Sines Castle

Sines Castle, locally known as Castelo de Sines, lies in the town of the same name in the Alentejo Litoral region in Portugal.

In 1362 the lands of Sines were donated to the Order of Santiago by King Peter I of Portugal, The donation came with the order to erect a fortification in the town to protect it from pirate raids. Even though the order was not carried out, the people of Sines were still exempted from military service in border campaigns by King John I of Portugal, in 1395, because the town was so very often devastated by the pirates.

Sines Castle was finally built in 1424, on a hill overlooking the port, incorporating Roman and Visigothic spolia and remains in its walls. In 1469 the famous Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama was born in the castle.

In the early 16th century, under the reign of Manuel I of Portugal, the castle was modernized. At the end of that century, when Portugal was united with Spain under the Philippine dynasty, threats to the Portuguese coasts increased. Philip II of Spain ordered a rebuilding of Sines Castle to adapt it to new military developments, but his order was not carried out.

During the Peninsular War (1807-1814) the castle was damaged when Sines was sacked by Napoleonic troops.

The castle was declared a Property of Public Interest in 1933, followed by a consolidation campaign in 1956 and the 1969 Portugal earthquake damaging it. Around 2000 it was again restored and in 2008 a local history museum opened in the castle.

Sines Castle can freely be visited. Sadly enough, the museum was closed when I came by. A nice simple castle.

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