Castelo Rodrigo

Castelo Rodrigo sits on a hill near the Spanish border with walls, a gate and a small grid of granite lanes inside. Its most visible feature is a ruin: the palace of Cristóvão de Moura, a Portuguese noble who backed Philip II of Spain during the sixty years of Spanish rule and was rewarded with the town. When the Restoration came in 1640 the townspeople burned the palace, and its shell was deliberately left standing as a reminder of which side the village had been on. Around it are the church, a pillory, cisterns and the wall circuit, and from the walls the country opens out over the Côa valley - almond orchards that flower white and pink in February and March, vineyards, and the plateau running to Spain. The Côa Valley rock art park, with Palaeolithic engravings on the riverside schist, is south.

History

Legend places the castle's founding in the 6th century, and after Alfonso IX of León took the village he had the castle built and the defences reinforced; it is named after Count Rodrigo González de Girón, who was responsible for its defence. King Denis rebuilt the walls in the 14th century with 13 turrets, a keep, a barbican and moats, and the castle has been a National Monument since 1922 (Wikipedia, Castle of Castelo Rodrigo).

What you'll find

• The burned palace - the shell of Cristóvão de Moura's house, left ruined since 1640.
• The walls - a circuit and gate around a small grid of granite lanes.
• The almond country - orchards flowering white and pink in February and March.
• The border plateau - the Côa valley and the run of land towards Spain.

When to go

February and March for almond blossom, which is the local season; April to June and September to November otherwise. Half a day.

What to expect

Almond blossom timing shifts by a week or two each year. The village is very small and takes an hour. Summer heat on the plateau is severe and winters are cold. Services are minimal.

Nearby

The Côa Valley rock art park is south; Almeida's star fortress is north-east.