção. Archaeological excavations completed at the time unearthed remnants of dwellings and roadways within the castle compound, as well as the remains of a sophisticated

sewage Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewerage, sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged fro ...

system and vestiges of a water supply network (that included

cistern A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...

s and water channels).

Architecture

The rural, isolated castle is located on a high hilltop over a profound valley, covered in Mediterranean vegetation, olive groves, fig and carob trees. Its lies in a zone classified under the

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectiv ...

designation, with a pedestrian trail under the ''Instituto de Conservação da Natureza'' (''Institute for the Conservation of Nature''). The castle is a regular

trapezoid In geometry, a trapezoid () in North American English, or trapezium () in British English, is a quadrilateral that has at least one pair of parallel sides. The parallel sides are called the ''bases'' of the trapezoid. The other two sides are ...

al plan, almost a hectare in size, surrounded by walls, with a road that links to a tower across a Roman arch bridge. Within the interior are vestiges of a longitudinal chapel, with only the walls remaining. The eastern side, which has the least natural defence has a substantial tower and is built of

Taipa Taipa ( zh, t=氹仔, ; , ) is an area in Macau, connected to Coloane through the area known as Cotai, which is largely built from reclaimed land. Located on the northern half of the island, Taipa's population is mostly suburban. Administrativ ...

(mixture of mud, chalk, lime and aggregate that sets like concrete). This tower, the only one standing within the enclosure, protrudes from the wall and is connected to the main fortification by an upper passageway. From the outside of this tower is still possible to make out the whitewash strips which were applied to the taipa joints in order to give the impression that the tower was built from

masonry Masonry is the craft of building a structure with brick, stone, or similar material, including mortar plastering which are often laid in, bound, and pasted together by mortar (masonry), mortar. The term ''masonry'' can also refer to the buildin ...

. Nevertheless, these mud walls are thick and are constructed on a substantial stone

plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...

which can be seen at the base of the perimeter walls. There are also at intervals, vertical openings to allow for drainage of any accumulative water inside the castle walls. Below the tower are the remains of

rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * LAPD Rampart Division, a division of the Los Angeles Police Department ** Rampart scandal, a blanket ter ...

s, which ran across the eastern perimeter: most of it has collapsed. This battlement, which is lower than the main walls also defended the main access to the castle. The accessway is at a right angle to the main wall, creating an L-shaped entrance designed to make any frontal attack difficult. Not all the stonework in the entrance is original; much of the access was reinforced and restored over time. Within the castle precinct are the remnants of a cistern. Along the south wall are the ruins of the former Chapel of Nossa Senhora do Castelo, which was the parochial church for the nearby village, dating from the 14th century, but abandoned in 1506 (when the new church was constructed in the village).Information taken from the information board on the road up to the castle, November 2007.

Gallery

File:Paderne Moorish Castle 26 Nov 2007 (2).jpg, North wall File:Paderne Morrish Castle 26 Nov 2007 (4).JPG, South wall File:Paderne Moorish Castle 26 Nov 2007 (5).jpg, South wall and plinth File:Paderne Moorish Castle 26 Nov 2007 (6).jpg, Southwest corner File:Paderne Moorish Castle 26 Nov 2007 (7).jpg, The entrance gate

References

;Notes ;Sources * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Paderne, Castle Buildings and structures completed in the 12th century Archaeological sites in the Algarve Buildings and structures in Albufeira Castles in Portugal Moorish architecture in Portugal Berbers in Portugal Almohad architecture Castle Paderne Gharb Al-Andalus Castles in the Algarve