Castle of Braga

The main remnant of the Castle, the keep tower (Portuguese: Torre de Menagem)

The Torre de São Tiago (Tower of Saint James)

The Chapel of Senhora da Torre (Our Lady of the Tower), constructed by the Jesuits

Although reliable information about the evolution of Braga's early defences is lacking, it is known that, from the 11th century, a second wall was under construction, to the south and to the west, complementing the old Roman wall in the north.[2][4] Furthermore, it is known that in 1145, Archbishop John of Braga promised the Knights Templar an imposing house within the city walls.

The first documented reference to a walled keep occurred on 12 June 1161, in a transfer to the Church of São João do Souto, that included the walled spaces, and which passed metres from the Sé Cathedral.[1][2] Around 1210, the walled compound was likely expanded, since documented references referred to road and gate of Souto.[1]

It was in 1300, that King Denis ordered the construction of the castle, as noted by Monseigneur José Augusto Ferreira, and a year later the budget was applied to the project.[1][2] In 15 years, the first documented reference to the new castle appeared, but by 1350, under the reign of King Pedro I the project had not yet been completed: the king ordered the use of residuals for the work on a new wall, abandoning the old Roman line of defenses in the north.[1]

Between 1369 and 1371, during the first battles of the Ferdinand Wars between Castile and forces of King Ferdinand, Henry II of Castile took the city, which was then "a great place, but badly circled, with only one tower". When Henry finally abandoned the castle, he order the city be put to flame.[1][2] The tomb of Cabido, then referred to Porta do Muro, which was also named the São tiago da Cavidade.[1]

King Ferdinand restored the wall in 1378, adding three towers to the perimeter defenses.[2] By 1380, three master masons continued to work on the site (João Mouro, Pero Senascais, or Senaschais, and João Pedreiro).[1] Yet, by 31 August 1398, the archbishop D. Martinho Pires da Charneca obtained license from King John I to repair the castle and nominate an alcalde. By 20 November, of the same year, the same archbishop solicited Cabido 2000 corner stones from the tower of Quintã de Carapeços for public work on the castle and archiepiscopal.[1] But, by 1400, even those concessions were not enough for the project, necessitating the order by the archbishop to bring all stone that was encountered in the outskirts of the city for the construction. As of 10 February 1402, the jurisdiction and defences were transferred to the archbishops by the Crown. After a feud with the Cantor of the Sé Cathedral, on the free transfer of the stone, from the tower of Carapeços, the king sent stone free-of-charge from the older buildings whose restoration was not likely to be concluded.[1]

On 20 December 1421, the king determined that the Moorish residents that did not respect the contract between the prelate, cabido and population, should be obliged to pay 100 reis fine, which was then applied to the construction of the walls. Yet, even by the Cortes of Lisbon (1446), the Bracarense procurators continued to complain that the population continued to pay for the city walls, whose construction was suspended.[1] They attributed these complaints to the King's uncle, Afonso, 1st Duke of Braganza, who was the project's comptroller, and public works in the comarca of Entre Douro e Minho.[1] Between 1456 and 1459, during the Cortes of Lisbon, there was a new denunciation against the uncompleted project, whose budget had already been squandered. As the walls began to deteriorate, the blame fell to Aires Ferreira, a squire in the House of the Duke of Braganza.[1]

These continued problems forced King Afonso V on 12 March 1472, to restore the authority over the city and jurisdiction to archbishop Luís Pires.[1] Inevitably, the Church began the reconstruction of the defenses; by 1477, the wall tower, alongside the Gate of São Tiago, was already underway, requiring the collection of taxes on the sale of properties in the city.[1] Between 1505 and 1532, archbishop Diogo de Sousa ordered the construction of the Porta Nova. Already around 1594, the map of Braga included the distinctive image of the castle and wall at its maximum extent.[1]

Sometime in the 17th century, Archbishop José de Bragança reconstructed the Porta Nova gate, which was extended with Rococo arch/decoration in 1773, becoming known as the Arco da Porta Nova.[1]

After the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, the Jesuits altered the tower alongside the Gate of São Tiago, constructing the Chapel of the Our Lady of the Tower (Portuguese: Capela da Senhora da Torre).[1]

The demolish of the walls began around 1858, starting around the Largo do Barão de São Martinho with the destruction of the Souto Gate, and progressing, around 1867, to the Gate of São Marcos (or São João).[1]

The destruction of the castle and walls continued to 1905 when the jailhouse (installed in the castle) was demolished, while the keep tower was spared.[1]

On 23 June 1910, a decree classified the keep and some sections of the medieval wall as a National Monument.[1] The Direcção Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais (DGMEN) began the first efforts to recuperate the Castle's remains in 1942–1943, with remodelling of the keep tower, roofing the space and coverage, assessment of pavements, replacement of doors and frames, the clearing of space around the courtyard, including the demolition of existing local structures, and replacing cornerstones that were damaged.[1]

In 1956, the roof was repaired, including the substitution of broken tiles, repairs to the battlements, frames, and substitution of broken windows, while another group of public works was made to transition the structure for reuse, such as the installation of an electrical system, arrangement and painting of the door, construction of a new staircase, and the re-landscaping of the terrain around it, including leveling the terrain, paving with gravel and planting flowerbeds.[1] The tower, thus, became the headquarters for theDelegação da Sociedade Histórica da Independência de Portugal (Delegation of the Historical Society of Portuguese Independence) in 1957. A year later, on the celebration of the commemorations associated with the establishment of the Portuguese monarchy (Portuguese: Comemorações Henriquinas), the Portuguese Mocidade erected a commemorative plaque alongside the tower.[1]

New landscaping around the keep tower occurred in 1971, which resulted in the placement of pavement stone, and installation of exterior illumination.[1]

The association ASPA settled in the keep tower in 1982, sharing the space with the Historical Society.[1]

On 29 September 1996, the keep's machicolations were destroyed. As a result, there was an expanded attempt to recuperate, clean, and repair existing damage to the site, which included: the repair of the roofing, including reinforcement of existing structures; the placement of an undulating asphalt sub-tile and then re-tiling the coverage; repair to the trapdoor access to the battlement with a metal structure; repairs to the interior and exterior parapets; treatment of cracks and joints; weather-proofing of the battlements; repairs to all staircases, pavements, landings, handrails, and tiling floors; the repair of the main gate, execution of a second gate in glass, replacement of windows and frames; and the substitution of the electrical system.[1]

The principal remnants of the Castle, the keep tower, is located in the centre of the historic city of Braga, encircled by various buildings which were constructed in the spaces of the demolished castle.[1] It is situated on the fringes of the building of the Escola Comercial e Industrial Bartolomeu dos Mártires and in proximity to the Church of the Third Order of Saint Francis (Portuguese: Igreja dos Terceiros).[1]

Of the old castle only the keep tower (Portuguese: Torre de Menagem) remains, consisting of a rectangular footprint and vertical block covered in tile.[1] The facades are built in granite masonry that is slightly staggered closer to the ground. The design is trimmed with chamfered merlons, battlements with gargoyles and machicolations to the corners.[1] It is four stories, or approximately 30 metres (98 ft) in height, with the first floor considerably taller than the remaining: it is about 12 metres (39 ft)tall.[1] This section is marked by grooves where other buildings abutted the structure, some stones with identifiable inscriptions.[1]

On the first floor, to the northeast, is an arched door that gives access to the interior. A staircase, consisting of two flights, provides egress to the intermediary landing.[1] The door is surmounted by a coat-of-arms of the king Denis, which is also repeated in the western facade of the tower.[1] There are cracks on the second and third floors towards the southeast facade. The roof includes arched windows along each of the facades, with the southeast and northwest twinned.

The interior of the tower is divided into individual spaces on each floor, linked by wooden staircase, with parquet floors and wooden ceilings.[1]