J. Gafarot's photos with the keyword: Elvas

Elvas Its foundation is lost in the mist of the centuries. What is beyond doubt is that its origin is very remote, because the Carthaginians, the Romans, the Alans, the Suevi and the Moors, when they came to the peninsula, had already heard of this village. The Helvios, people of Celtic Gaul, prior to the first mentioned, attracted by the mild climate of Lusitania, would have inhabited it about 1000 BC. Ver /Cf/See www.cialmendres.com WELCOME BACK, the peace and the sky remain.

If there were no elephants in the bush the buffalo would be huge. African proverb.

Surrounded by the star defences. Thank you for your patience and interest in it all.

Please look to the above notes of the Past.

Passages . . . of life.

Intra-Muros II and PIP III

The Portuguese garrison of Campo Maior - under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Dias Azevedo - resisted the assault for 17 days, forcing the Spanish to maintain two entire divisions in its siege. The main Spanish force - under the direct command of Godoy - tried to assault Elvas but was easily repelled by the strong Portuguese garrison commanded by General Francisco de Noronha. The Spanish troops then withdrew to a safe distance from the fortress, with Godoy not daring to attack it again until the end of the war. The war entered in a stalemate, with most of the Spanish forces hold in sieges of fortresses and the rest not being able to face the blockade made by the main core of the Portuguese Army. Despite this, Godoy picked oranges from the outside of Elvas and sent them to the Queen of Spain with the message that he would proceed to Lisbon.

The War of the Oranges was a brief conflict in 1801 in which Spanish forces, instigated by the government of France, and ultimately supported by the French military, invaded the country early in that year. It was a precursor to the Peninsular Wars, resulting in the Treaty of Badajoz, the loss of Portuguese territory, in particular Olivenza, and ultimately setting the stage for the complete invasion of the Iberian Peninsula by French forces. In 1800, First Consul Bonaparte and his ally, the Spanish prime-minister and Generalissimo Manuel de Godoy, ultimately demanded Portugal, the last British ally on the continent, to break her alliance with Britain but Portugal refused to cede. In April 1801, French troops arrived in the country bolstered by Spanish troops under the command of Manuel de Godoy who had, under his command, the Spanish Army of Extremadura, with five divisions.

The Spanish attack to Portugal started on the early morning of the 20 May, and focused on the Portuguese border region that included the main Garrison Town and Fortifications of Elvas and the smaller fortified towns of Campo Maior, Olivença and Juromenha. The main force of the Spanish Army advanced to Elvas, while two divisions advanced to Campo Maior and another division advanced to Olivença and Juromenha. Without having their fortifications complete and defended only by a few hundred soldiers, most of them militias, Olivença and nearby Juromenha quickly surrendered to the Spanish forces.

Mess room.

Elvas is among the finest examples of intensive usage of the trace italienne (star fort) in military architecture, and has been a World Heritage Site since 30 June 2012. The inscribed site name is Garrison Border Town of Elvas and its Fortifications.It was wrested from the Moors by Afonso I of Portugal in 1166 but was temporarily recaptured before its final occupation by the Portuguese in 1226. The late Gothic Our Lady of the Assumption Cathedral, which has many traces of Moorish influence in its architecture, dates from the reign of Manuel I of Portugal (1495–1521). Junot took it in March 1808 during the Peninsular War, but evacuated it in August after the conclusion of the Convention of Sintra. The fortress of Campo Maior 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) to the northeast is known for its Napoleonic era siege by the French and relief by the British under Marshal Beresford in 1811, an exploit commemorated in a ballad by Sir Walter Scott.

Designed by Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst zu Schaumburg-Lippe, count of Lippe, the Northern Guard of Elvas, which was defended by two fortresses and seven bastions until the end of the XIX century. This is the view from Elvas, and PIPs, will show you the access, if you wish . . .of one of the two fortresses, the northern one, Graça 404 meters above sea lea level, Elvas is 303 meters.

Happy Friday to all my dear friends and visitors. Thank you.

The Amoreira Aqueduct is a 16th-century aqueduct (begun in 1537) that spans the Portuguese municipality of Elvas, bringing water into the fortified seat. By around 1498, the only fountain and source of potable water since the Moorish occupation had been the Poço de Alcalá, alongside the Porta do Bispo. As the well had already begun drying-up, and owing to the difficulty of gathering water from the wells surrounding the town, King D. Manuel authorized a tax (the Real de Água) to fix the Poço de Alcalá. Yet, the attempts did not meet with success, and an idea developed to collect water from Amoreira, some 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) away. Consequently, in 1529 the first works to build the aqueduct were begun. In 1537, then King John III intervened by sending architect Francisco de Arruda to Elvas, to make changes to the primitive plan. Owing to the lack of funds for such a project, the King then authorized the diversion of monies from fines and sales associated with the sale of municipal lands for the project, including some loans from the children's orphanages in Elves and Estremoz.

Elvas and its fortresses. Welcome dear friends and visitors. Enjoy this Spring day with a happy smile. Jose

Castelo de Vide.