Leiria Castle

Leiria Castle

A castle above the town

Rising on a steep green hill in the middle of Portugal, Leiria Castle looks down over the rooftops of the lively town that grew up at its feet. With its tall keep, its ring of walls and, most famously, a graceful row of pointed arches high on the hillside, it is one of the prettiest castles in the country — part rugged fortress, part comfortable palace.

A gift from the first king

The castle owes its beginning to Afonso Henriques, the first king of Portugal. In 1135, when his young kingdom's southern frontier with the Moors ran close by, he ordered a castle built on this hill to defend the land and the road to the important city of Coimbra. In those early days it was a tough, dangerous frontier post, captured and lost more than once in the back-and-forth fighting before the border finally moved safely southward.

From fortress to palace

Once Leiria was no longer on the edge of a war zone, Portuguese kings began to treat the castle as a home rather than just a stronghold. King Dinis, who ruled around the year 1300 and loved both poetry and planting trees, was especially fond of the place. He planted a great pine forest nearby — the famous Pinhal de Leiria — partly to hold back the drifting coastal sands and partly to provide timber for the ships that would one day sail on voyages of discovery.

Later kings made the castle grander still. In the 1400s a beautiful royal hall was built on the edge of the hill, with an elegant open gallery, or loggia, of slender arches looking out over the valley. Standing in that airy gallery, a king or queen could enjoy the breeze and one of the loveliest views in Portugal.

Decline and rescue

As the centuries passed and the royal court spent its time in grander palaces elsewhere, Leiria Castle was used less and less. War and earthquakes damaged the buildings, and by the 1800s the proud castle had become a romantic ruin, its halls open to the sky.

In the 20th century the castle was carefully restored, with the keep, the walls and the beautiful loggia repaired so that visitors could once again climb the hill and imagine the days of kings and knights.

A town that loves its castle

Today the castle is the proud symbol of Leiria, lit up at night so that it glows above the town like a crown. It hosts concerts, festivals and historical events, and the surrounding pine forest and nearby beaches make the area a favourite with visitors.

Visiting today

Visitors who climb to Leiria Castle can explore the keep, walk the battlements, and step into the famous arched gallery to enjoy the same sweeping view that delighted medieval kings. The little castle chapel and the shady grounds make it a peaceful place to wander. From a fierce frontier fort to a king's airy palace, Leiria Castle tells the story of how a young kingdom grew up and, in time, learned to live in peace.