Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo () is a municipality in the District of Guarda in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 6,260,Instituto Nacional de Estatística
in an area of 508.57 km². Located in the Riba Coa (near the River Coa), just like other municipalities around Riba Coa, such as Almeida, Meda, Pinhel and Sabugal. Known for its

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

which is a listed

National monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...

, as well as pine-wood forests and rolling hills. The municipality borders the frontier with

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, formed by the

Águeda River Águeda () is a city and a municipality in Portugal. According to the Portuguese 2011 census, the municipality of Águeda had 47,729 inhabitants, in an area of . The city proper had a population of 14,504 (2001 data), while the remainder is distri ...

, a tributary of the

Douro The Douro (, , ; es, Duero ; la, Durius) is the highest-flow river of the Iberian Peninsula. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province, central Spain, meanders south briefly then flows generally west through the north-west part of ...

, which it joins at Barca D'Alva, approximately 18 km north of Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo town. The present Mayor is Carlos Condesso, elected by the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...

. The municipal holiday is July 7. Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo figures in

José Saramago José de Sousa Saramago, GColSE ComSE GColCa (; 16 November 1922 – 18 June 2010), was a Portuguese writer and recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature for his "parables sustained by imagination, compassion and irony ith which heco ...

's 2008 novel ''

The Elephant's Journey ''The Elephant's Journey'' ( pt, A Viagem do Elefante) is a novel by Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize-winning author José Saramago. It was first published in 2008 with an English translation in 2010. Plot In 1551, King John III of Portu ...

''.

Climate

Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo has a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

with cool, wet winters and hot, dry summers. Temperatures can easily surpass in the summer and go below in the winter. It is one of the coldest towns in Portugal in the winter. It registered a record low temperature of on January 12, 1967, making it the fifth coldest temperature ever recorded in the country and the third coldest since 1960.

Parishes

Administratively, the municipality is divided into 10 civil parishes (''

freguesias ''Freguesia'' (), usually translated as "parish" or "civil parish", is the third-level administrative subdivision of Portugal, as defined by the 1976 Constitution. It is also the designation for local government jurisdictions in the former Port ...

''): *

Algodres, Vale de Alfonsinho e Vilar de Amargo Algodres, Vale de Alfonsinho e Vilar de Amargo is a civil parish in the municipality of Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo () is a municipality in the District of Guarda in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 6,260,

* Almofala e Escarigo * Castelo Rodrigo * Cinco Vilas e Reigada * Colmeal e Vilar Torpim * Escalhão * Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo * Freixeda do Torrão, Quintã de Pêro Martins e Penha da Águia * Mata de Lobos * Vermiosa

Notable people

* João Pedro (born 1986) a retired professional footballer with over 470 club caps

References

External links

Municipality official website
Municipalities of Guarda District Towns in Portugal {{Guarda-geo-stub

Climate

Parishes

Notable people

See also

References

External links