Almada () is a city and a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in Portugal, located on the southern margin of the

Tagus River The Tagus ( ; es, Tajo ; pt, Tejo ; see below) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales near Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally west with two main south-westward sections, to ...

, on the opposite side of the river from Lisbon. The two cities are connected by the

25 de Abril Bridge The 25 de Abril Bridge ( pt, Ponte 25 de Abril, 25th of April Bridge, ) is a suspension bridge connecting the city of Lisbon, capital of Portugal, to the municipality of Almada on the left (south) bank of the Tagus river. It has a total len ...

. The population in 2011 was 174,030,Instituto Nacional de Estatística
/ref> in an area of 70.21 km². The urbanized center had a population of 101,500 in 2001.

History

Human presence in the area of Almada dates to the end of the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...

period about 5000 years ago; archeological excavations performed in the municipality suggest that non-sedentary nomadic tribes may have occupied this location sporadically. The gradual development of settlement here made its greatest advance with the coming of Islamic civilization, when Muslims constructed a fort at Almada to defend and monitor the entrance to the

. Lying across the river from Lisbon, the area of Almada was a crossroads for a succession of various peoples who traded along the Tagus, including

Phoenicians Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their histor ...

, Romans and

Moors The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or ...

. As one of the principal Arab military bases along the southern margin of the Tagus, Almada was conquered by the Christian forces of

Afonso I Afonso I of PortugalOr also ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonso'' (Portuguese-Galician languages, Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin version), sometimes rendered in English as ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', dependi ...

with the aid of English

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

in 1147. Alongside these Christians there lived many free Moors and Jews, under the royal protection guaranteed them by Afonso I in the charter of 1170 (which applied to all the former Moorish strongholds at Lisbon, Almada,

Palmela Palmela () is a town and a municipality in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 62,831, in an area of 465.12 km². The municipality is located in the Lisboa Region and Setúbal District, about south of Lisbon. The municipal holiday is 1 ...

and Alcácer). Almada received a foral from King Sancho I in 1190, although it came at a price: Miramolim Jacub-Abu-Jassuf, son of the Moorish leader who had laid siege to Santarém in 1171, was angered by the Christian victories and gathered a large army. He boldly attacked in the north, conquering

Alcácer do Sal Alcácer do Sal () is a municipality in Portugal, located in Setúbal District. The population in 2011 was 13,046, in an area of 1499.87 km2. History Earliest settlement There has been human settlement in the area for more than 40,000 ye ...

and Silves, while forcing the residents of Almada, Palmela and other towns along the Tagus into hiding. It would be some time after the death of Sancho before this region would be restored to Portuguese control. When this event occurred with the success of the

Reconquista The ' (Spanish, Portuguese and Galician for "reconquest") is a historiographical construction describing the 781-year period in the history of the Iberian Peninsula between the Umayyad conquest of Hispania in 711 and the fall of the Nasrid ...

in driving the Muslims out, the

Order of Santiago The Order of Santiago (; es, Orden de Santiago ), is a religious and military order founded in the 12th century. It owes its name to the Patron Saint of Spain, "Santiago" (St. James the Greater). Its initial objective was to protect the pilgri ...

, a donatorio of Almada after 28 October 1186, had an important role in the territory (especially between the Tagus and

Sado River The river Sado () is a river in southern Portugal; it is one of the major rivers in the country. It flows in a northerly direction (the only major Portuguese river to do so) through from its springs in the hills of Ourique before entering the A ...

s). In this role, it facilitated the repopulation of acquired territories and was the beneficiary of the various local economies.

Geography

Although small in area, the city of Almada has a large population. It is bounded to the southeast by

Seixal Seixal () is a Portuguese city and municipality, located in the district of Setúbal, in the metropolitan area of Lisbon. Its population includes 184,269 inhabitants (2011), in an area of that includes six parishes. It is situated across the T ...

, to the south by

Sesimbra Sesimbra () is a municipality of Portugal, in the Setúbal District, lying at the foothills of the ''Serra da Arrábida'', a mountain range between Setúbal and Sesimbra. Due to its particular position at the Setúbal Bay, near the mouth of the S ...

, to the west by the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

and to the north and northeast by the Tagus River. At Cacilhas, its main port, ferry boats transport visitors and local residents across to Lisbon daily, while the

, which spans the Tagus, is traversed by

rail Rail or rails may refer to: Rail transport *Rail transport and related matters *Rail (rail transport) or railway lines, the running surface of a railway Arts and media Film * ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini * ''Rail'' ( ...

, commercial and personal vehicles daily. Almada is considered a transportation hub and a fast-growing suburb; its coast has several sandy beaches and panoramic vistas. Located in the district of Setúbal, the municipality includes two cities, Almada and Costa da Caparica, and is divided into five civil parishes: * Almada, Cova da Piedade, Pragal e Cacilhas * Caparica e Trafaria * Charneca de Caparica e Sobreda * Costa da Caparica * Laranjeiro e Feijó

International relations

Almada is twinned with: *

Ostrava Ostrava (; pl, Ostrawa; german: Ostrau ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic, and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 280,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four riv ...

, Czech Republic *

Porto Amboim Porto Amboim is a port town in Cuanza Sul Province, Angola with a population of 65,000; it comprises an area of 4,638 km. In the past Porto Amboim was connected by an isolated 123 km narrow gauge railway to Gabela, albeit closed in 19 ...

, Angola *

Regla Regla () is one of the 15 municipalities or boroughs (''municipios'' in Spanish) in the city of Havana, Cuba. It comprises the town of Regla, located at the bottom of Havana Bay in a former aborigine settlement named ''Guaicanamar'', Loma Model ...

, Cuba * Sal, Cape Verde

Transportation

The

links Lisbon and Almada, which are on opposite sides of the Tagus river. The municipality is served by a light-rail transit system, the Metro Transportes do Sul, linking it to the suburban rail system ( Fertagus) serving

Greater Lisbon Grande Lisboa () or Greater Lisbon is a former Portuguese NUTS III subregion integrated in the Lisboa Region. It was abolished at the January 2015 NUTS 3 revision. It is part of the historical Estremadura Province. It includes the capital and ...

and the municipality of

Sanctuary of Christ the King

Notable citizens

Public service

* Joan of Portugal (1439–1475) Queen of Castile as the second wife of King Henry IV of Castile. * Elvira Fortunato (born 1964) a Portuguese scientist, professor in the Materials Science Department at the NOVA

University of Lisbon The University of Lisbon (ULisboa; pt, Universidade de Lisboa, ) is a public research university in Lisbon, and the largest university in Portugal. It was founded in 2013, from the merger of two previous public universities located in Lisbon, th ...

* Diana Prata (born ca.1975) neuroscientist, head of the Biomedical Neuroscience at the

, brought up in Almada * Diogo Batáguas (born ca.1984) stand-up comedian and public figure, notable for his monthly YouTube program named "Relatório DB". * Rita Ferreira (born ca.1993) nuclear medicine resident, notable for her love of sundae caramelo.

Arts

* Vitor Gonçalves (born 1963) a Portuguese theatre director * UHF (formed 1970's) rock band formed in Almada * Anabela Braz Pires (born 1976) known as ''Anabela'', singer and musical theatre actress. Anabela, IMDb Database
retrieved 21 June 2021. * Xutos & Pontapés, (Wiki PT) (formed 1978) a Portuguese Rock band * Sara Tavares (born 1978) a Portuguese singer, composer, guitarist and percussionist, family from Almada * Pedro Barateiro (born 1979) a Portuguese artist * Patricia Ribeiro (born 1981) transsexual singer, songwriter, dancer and convicted extortionist. *

Da Weasel Da Weasel are a Portuguese hip hop/ rock band from Almada (a suburb of Lisbon, Portugal), fronted by MCs Pacman (now known as Carlão) and Virgul. They are one of the oldest hip-hop projects in Portugal, having been formed in 1993 and termina ...

(formed 1993) a Portuguese hip-hop band/rock band from Almada * Aenima (formed 1997) a Portuguese

dark wave Dark wave (also typeset as darkwave) is a music genre that emerged from the new wave and post-punk movement of the late 1970s. Dark wave compositions are largely based on minor key tonality and introspective lyrics and have been perceived as be ...

, rock band *

Ava Inferi Ava Inferi was a musical group formed in Almada, Portugal, by Norwegian guitarist and songwriter Rune Eriksen (a.k.a. Blasphemer, Mayhem). Their debut album, '' Burdens'', was released in January 2006. In the spring of 2007, vocalist Carmen Sim ...

(2005–2013) a Portuguese Doom Metal band

Sport

Alfredo Murça Alfredo Manuel da Silva Murça (17 January 1948 – 24 August 2007) was a Portugal national football team, Portuguese international Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football), defender. Football caree ...

(1948–2007) a Portuguese international footballer with nearly 400 club caps * Rui Eugénio (born 1966) a Portuguese former footballer with over 400 club caps *

Luís Figo Luís Filipe Madeira Caeiro Figo (; born 4 November 1972) is a Portuguese former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Winger (association football), winger for Sporting CP, FC Barcelona, Barcelona, Real Madrid CF, Real ...

(born 1972) known as ''Figo'', former footballer with 570 caps and 127 for

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

* Telma Monteiro (born 1985), world champion judoka * Silvestre Varela (born 1985) a footballer with over 400 club caps and 27 for

* Carlos Emanuel Soares Tavares (born 1985) known as ''Carlitos'', a footballer with 350 club caps and 32 for Cape Verde * Aylton Boa Morte (born 1993) a Portuguese footballer with over 350 club caps *

Mónica Mendes Mónica Soraia Amaral Mendes (born 16 June 1993) is a Portugal, Portuguese women's soccer, football defender currently playing for A.C. Milan Women in the Serie A. Club career Mendes has played in her native Portugal for S.U. 1º Dezembro (women) ...

(born 1993) a Portuguese footballer with 51 caps for Portugal women *

Miguel Oliveira Miguel Ângelo Falcão de Oliveira (; born 4 January 1995) is a Portuguese professional motorcycle racer who competes in the MotoGP World Championship for RNF MotoGP Team, getting the step up from KTM Tech3,

(born 1995) a Portuguese professional MotoGP Rider *

Rafael Leão Rafael Alexandre da Conceição Leão (; born 10 June 1999) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward for club AC Milan and the Portugal national team. Graduating from Sporting CP youth system, Leão made his first-team ...

(born 1999) a Portuguese footballer

References

;Notes ;Sources *

External links

Almada MunicipalityAlmada Digital
{{Authority control Cities in Portugal Populated places in Setúbal District Municipalities of Setúbal District