Palmela () is a town and a municipality in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 62,831,Instituto Nacional de Estatística
/ref> in an area of 465.12 km². The municipality is located in the

Lisboa Region Lisbon Region ( pt, Região de Lisboa, ) is one of the seven NUTS II designated regions of Portugal, which coincides with the NUTS III subregion Lisbon Metropolitan Area. The region covers an area of 3001.95 km2 (the smallest region on mainl ...

and

Setúbal District The District of Setúbal ( pt, Distrito de Setúbal ) is a district located in the south-west of Portugal. It is named for its capital, the city of Setúbal. Geography It is delimited by Lisbon District and Santarém District on the north, Év ...

, about south of

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

. The municipal holiday is 1 June.

Parishes

Administratively, the municipality is divided into 4 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 ...

''): * Palmela *

Pinhal Novo Pinhal Novo () is a town in Portugal situated in the Setúbal Peninsula halfway between Lisbon and Setúbal. It is a civil parish of the Palmela Municipality. The population in 2011 was 25,000,artificial caves of Casal do Pardo The four Artificial caves of Casal do Pardo ( pt, Grutas artificiais do Casal do Pardo), also known as the Caves of Quinta do Anjo, were neolithic tombs. They are situated in Palmela municipality in the Setúbal District, of Portugal, about so ...

and the

Castro of Chibanes The Castro of Chibanes is located in the Arrábida Nature Park, on the Serra do Louro (Louro Hill), in the municipality of Palmela in the Setúbal District of Portugal, about south of the capital of Lisbon, which can be seen from the site. T ...

. The town's name comes from its

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

founder, Cornelius Palma (''Palmella''). Palmela, once a fortress, was conquered by the

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

in the 12th century. A semi-rural town, it is located up a hill in the Arrábida area, within Portugal's largest urban area. Many people are moving in from big cities like

. Wild fires in the region are a threat to the environment. The castle,

Castelo de Palmela Castelo de Palmela is a castle in Portugal. It is classified as a National Monument. The Castelo de Palmela is located in the village, parish and county of the same name, district of Setúbal, in Portugal . In Setúbal Peninsula, in the east ...

, offers a unique over the whole region of the

Setúbal Peninsula The Setúbal Peninsula ( Portuguese: ) is a peninsula in the Lisbon Region of Portugal. The peninsula is named after one of its larger cities, Setúbal, and is bordered by three bodies of water, the Atlantic Ocean in the west and southwest, the Ta ...

, Lisbon, and the

Atlantic 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 an ...

Coast. It was a strategic place in past centuries, and today it is still a main juncture of Portugal's road and rail networks. Palmela is home to many multinational industrial units like

Volkswagen Volkswagen (),English: , . abbreviated as VW (), is a German Automotive industry, motor vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under the Nazi Party and revived into a ...

and

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

, and a significant number of foreign families live in the area. The local radio often broadcasts in

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

. Palmela's traditional products are its wine, which has achieved international awards in several festivals like that of Bordeaux, and the ''

Queijo de Azeitão Queijo de Azeitão is a Portuguese cheese originating from the town of Azeitão, in the municipality of Setúbal. It is produced in Setúbal, Palmela and Sesimbra. It has been granted PDO status in the European Union. In 2014, Azeitão chees ...

'' ( Azeitão cheese). There are several festivals dedicated to these products, the most famous being the ''Festa das Vindimas'' (Harvest' Festival) and the ''Festival do Queijo, Pão e Vinho'' (Festival of Cheese, Bread and Wine). Palmela is the birthplace of the Portuguese explorer

Hermenegildo Capelo Hermenegildo de Brito Capelo (Palmela, 1841 – Lisbon, 1917) was an officer in the Portuguese Navy and a Portuguese explorer, helping to chart territory between Angola and Mozambique in southern Central Africa that was unknown to Europeans ...

. Some other famous individuals such as

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consisti ...

were briefly hosted there.

Economy

The municipality is famous for its production of fruit and wine. In the 1990s, the joint-venture

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

AutoEuropa Volkswagen Autoeuropa Lda. is an automotive assembly plant, located in the city of Palmela, near Lisbon, Portugal. Formed in 1991, it began operations in 1995 fully owned by Volkswagen. It is the largest foreign industrial investment in Portugal. ...

vehicle production plant opened, to produce the Mk1 MPV sold under three

marque A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

Volkswagen Sharan The Volkswagen Sharan is a seven-seater minivan that was produced by the German Volkswagen Group and built at the AutoEuropa plant in Palmela, Portugal, with a front-wheel-drive version across two generations, from 1995 to 2022. Through badge engin ...

SEAT Alhambra The SEAT Alhambra is a seven-seater minivan that was built from 1996 to 2020. It was manufactured under the SEAT brand from June 1996 onwards at the Volkswagen Group's AutoEuropa plant in Palmela, Portugal. It shares the same platform with the Vo ...

and

Ford Galaxy The Ford Galaxy is a seven-seater car produced by Ford of Europe from June 1995 to April 2023. Considered in the motor industry to be a large multi-purpose vehicle (MPV), it was the first Ford-brand MPV produced and marketed outside of North Ame ...

. After Ford left the joint venture, the plant has since continued to produce the Volkswagen and SEAT products, and added the

Volkswagen Eos The Volkswagen Eos was a sport compact cabriolet coupé produced by the German automaker Volkswagen from 2006 to 2015. Assembled at AutoEuropa in Portugal, it was a convertible only compact coupé introduced as the successor of the Volkswagen Gol ...

Volkswagen Scirocco The Volkswagen Scirocco is a three-door, front-engine, front-wheel-drive, sport compact hatchback manufactured and marketed by Volkswagen in two generations from 1974 to 1992 and a third generation from 2008 until 2017. Production ended without a ...

and

Volkswagen T-Roc The Volkswagen T-Roc is a subcompact crossover SUV (B-segment) manufactured by German automaker Volkswagen since 2017. It is based on the Volkswagen Group MQB A1 platform, and positioned between the Tiguan and the slightly smaller T-Cross. Ov ...

Notable people

(1841 in Palmela - 1917) an officer in the Portuguese Navy and an explorer, charted territory between Angola and Mozambique *

Hugo José Jorge O'Neill Hugo José Jorge O'Neill (7 June 1874 in Lisbon, Santos-o-Velho – 30 March 1940 in Palmela) was the head of the Clanaboy O'Neill dynasty, whose family has been in Portugal since the 18th century. Recognition He was the first son of the previ ...

(1874 – 1940 in Palmela) the head of the Clanaboy O'Neill dynasty *

Octávio Machado Octávio Joaquim Coelho Machado (born 6 May 1949) is a retired Portuguese football defensive midfielder and coach. Club career Born in Palmela, Setúbal District, Machado was a leading player for Vitória de Setúbal and FC Porto during the 197 ...

(born 1949) a retired footballer and coach with 307 club caps and 19 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 ...

* Ricardo Pateiro (born 1980 in Palmela) a Portuguese retired footballer with 270 club caps

References

External links

Town Hall official websiteGIS official websitePhotos from Palmela
{{Authority control Populated places in Setúbal District Municipalities of Setúbal District Towns in Portugal

Parishes

Economy

Notable people

See also

References

External links