Torre de Lapela, Monção, Portugal

The Torre of Lapela is a ruined medieval castle located next to the Minho River in the town of Lapela, in Monção municipality.

One tower is all that remains of the Castle of Lapela, which was situated a few kilometers downstream from the Castle of Monção, which defended the ford of the Minho. The historians attribute its foundation to Lourenço Gonçalves de Abreu, lord of Merufe, Sanfins, Lapela, Barbeita, Regalados, and other lands of the Alto Minho. It is thought that because he had fought in the Battle of Valdevez next to King Afonso I and his father, Gonçalo Martins Abreu, Afonso I had the castle built and appointed him its first commander.

Constructed of stone ashlar, the square tower measures 10 meters on a side and 35 meters high. Its walls are three meters thick. It has a single entrance on the north facade about 6 meters above the ground, surmounted with the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Portugal.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Carlos Eiriz (3 years ago)
Great seafood

Ve Rena (3 years ago)
Lovely tower with a great view over the river. Careful if you have problems with heights though, the railing on the roof was made for (very) short people.

Nic Peters (4 years ago)
Great little museum tucked away in a little town. The guide was very knowledgeable and gave my group an in depth look at the history of the place. Would recommend to anyone looking to see a real medieval castle that isn't super commercialized.

Diogo Murteira (5 years ago)
Torre de Lapela is the remaining tower of a castle that helped defend Portugal from Spain after independency. We can climb to the top through stairs (for free). There are a few stops where we have opportunity to know more about the castle history. At the top you'll have nice 360° view.

BosscheDraak (RedTruckIsLife) (5 years ago)
A tower guarding a small sleepy town. The view of the nearby river is simply stunning. A very kind and helpful lady provided us with some information about the tower and area.

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