2010 - 11 - A few Portuguese ghost stories

Monday, 01 November 2010 00:00

As the oldest nation in Europe, with a national history stretching back almost 900 years – ghosts should be more common.

Portugal is not a place of ghost stories.

As the oldest nation in Europe, with a national history stretching back almost 900 years – ghosts should be more common. But, the idea of the saudade where the past is glorified and made mystical, out shadows any tales of lost sprits. The exact word for ghosts in Portugal is “Assobrado”, not haunted, but in the shadows. So, in the spirit of a good ghost tale, here are some places that are truly assobrado, and we invite you to go see for yourself, if you dare…

But first, some news!

The Hotel da Estrela, first hotel of Lagrimas Group in Lisbon, new hotel for the  School of Hospitality and Tourism of Lisbon, has opened.

The City of Grandola and seven “tabernas” organize in early June an annual edition of the Tabernas route in the Alentejo, taking the visitor to places such the 150-year old Taberna do Agostinho in Santa Margarida da Serra where they serve up traditional regional dishes such as Moelas, cuttlefish in tomato sauce, pork and brains, chicken in roasted pepper sauce and other treats.

The Northern city of Guimarães, the cradle of the Portuguese nation,  is to be the European Capital of Culture in 2012. European Capital of Culture is a city designated by the European Union for a period of one year during which it showcases its cultural life and cultural development. Guimarães presented the vision  for the city's development.

++ The Traitor’s Castle (Ourém, Lisbon) - You can paint over blood, but it is still there… The walled town of Ourém has a sad history marked by ancient wars and brutal retribution. Just 20 years ago it was an abandoned ruin. Then a creative plan took this medieval town, perched on the mountain and rebuilt it. Today Ourém has a charming Pousada, and a wonderful view. The old town of Ourém had been settled in prehistoric times, and by the time of the Moors it had been fortified. King and founder D. Afonso Henriques took the town, and gave it to his daughter, Teresa. By the reign of D. Dinis, the castle had a reputation of being impregnable, and it was soon involved in internal struggles. In the 1380s, Queen Leonora persuaded her husband, King Ferdinand I, to give the castle to her French lover, Andeiro, along with the title of Count of Ourém. When Ferdinand died without heir, the nation turned on the unpopular queen in a civil war. Rebel knights murdered Andeiro and burned the castle and town. The powerful Bragança clan soon rebuilt it, and the castle today is mostly of their hand - appearing much like a wedding cake above the hills that overlook the new town of Ourém below.  The vibrant brickwork and decoration of the towers mask the next chapter in the tragic tale of Ourém. The castle and its position soon became one of the most important in Portugal. In the 14th century King D. João I gave the title of count of Ourém to his trusted constable, D. Nuno Álvares Pereira. In the peace that followed the Portuguese victory at Aljubarrota, that title was passed on to the counts of Bragança in the 15th century, and the castle at Ourém became a gracious palace. But, when King D. João II discovered a plot to kill him, he reacted quickly and killed the count – some say her was burned alive in the castle walls.  The town’s luck got worse in the 19th century. In 1807, French forces sacked and pillaged the town, and it fell into total ruin. Today, many of Ourém’s houses have been restored as lodgings for visitors, and they say the charred castle is still haunted by the murdered Frenchman Andeiro.

++ Dom Fuas Meets the Devil  (Porto de Mós, Lisbon) - The name Porto de Mós comes from the time of the Romans, when there was a port in the town north of Lisbon on the River Lena, and millstones (Mós) came from the local quarry. The ruined and unique castle stands on the highest hill in the area. The founder of Portugal’s navy, D. Fuas Roupinho lived here in the 12th century. It was converted into a fortified palace in the 15th century with an unusual design of four flamboyant towers, all topped with huge green turrets, unlike any other castle in the land. Back in the 12th century, Portugal was just starting as an independent nation. The knight, Dom Fuas, was the John Paul Jones of his day. He lived in the fairy tale like castle of Porto de Mós, north of Lisbon, overlooking a harbor, and he served Portugal’s first king, D. Afonso Henriques. It seems the Devil wanted to do away with the pious knight Fuas, so he set a trap for him. Dom Fuas loved to hunt and one misty day in 1182, near the fishing town of Nazaré, Fuas spotted the biggest stag he had ever seen and the chase was on. But this was no ordinary deer, it was the Devil leading Dom Fuas to his death. The knight pursued it at full gallop, being led to the high and craggy sea cliffs above Nazaré. Just as the devil-stag rode off the cliff, Our Lady appeared before Dom Fuas and his horse, stopping them from plunging to their deaths. Dom Fuas built a chapel to honor Our Lady on the very spot of this miracle, and it still stands today. The Sítio, as the chapel is called, features tiles depicting the legend. Visitors admiring the view are advised to just walk away if they see a dark stag galloping by.

++ The Hero of Lisbon - A 12th century legend tells of the knight Martim Moniz, a Portuguese warrior of noble birth. Today, a square in downtown Lisbon holds his name, but in 1147, a city gate stood in the square - and his army led by D. Afonso Henriques needed to take the gate to break the Moorish defenses of the city. Martim Moniz served with the Christian army that was putting the siege to Moorish Lisbon. He led an attack on the city walls, and sacrificed himself by thrusting his own body in the gate, so the Moors could not close it. This stopped the closing of the gate, and led to the capture of the castle. Martim Moniz was killed in this act of extreme courage and to remember his heroic act, the entrance of the castle was renamed the Gate of Martim Moniz, or Porta de Martim Moniz. Some say his spirit is not far from the place today.

++ Love Beyond the Grave (Centro) - The story of Inês de Castro (1325-1355) and King of Portugal D. Pedro I (1320-1367) is one of the most haunting in European history. Pedro met Inês in 1340 when she was a lady in waiting to Pedro’s new bride. Pedro, heir to the throne, fell in love with Inês – ignoring his new wife for the beautiful Inês. This caused concern in the court, since Inês came from a powerful Castilian family. Pedro’s father, King D. Afonso IV, ran out of patience when Pedro’s wife died in 1349, and Pedro took Inês as his common law wife. The king ordered that Inês be murdered. Three assassins beheaded her in secluded gardens in Coimbra. The grieving Pedro turned on his father and launched Portugal into civil war. King Afonso soon died of a broken heart and in 1387 Pedro became the eighth king of Portugal. Pedro hunted down two of men who had killed Inês and killed them with his own hands. The third, upon hearing what had befallen the others, dropped dead.  King Pedro declared that Inês was the queen of Portugal, though she had been dead for two years and ordered her body be exhumed and have her coroneted at the great abbey at Alcobaça, where the royal court kissed her hand and swore their allegiance to her as queen. The tale of Inês and Pedro is immortalized in verse and theater in many languages, in fact almost two dozen operas have been written about it.  Come, discover for yourself! The scene of the Inês murder is now a hotel -- the Quinta das Lágrimas, in Coimbra, and the great Abby of Alcobaça is a national monument where the tombs of the two lovers lay foot-to-foot, as Pedro had ordered. His theory? On the day of redemption, the first thing they will see after rising from the grave will be each other.

++ The Death of a Statesman (Faria Norte) - Alexandre Herculano, (1810-1877) wrote many an inspiring and powerful tale about his nation, but the most moving may have been the haunting story of a father, a son, and a castle. Few Portuguese school children escape without reading Herculano's "Tale of Honor," which takes place at Faria Castle. In the 14th century, Castilians outnumbered the commander of the castle, Gonçalo Nunes, and they also held his father, Nuno Gonçalves, captive. They threatened to kill Nuno if his son did not surrender. Nuno tells his son to fight to the end.  The Castilian commander was not amused and killed Dom Nuno on the spot. But the Portuguese resisted and after a terrible siege with great valor, they turned the tables, as the Castilians were defeated. Today, in nearby Barcelos, a statue of the father and son stands in the center of the town, united in an embrace, their swords still ready to meet the enemy. The ruined castle, still stands, about 3 miles southwest of Barcelos. Excavations have confirmed habitation in the Bronze and Iron ages, the Roman era and the Middle Ages. The uncovered ruins include walls from the reign of D. Afonso Henriques (1139-1185) and the castle keep, plus other defensive structures from the reign of King Fernando (1367-1383). A further keep dates from the reign of King Dinis (1279-1325).

++ The Lost Valley (Lousã, Centro) - The Lost Valley of Arouce is about 2 hours north of Lisbon in the Beiras/Centro region of Portugal. Here you will find the ruins of a castle that once defended the tiny village of Arouce.  The village is now overgrown with trees, its houses gone or mere remnants.  The castle is now just a small keep, with a circular wall of brown, slate tiles.  It sits on a hill, surrounded by mountains. According to legend, “King Arouce”, who fled into this hidden valley with his daughter when barbarians overran the city of Conimbriga in the 4th century, built the castle. Portugal later emerged as its own nation in the 12th century, and the town and castle of Arouce lost their importance. The valley fell silent and Arouce was gone by 1513, veiled in mystery and myth.  Arouce is outside the quaint town of Lousã and is just one of many tiny villages abandoned now, but once dotting the Serra da Lousã landscape. Today, though little survives of Arouce, many of the mountain towns are being reborn with inns, stores and a place to try the local cuisine. But, to find Arouce, much like Brigadoon, you have to know where to look and hike through the forest at the foot of the castle to see the stone foundation of a 2,000 year old town.

++ The Captive of Belém - Santa Maria de Belém in Lisbon, Portugal, was famed as the place from which many of the great Portuguese explorers sailed. This is place from which Vasco da Gama set sail for India in 1497. It was from here that Miguel Corte-Real set sail or explored Greenland in 1499. In 1500, Gaspar set off again with his brother Miguel. The two split their ships, and Gasper’s small fleet vanished (carvings on the Dighton Rock in Massachusetts suggest that Miguel Corte-Real might have reached New England). In May 1502, Miguel set out on an expedition to find his brother, and he, too, disappeared. The last surviving brother, Vasco Anes Corte-Real, desperately wanted to lead a fleet in search of his brothers, but D. Manuel I, King of Portugal would not allow it. The last brother was crest fallen, and his spirit remains on the riverbanks in Belém to this day, as immortalized by Fernando Pessoa:

One of their ships was lost

In the undefined sea.

In the faith and the law

Of discovery, he went in search

Of his brother in the endless sea and dark mist

Time passed neither first nor second

Returned from the profound end

For the unknown sea to the nation for which they gave the

Enigma that they had become

And the third begged the kind

Permission to find them, and the king declined

As a captive, they hear him pass

The manor servants

And when they see him,

They see the figure of fever and bitterness

With eyes fixed, red with anxiety

Staring at the printed blue distance.

We want to go find them, from this our vile prison

It is the search for who we are, in the distance

From us, with anxious fever.

We raise our hands to God,

But God does not give us license to set off.

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