Torres Novas () is a Portuguese

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' ...

in the district of Santarém, in the

Médio Tejo The Intermunicipal communities of Portugal, Comunidade Intermunicipal do Médio Tejo (; English language, English: ''Middle Tagus'') is an administrative division in Portugal. It was created in December 2008, replacing the former ''Comunidade Urban ...

of the Oeste e Vale do Tejo region. The population of the municipality was approximately 36,717 (from the 2011 census), in an area that encompasses . The city of Torres Novas proper (seat of the municipality) has about 15,000 inhabitants in an area located within the municipality.Instituto Nacional de Estatística
/ref>

History

Pre-Monarchy

The earliest sign of human life in the Portuguese territory is the 400,000 year old skull discovered at the Cave of Aroeira in 2017. The territory of Torres Novas was settled as early as the Paelothic in areas situated along the margins of the karstic network of the River Almonda, such as the grottos in Buraca da Moura, Buraca da Oliveira and Lapa da Bugalheira. During the primordial period before Roman occupation, there were various ''villae'' that were populated in the region. Vila Cardílio, a Luso-Roman settlement was occupied in the first or second century A.D. In it, archaeologists discovered coloured mosaics, coins, sculptures and Latin inscriptions, where one was inscribed with felicitous remarks to the ''villa da torre'' (''town of the tower''), an expression associated with the plausible origin for the toponymy ''Torres Novas''. Remains of

Roman roads Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...

can be found north and south of Torres Novas, the latter is thought to be a part of the Olisipo-

Bracara Augusta Braga (; ) is a city and a municipality, capital of the northwestern Portuguese district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality had a resident population of 201,583 inhabitants (in 2023), representing t ...

via.

Monarchy

During the 12th century, the territory that was known as ''Turris'' began to develop into its actual limits, with the expulsion of the ruling

Muslims 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 ...

by forces loyal to

Afonso I of Portugal Dom Afonso IOr also ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonso'' (Portuguese-Galician languages, Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin version), sometimes rendered in English as ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', depending on th ...

in 1148. The foundation of the municipality was attributed to the

foral 200px, Foral of Castro Verde - Portugal The ''Carta de Foral'', or simply ''Foral'', was a royal document in Portugal and its former empire, whose purpose was to establish a ''concelho'' (Council) and regulate its administration, borders and priv ...

issued on 1 October 1190, by King

Sancho The name Sancho () is an Iberian name of Basque origin (Santxo, Santzo, Santso, Antzo, Sans). Sancho stems from the Latin name Sanctius. Feminine forms of the name are Sancha, Sancia, and Sanchia (), and the common patronymic is Sánchez and ...

. While the first origins of the

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

are currently unknown, it is known that Sancho I had ordered the construction of a fortification that was later destroyed during wars with Castille. Later, King

Fernando Fernando is a Spanish and Portuguese given name and a surname common in Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Switzerland, and former Spanish or Portuguese colonies in Latin America, Africa and Asia (like the Philippines, India, and Sri Lanka). It is e ...

would reconstruct the castle with the same aim as his predecessor. The most important features of the Castle date from this latter intervention. During the Middle Ages, the territory grew demographically and economically, receiving a ''Carta de Feira'' (authorizing a fair for this market) in 1263. The lands of Torres Novas passed into the possessions of Queen Isabel of Aragon in 1304 (who was transferred into her title by King

Denis Denis may refer to: People * Saint Denis of Paris, 3rd-century Christian martyr and first bishop of Paris * Denis the Areopagite, Biblical figure * Denis, Bishop of Győr (13th century), Hungarian prelate * Denis, son of Ampud (died 1236), bar ...

). In the following years, Torres Novas was a meeting point for sessions of the Cortes, and historical points in the kingdoms history, like the wedding between Infanta Beatriz and Infante Henrique, children of King Fernando I and King João I of Castilo (in 1380); the establishment of regency of Queen Leonor of Aragon Aragon (due to the death of King Edward I), during the reign of Afonso V (1438); and the decisions of the Cortes, which gathered intermittently in Torres Novas, to manage the Kingdom's issues (1525). Isabel of Avis was the ''donatário'' at the first half of the 15th century, receiving a new foral, during the reign of Manuel I of Portugal (1510). In the following decade, John of Lancaster was given the title of the first Marquis of Torres Novas, along with the Duke of Aveiro (which were both extinguished in 1759, following the attempted regicide of Joseph I, associated with José Mascarenhas da Silva e Lencastre). The monarch survived the attempted assassination. In 1755, the Lisbon earthquake reached Torres Novas and destroyed four of the Castle's towers. The king's daughter later conceded a license to Henrique Meuron and David Suabe to install ''Fábrica das Chitas'' (1783), which was later destroyed by General Masséna, during the third French campaign along the Iberian peninsula (1810). The economy within Torres Novas continued along the 19th century, with some successes and failures: the founding of the ''Fábrica de Papel do Almonda'' (1818); establishment of the ''Companhia de Fiação de Torres Novas'' (1845); the creation of the transporter ''João Clara & Companhia (Irmãos) Lda.'' which, at the time of its nationalization (1975), was dominated by ''Clara Transportes - S.A.R.L.''. In 1835, Queen

Maria I of Portugal '' Dona'' Maria I (Maria Francisca Isabel Josefa Antónia Gertrudes Rita Joana; 17 December 1734 – 20 March 1816) also known as Maria the Pious in Portugal and Maria the Mad in Brazil, was Queen of Portugal from 24 February 1777 until her de ...

would donate the Castle to Torres Nova's municipality, which would decide to demolish parts of the structure. The inauguration of the rail link between Torres Novas and Alcanena occurred in 1893, and was one of the most curious episode in the business and troubled history of the area. It was shut down only three years after its inauguration, due to multiple derailments earned it the nickname "Blind rat". In 1910, before the

5 October 1910 revolution 5 October 1910 Revolution () was the overthrow of the centuries-old List of Portuguese monarchs, Portuguese monarchy and its replacement by the First Portuguese Republic. It was the result of a ''coup d'état'' organized by the Portuguese Repub ...

, the Torres Novas castle received the status of

National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a sp ...

Post-Monarchy

Between 1940 and 1960 the ''Direção-Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais'' would order the reconstruction of part of the castle walls, including the towers. In 1985, Torres Novas was elevated to the status of city. On 1 January 1986, Portugal would join the

European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisbo ...

, which would see to the construction of highway A23 leading to Spain. This development benefited Torres Novas, giving it a logistical advantage and pushing the development of business and shops between the Torres Novas city center and the A23 entry.

Geography

Physical geography

The municipality of Torres Novas is situated in the Médio Tejo subregion. It has close regional relationships with

Tomar Tomar (), also known in English as Thomar (the ancient name of Tomar), is a Portugal, Portuguese city and a municipality in the historical Ribatejo Portuguese Provinces of Portugal, province, and in Santarém District, Santarém district. The to ...

Abrantes Abrantes () is a concelho, municipality in the central Médio Tejo Subregion, Médio Tejo subregion of Portugal. The population was 39,325, in an area of . The municipality includes several parishes divided by the Tagus River, which runs through ...

, Entroncamento, Vila Nova da Barquinha, Alcanena and

Ourém Ourém (, ), formerly known as Vila Nova de Ourém, is a municipality in the district of Santarém in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 45,932, in an area of 416.68 km2. The municipality of Ourém contains two cities: Ourém (about 12,000 ...

. The

and old town developed partially encircled by the Almonda river, which constituted a natural line of defense. The soil is mostly characterized by

alluvium Alluvium (, ) is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluvium is also sometimes called alluvial deposit. Alluvium is ...

s and

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

Climate

Torres Novas experiences a

microclimate A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often slightly but sometimes substantially. The term may refer to areas as small as a few square m ...

characterized by low temperature and humidity during the winter and dry air/higher temperatures during the summer due to its proximity with the mountain ranges of Aire and Candeeiros. Its annual

rain Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...

fall tends to be between 600 and 800 and experiences 2400–2700 hours of direct sunlight exposure per year.

Civil Parishes

Administratively, The city of Torres Novas is the seat of the municipality, that is divided into 10 civil parishes

civil parishes In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishe ...

: * Assentiz * Brogueira, Parceiros de Igreja e Alcorochel * Chancelaria * Meia Via * Olaia e Paço * Pedrógão * Riachos * Torres Novas (São Pedro), Lapas e Ribeira Branca * Torres Novas (Santa Maria, Salvador e Santiago) * Zibreira Four of the parishes were included in the city of Torres Novas. The union of Torres Novas (São Pedro), Lapas e Ribeira Branca concentrates the majority of the people of the municipality (over 8400 inhabitants), in contrast with the parish of Zibreira (with approximately 1000 people). The largest parish, with an area of , is the Torres Novas (Santa Maria, Salvador e Santiago), and the smallest is the parish of Meia Via, . The small size means that it is the largest by density, with 395 inhabitants per kilometre square, and eight times the density of the smallest, Chancelaria.

Demographics

According to the 2011

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, Torres Novas had a populational density of 136 people/km² in 2011, above the national average of 114.5 people/km², an aging index (ratio of people ≥65 to people ≤14) of 173.0, also above the national average of 127.8, and a

sex ratio A sex ratio is the ratio of males to females in a population. As explained by Fisher's principle, for evolutionary reasons this is typically about 1:1 in species which reproduce sexually. However, many species deviate from an even sex ratio, ei ...

of 91.2, slightly below the national average of 91.5.

Archeology

The village of Almonda within the parish of Zibreira is noted for the Aroeira cave where the 400,000 years old Aroeira 3 skull of

Homo Heidelbergensis ''Homo heidelbergensis'' is a species of archaic human from the Middle Pleistocene of Europe and Africa, as well as potentially Asia depending on the taxonomic convention used. The species-level classification of ''Homo'' during the Middle Pleis ...

was discovered in 2014 - the oldest trace of human history in Portugal.Phys Org, March 13, 2017, 400,000-year-old fossil human cranium is oldest ever found in Portugal
/ref>Joan Daura

et al. References Notes References Further reading * * External links * {{Latin phrases E ...

: ''New Middle Pleistocene hominin cranium from Gruta da Aroeira (Portugal).'' In: ''

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ''Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America'' (often abbreviated ''PNAS'' or ''PNAS USA'') is a peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journal. It is the official journal of the National Academy of Scie ...

(PNAS)'' Online pre-release of 13 March 2017.The primitive man from Portugal, Article from 16 March 2017 des

Hamburger Abendblatt ''Hamburger Abendblatt'' () is a German daily newspaper in Hamburg belonging to the Funke Mediengruppe, publishing Monday to Saturday. The paper focuses on news in Hamburg and its surrounds, and produces regional supplements with news from Norde ...

, accessed on March 22, 2017''Crânio de 400 mil anos é o fóssil humano mais antigo descoberto em Portugal''
400,000 year old skull found the oldest human fossil in Portugal, Article from 13. March 2017 he Portuguese newspaper Público, accessed on March 22, 2017

International Relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Torres Novas is twinned with: *

Ribeira Grande Ribeira Grande may refer to the following places: Cape Verde * Ribeira Grande (stream), a stream on the island of Santo Antão * Ribeira Grande, Cape Verde, a town on the island of Santo Antão * Ribeira Grande, Cape Verde (municipality), a municip ...

, Cape Verde, since 1997 * Moreni, Romania *

Rambouillet Rambouillet (, , ) is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region of France. It is located beyond the outskirts of Paris, southwest of its Kilometr ...

, France, since 2010 *

Manatuto Manatuto is a city in Manatuto Municipality, East Timor. Manatuto Vila has 3,692 inhabitants (Census 2015) and is capital of the subdistrict and district Manatuto. It is on the north coast of Timor, (about as the crow flies) east of Dili ...

, East Timor, since 2002

Politics

The present ''president'' of the municipality is Pedro Ferreira, elected by the

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

City hall

Economy

Renova – Fábrica de Papel do Almonda, SA, a well known

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...

, is based in the municipali

as well as th
Companhia de Torres Novas
a textiles company founded in 1845.

Culture

The municipal holiday is Ascension of Jesus Christ, Ascension Day. There are Municipal Museum Carlos Reis, Agricultural Museum of Riachos and Humberto Delgado Memorial House in the municipality.

Notable citizens

* Sebastião de Sousa Dantas Baracho, (Wiki PT) (1844-1921) military man and politician during the end of the

Portuguese Monarchy This is a list of Portuguese monarchs who ruled from the establishment of the Kingdom of Portugal, in 1139, to the deposition of the Portuguese monarchy and creation of the Portugal, Portuguese Republic with the 5 October 1910 revolution. Thro ...

and part of the Constituent Assembly during the

First Portuguese Republic The First Portuguese Republic (; officially: ''República Portuguesa'', Portuguese Republic) spans a complex 16-year period in the history of Portugal, between the end of the History of Portugal (1834-1910), period of constitutional monarchy ma ...

. * Carlos António Rodrigues dos Reis, (Wiki PT) (1863-1940) naturalistic painter. * Maria Lamas (1893-1983) writer, translator, journalist, and feminist political activist. *

Manuel António Vassalo e Silva Manuel António Vassalo e Silva (8 November 1899 – 11 August 1985) was an officer of the Portuguese Army and an overseas administrator. He was the 128th and the last Governor-General of Portuguese India. Personal life Silva was the only son ...

(1899-1985) officer of the

Portuguese Army The Portuguese Army () is the land component of the Portuguese Armed Forces, Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With its ...

and an overseas administrator. He was the 128th and last

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

Portuguese India The State of India, also known as the Portuguese State of India or Portuguese India, was a state of the Portuguese Empire founded seven years after the discovery of the sea route to the Indian subcontinent by Vasco da Gama, a subject of the ...

. *

Humberto Delgado Humberto da Silva Delgado (Portuguese pronunciation: �ˈbɛɾtu dɛɫˈɡadu 15 May 1906 – 13 February 1965) was a General of the Portuguese Air Force, diplomat and politician. Early life and military career Delgado was born in Brogueira, To ...

(1906-1965)

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

of the

Portuguese Air Force The Portuguese Air Force () is the air force, aerial warfare force of Portugal. Locally it is referred to by the acronym FAP but internationally is often referred to by the acronym PRTAF. It is the youngest of the three branches of the Portuguese ...

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

and politician. * Maria Lúcia Vassalo Namorado (1909-2000) writer, poet, journalist, teacher and social reformer, and director of the magazine ''Os nossos filhos'' (Our Children). * Carlos Cruz (born 1942) radio and TV journalist and talk-show host involved in the Casa Pia scandal. * José Luís Borga (1964) Roman Catholic priest and Christian contemporary musician.

Sport

* José Torres (1938 - 2010)

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

centre forward In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on be ...

and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

with 374 club caps and 33 for

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 ...

Jim Aldred James Aldred (born April 28, 1963) is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former player. He played four seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, and was drafted 59th overall in the 1981 NHL entry draft, 1981 National Hockey League entry draft by the B ...

(born 1963), Canadian expatriate and coach of the Portugal men's national ice hockey team * Luís Fernando Quintas dos Santos (born 1965) known as Quintas, a former footballer with over 320 club caps. * Jorge Casquilha (born 1969) a former footballer with 458 club caps * Pedro Miguel Marques da Costa Filipe (born 1980) known as Pepa, a former footballer and current manager of

Vitória S.C. Vitória Sport Clube, popularly known as Vitória de Guimarães or sometimes just Vitória, is a Portuguese professional football club based in Guimarães that competes in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portuguese football, at the Est ...

References

Notes Sources *

External links

* Flickr.com
Photos from Torres Novas
{{authority control Cities in Portugal Populated places in Santarém District Municipalities of Santarém District