Civil parish in Lisbon, Portugal
Camarate
(
Portuguese pronunciation:
[k?m???at?]
) is a former
civil parish
in the municipality of
Loures
,
Lisbon District
, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish
Camarate, Unhos e Apelacao
.
[1]
With a population of 23,000 inhabitants in 2001, the parish of Camarate extends into an area of 5.52 km².
History
[
edit
]
The
pillory
marking the municipal history of Camarate, in the
Largo da Igreja
The probable origin of the local place name came from the historical cultivation of vineyards with a caste of grape called
Camarate
.
[2]
A Matriz Church was founded by the Bishop of Lisbon, Agapito Colona, in the 14th century, and later amplified and expanded.
[2]
[3]
During the
Portuguese Interregnum
, the estate of Camarate, then property of the
Jew
David Negro, administrator of the Royal Customhouses of King
Ferdinand I of Leon and Castile
, was confiscated and delivered into the hands of
Nuno Alvares Pereira
, who lived there with his mother until joining the
Carmelite Order
.
[2]
While there, the knight founded and consecrated a chapel to
Nossa Senhora do Socorro
, which he later offered, along with the estate, to the Carmelites, who founded a convent on the site.
[2]
Much later, under Nuno Alvares Pereira stewardship, Camarate would be integrated (along with other neighbouring lands) into the patrimony of the
House of Braganza
.
[2]
The parish of Camarate separated from the administration of Sacavem across a
foral
issued by King
Manuel I of Portugal
, dated 1 May 1511.
[2]
After the 17th century, the region became a place of leisure sought after by the Lisboeta nobility.
[2]
The region was famous for its agricultural, characterized by estates that supported the fiscal production of the parish until the 20th century.
[2]
It was part of Lisbon (until 1852), then Santa Maria dos Olivais (between 1852 and 1886). Later, it was re-annexed to Lisbon between 1886 and 1895, before being integrated into the municipality of Loures.
[2]
On 4 June 1996, the community was elevated to the status of
vila
(English:
town
) by decree of the Assembly of the Republic.
[2]
After the 20th century, and owing to industrial development in the neighbouring parishes, the parish experienced a growth in population, accompanied by a comparable growth in
illegal construction
.
[2]
Camarate became infamous for the
aircraft accident
that befell Portuguese
Social Democratic
Prime Minister
Francisco Sa Carneiro
, his wife, and the Christian Democratic Defense Minister
Adelino Amaro da Costa
, on the evening of 4 December 1980.
[2]
A few hours before the presidential elections, the aircraft was en route to Porto, when it crashed in the parish.
[2]
Geography
[
edit
]
Situated in north of
Lisbon
, Camarate is a civil parish located in the eastern part of the municipality of Loure.
[4]
It is fronted in the northwest by the Lourense parishes of
Frielas
and
Unhos
, southeast by
Prior Velho
and east by
Sacavem
; in the extreme southeast it borders
Santa Maria dos Olivais
, in the south
Charneca
(both parishes of Lisbon); and, finally southwest, with the
Olival Basto
in the municipality of
Odivelas
.
[4]
Part of this configuration means that a portion of the International Airport of Lisbon lies within the borders of the parish.
[4]
The civil parish includes several
bairros
(neighborhoods), including the bairro of Angola, Boavista, Bogalheira, CAR, Esperanca, Fetais de Baixo, Fetais de Cima, Fontainhas, Grilo, Loureiras, Mira-Loures, Santiago, Santo Antonio, Sao Benedito, Sao Francisco, dSao Joao, Sao Jose, Sao Lourenco, Sousas, Torre, Fonte da Pipa, Mucharros, Quinta de Marvila, Quinta do Paraiso, Quinta de Santa Rosa, Quinta do Galeao, in addition to the centre of the
vila
(English:
town
).
[4]
Economy
[
edit
]
It was well known for its local wine, produced in the fertile farms that characterized the parish until the mid-twentieth century. Since then, industrialization has transformed it into an urbanized town.
Architecture
[
edit
]
The front facade of the Matriz Church of Santiago Maior de Camarate
Civic
[
edit
]
- Estate of Encarnacao (
Portuguese
:
Quinta da Encarnacao
)
- Estate of Ribeirinha (
Portuguese
:
Quinta da Ribeirinha
)
- Estate of Portas de Ferro (
Portuguese
:
Quinta das Portas de Ferro
)
- Estate of Santa Teresa (
Portuguese
:
Quinta de Santa Teresa
)
- Estate of Redondo (
Portuguese
:
Quinta do Redondo
)
- Estate of Ulmeiro (
Portuguese
:
Quinta do Ulmeiro
)
Religious
[
edit
]
- Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Vitoria (
Portuguese
:
Capela de Nossa Senhora da Vitoria
)
- Church of Santiago Maior (
Portuguese
:
Igreja Matriz de Santiago Maior de Camarate
), alternately the
Church of Saint James of Camarate
, located in the intersection between the
Praca 1.º de Maio
with the
Ruas Avelino Salgado de Oliveira
and
Rua de Guilherme Gomes Fernandes
, the parochial church was constructed in 1370 by the Bishop of Lisbon.
[3]
Over time the building deteriorated to the point that, in 1511, a new church was reconstructed on the same site, at the same time that Camarate became an independent ecclesiastical parish.
[3]
A similar reconstruction/remodelling occurred at the beginning of the 17th century.
[3]
Notable citizens
[
edit
]
The poet Mario de Sa Carneiro who committed suicide by taking strychnine during a phase of depression brought on by financial circumstances
References
[
edit
]