Alter do Chão

Alter do Chão
coat of arms map
Basic data
Region :	Alentejo
Sub-region :	Alto Alentejo
District :	Portalegre
Concelho :	Alter do Chão
Coordinates :	39 ° 12 ′  N , 7 ° 40 ′  W Coordinates: 39 ° 12 ′  N , 7 ° 40 ′  W
Residents:	2373 (as of June 30, 2011)
Surface:	140.85 km² (as of January 1, 2010)
Population density :	17 inhabitants per km²
Postal code :	7440-026
politics
Address of the municipal administration:	Junta de Freguesia de Alter do Chão R. João L Namorado Coudelaria 7440-152 Alter do Chão
Alter do Chão district
flag map
Residents:	3562 (as of June 30, 2011)
Surface:	362.06 km² (as of January 1, 2010)
Population density :	9.8 inhabitants per km²
Number of municipalities :	4th
administration
Administration address:	Câmara Municipal de Alter do Chão Lg. Município, 2 7440-026 Alter do Chão
President of the Câmara Municipal:	Joviano Martins Vitorino ( PPD / PSD )
Website:	www.cm-alter-chao.pt

Alter do Chão is a small town ( Vila ) and a district ( Concelho ) in Portugal with 2373 inhabitants (as of June 30, 2011).

View of Alter do Chão

history

Numerous antas and other finds prove that the area was settled in prehistoric times. The origins of today's place lie in a Roman village, which developed from an Iron Age settlement and was called Alberterium . After the Moors invaded the Iberian Peninsula from 711, Abd ar-Rahman III. build a castle here in 912 , which is now known as Castelo da Alter do Chão .

In the course of the Reconquista , the area was recaptured by the Arabs and handed over to the Order of Avis by the Portuguese crown in 1211 . This made the place in 1232 the seat of an independent district. King D Dinis gave it full city rights for the first time in 1293 , according to various, less comprehensive documents previously.

The Castelo de Alter do Chão , one of the two castles in the town

King D. João I. gave the place to the canonized knight Nuno Álvares Pereira . King Manuel I renewed the town charter in 1512 as part of his administrative reforms.

In the course of the Restoration War , the local Alter Pedroso Castle was largely destroyed in 1662 .

The district saw some progress in the 18th century. The city administration ( Câmara Municipal ) dug public wells to improve the water supply, and in 1747 a royal stud farm was founded here with the Coudelaria de Alter . The sculptor Machado de Castro, for example, took the stallion Gentil from there in 1775 as a model for his famous equestrian statue on the central square Praça do Comércio in Lisbon.

As a result of the administrative reforms after the Liberal Revolution of 1822 , the district of Alter do Chão was significantly expanded in 1836 , after neighboring districts were dissolved and incorporated into it. In 1976 , the district was expanded for the last time, by incorporating the municipality of Cunheira .

Place in the town center

Culture and sights

The town's monuments include a large number of historical houses ( casas ) and mansions , stone fountains, various historical public buildings such as the post office, the bullring, the public market hall, etc., the Coudelaria de Alter stud founded in 1748 or Coudelaria Nacional , a Roman excavation site including a villa rustica , and a number of churches and other sacred buildings , including today's Pousada Hotel Convento de Altar , the former Baroque convent Convento de Santo António from the 17th century. The historic town center as a whole is also a listed building.

Among the museums, in addition to the Arquivo Histórico Municipal archives, the city museum Museu Municipal de Alter do Chão with three departments should be mentioned. In the listed Casa e Quinta do Álamo - Núcleo Museológico, the upper floors show permanent exhibitions on the history of the district, while the ground floor offers changing exhibitions. The other two museum facilities are the Castelo de Alter , and the Ruínas Romanas e Centro Interpretativo - Ferragial d 'El Rei archaeological site, which includes archaeological excavations and a visitor center.

Hiking and riding tourism are offered in the district, and bird watching is also carried out.

administration

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Alter do Chão is the administrative seat of a district of the same name. The neighboring areas are (starting clockwise in the north): Portalegre , Monforte , Fronteira , Avis and Ponte de Sor .

The following municipalities ( freguesias ) are in the Alter do Chão district:

Alter do Chão district

local community	Population (2011)	Area km²	Density of population / km²	LAU code
Alter do Chão	2,373	140.85	17th	120101
Chancelaria	448	71.70	6th	120102
Cunheira	389	37.08	10	120104
Seda	352	112.43	3	120103
Alter do Chão district	3,562	362.06	10	1201

Population development

Population in Alter do Chão County (1801–2011)
1801	1849	1900	1930	1960	1981	1991	2001	2004	2006	2011
1,325	4 178	7 797	10 471	8 383	4,963	4,441	3,938	3 666	3 553	3,562

Web links

Commons : Alter do Chão  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Map of the Freguesia Alter do Chão at the Instituto Geográfico do Exército
• Official website of the district (English and Portuguese)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ www.ine.pt - indicator resident population by place of residence and sex; Decennial in the database of the Instituto Nacional de Estatística
2. ↑ ^{a b} Overview of code assignments from Freguesias on epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu
3. ↑ www.ine.pt - indicator resident population by place of residence and sex; Decennial in the database of the Instituto Nacional de Estatística
4. ^ João Fonseca: Dicionário do Nome das Terras . 2nd edition, Casa das Letras, Cruz Quebrada 2007, page 29 ( ISBN 978-972-4617-30-5 )
5. ↑ www.monumentos.pt (under Cronologia ), accessed on May 30, 2013
6. ↑ www.monumentos.pt (under Cronologia ), accessed on May 30, 2013
7. ↑ www.cm-alter-chao.pt , accessed May 30, 2013
8. ↑ www.monumentos.pt , accessed on May 30, 2013
9. ↑ ditto
10. ↑ ditto
11. ↑ ditto
12. ↑ www.cm-alter-chao.pt , accessed May 30, 2013
13. ↑ www.avesdeportugal.info , accessed May 30, 2013