Castle of Chaves

Castle of Chaves

The town whose name means "keys"

In the green hills of northern Portugal, close to the Spanish border, lies the old town of Chaves — and its name is no accident, for chaves means "keys" in Portuguese. For two thousand years this town has been seen as one of the keys to the northern frontier: whoever held Chaves held the road between Portugal and Spain. Above the rooftops rises the castle's lone surviving keep, a tall stone tower keeping watch as it has for centuries.

A Roman crossing

Chaves is one of the oldest important towns in Portugal, and its story begins long before the kingdom existed. The Romans founded a town here, drawn by the river Tâmega and by warm mineral springs whose healing waters still bubble up today. They named the place Aquae Flaviae, and they built a magnificent stone bridge across the river — a bridge so well made that it still carries people across after almost 1,900 years, its old Roman inscriptions still readable on stone pillars.

A medieval fortress

In the Middle Ages, Chaves became a key stronghold of the Portuguese kingdom. Because it sat so close to Castile, the town and its castle were fortified again and again to hold the frontier. King Dinis, around the year 1300, strengthened the defences, and the strong keep that survives today rises from this medieval work.

The castle saw plenty of action. It was caught up in wars between Portugal and Castile, and later in struggles between rival Portuguese factions. Holding the "keys" of Chaves could decide who controlled the whole north of the country.

Wars and gardens

In the centuries that followed, Chaves remained a frontier fortress, and modern star-shaped defences were added around the town to face the cannon of later wars. The castle and its grounds saw soldiers come and go through conflicts with Spain and during Portugal's own civil wars.

In time, as peace settled on the border, the old castle's walls were softened into something gentler. The grounds around the keep were laid out as pleasant public gardens, where townspeople now stroll among flowers in the shadow of the ancient tower — a fortress turned into a place of rest.

Restored and protected

The keep of Chaves is now a national monument and holds a military museum telling the story of the town's long history of war and defence. Together with the Roman bridge and the warm springs, it makes Chaves a place where many ages of history meet.

Visiting today

Visitors can climb the keep for fine views over the red roofs of Chaves and the green valley of the Tâmega, explore the museum inside, and relax in the gardens that now surround the tower. A short walk away, the Roman bridge still spans the river just as it did when legions marched across it. Few towns wear their two thousand years of history so lightly — or guard their "keys" so proudly.