Set on a plateau to the north of the Serra do Barroso mountains,
the remote hill-town of Montalegre is located in the north-western
corner of Portugal's mountainous Trás-os-Montes region.
The town was a centre for the ancient Lusitanians, Romans, Suevi
and Visigoths before being given a charter in 1273 by King Afonso
III. What to see. Montalegre's splendid 14th-century castle
boasts four towers and a semi-circular outer wall. Roman stones
with Latin inscriptions found in the surrounding area are also
exhibited in the courtyard. Standing in the village square,
the tiny church of the Misericórdia has an elaborate
three-layered gilt reredos, its columns adorned with carvings
of acanthus trees Nearby. North of the region rises the mass of the Serra
do Larouco, the second highest mountain range in Portugal. Montalegre
is also within striking distance of the 72,000-hectare Peneda-Gerês
National Park, the first park to be created in Portugal in 1971.
