Quinta das Lágrimas
The Quinta das Lágrimas ( Portuguese : ˈkĩtɐ dɐʒ ˈlaɡɾimɐʃ; "Villa of Tears") is an approximately 12 hectare property in Coimbra , Portugal . On the legendary area there are two famous springs: the Fonte das Lágrimas (source of tears) and the Fonte dos Amores (source of love). A former palace has been converted into a luxury hotel . The garden with the springs has been open to the public since 1977.
Legend
The name Quinta das Lágrimas ( Quinta of Tears) is derived from the famous legend of the romantic-tragic love of the Portuguese Crown Prince Dom Pedro and Inês de Castro . Pedro fell in love with the beautiful Inês, who came to Coimbra as a lady-in-waiting in the wake of his promised bride Constança Manuel . The secret love story of Pedro and Inês is said to have taken place here in the quinta, which is why the one source is called Fonte dos Amores - source of love. However, the lovers drew the displeasure and distrust of Pedro's father, King Afonso IV , who had Inês murdered by three courtiers. This is said to have happened at the second spring, which is called Fonte das Lágrimas - the spring of tears.
According to a legend described by the Portuguese national poet Luís de Camões in his epic The Lusiads , the source is fed by the tears of the mermaids of the adjacent Mondego river , who "mourned" the death of Inês de Castro for a long time and "in eternal memory weeping tears turned into a pure source "; this is how the source was named "after the love of the Inês":
- "See what fresh spring pours the flowers,
- and how the tears are water, and the name love. "
"
- As filhas do Mondego, a morte escura
- Longo tempo chorando memoraram
- E por memória eterna em fonte pura
- As Lágrimas choradas transformaram
- O nome lhe puseram que ainda dura
- Dos amores de Inês que ali passaram
- Vede que fresca fonte rega as flores
- Que as Lágrimas são água eo nome amores "
At the bottom of the small spring blood-red spots can be seen, which are said to have come from the blood of the murdered Inês. Legend has it that her spirit still roams the property today in search of her great love, Dom Pedro.
history
Originally the area was called Quinta do Pombal and served as a hunting area for the Portuguese royal family from at least the 14th century. The oldest surviving document says that Saint Isabella of Aragon , Queen of Portugal and grandmother of Dom Pedro I, bought the area in 1326 when the monastery of Santa Clara was being built nearby ; Isabella had a canal built to convey the water from the two springs to the monastery.
The area later became the property of the University of Coimbra and in 1730 it was acquired by the Osório Cabral de Castro family, who built a palace.
In 1813 the Duke of Wellington - the commander of the Portuguese-British troops defending the country against Napoleon's forces - was a guest of the Osórios. He planted two coastal redwoods ( Sequoia sempervirens ) in the park near the Fonte dos Amores . A memorial stone was also erected with the famous stanza from the Lusiaden des Luís de Camões , where he set the story of Don Pedro and Inês de Castro in the Quinta das Lágrimas .
Around 1850, Miguel Osório Cabral e Castro created a park in the romantic style with a lake and exotic trees.
In the 19th century there were several visits to the Portuguese royal family, in particular from Dom Miguel de Portugal and from the Emperor of Brazil Dom Pedro II (1872).
The late baroque palace was destroyed by fire in 1879. A new country house was then built in the style of a traditional Portuguese solar , with a library and chapel. In the area around the palace remains of older buildings are still preserved.
The entire area of the quinta including the palace was renovated in the 1980s and 1990s by the architect José Maria Caldeira Cabral. In 1995, the Quinta das Lágrimas hotel was opened and is considered one of the best in Portugal. The associated restaurant was awarded one star by the French restaurant guide Michelin .
The park is open to the public.
Web links
- Source of tears , www.sueddeutsche.de
Individual evidence
Coordinates: 40 ° 11 ′ 53 ″ N , 8 ° 26 ′ 0 ″ W.