Montijo () is a city and
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
in
Setúbal District in Portugal. Its name was Aldeia Galega do Ribatejo or simply Aldeia Galega until 1930. The population in 2021 was 55,732,
[Instituto Nacional de Estatística]
/ref> in an area of 348.62 km2. The city of Montijo proper had a population of 25,719 in 2001.
It is one of the few municipalities in Portugal without territorial continuity; that is, its component parts are not conjoined. It is located in the Lisbon metropolitan area
The Lisbon Metropolitan Area (; abbreviated as AML) is a metropolitan areas in Portugal, metropolitan area in Portugal centered on Lisbon, the capital and largest city of the country. The metropolitan area, covering 17 List of cities in Portuga ...
.
History
Montijo was known as Aldeia Galega until July 6, 1930, in spite of the fact that it was a small town and no longer a village. It was elevated to city
A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
status on August 14, 1985.
Paleolithic vestiges of human settlement suggest that the region was occupied into the pre-history. Yet, the first historical references date to the 12th century, in 1186, with the donations of religious and hereditary lands to Paio Peres, that initiated formal occupation.[
Initially, the settlement was a constituted of poor hovels, that were villages for fishermen and farmers, but by the 14th century, the area had developed into a sizeable centre, with its own church, dedicated to São Sebastião.
During the reigns of Afonso IV, Pedro and ]Fernando
Fernando is a Spanish and Portuguese given name and a surname common in Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Switzerland, and former Spanish or Portuguese colonies in Latin America, Africa and Asia (like the Philippines, India, and Sri Lanka). It is e ...
, Montijo was awarded various privileges that John I John I may refer to:
People
Religious figures
* John I (bishop of Jerusalem)
* John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople
* John I of Antioch (died 441)
* Pope John I of Alexandria, Coptic Pope from 496 to 505
* Pope John I, P ...
later confirmed in 1385.[ For a long time, the place formed one ecclesiastical parish with neighboring Alcochete, whose seat was in the village of Santa Maria de Sabonha, in the parish of São Francisco.][ On 15 September 1514, Manuel I conceded a foral (''charter''), which was quickly renewed on 17 January 1515, with Alcochete.][
In 1539, the centres separated resulting in administrative autonomy.][ The grand postmaster, Luís Afonso, established his seat in the south in 1533, due to its geographic conditions and close proximity to Spain and southern Portugal. A year earlier, John III had registered the title to the village of ''Aldea Galega''.][
Over the years, many monarch passed through Montijo, such as the future ]John IV of Portugal
''Dom (honorific), Dom'' John IV (; 19 March 1604 – 6 November 1656), also known by the Portuguese as John the Restorer (), was the List of Portuguese monarchs, King of Portugal from 1640 until his death in 1656. He Portuguese Restoration War, ...
, who arrived on 5 December 1640, to enthusiastic cheers from the nobles, clerics and people of the village.[
In 1808 Montijo suffered the roaming attacks and pillage of French forces.][
Twenty one years later, a carriage post between Montijo and Badajoz/Madrid, which was of short duration and lasted until 1831.][ In 1843, during an official visit, Queen ]Maria II of Portugal
Dona Maria II (Maria da Glória Joana Carlota Leopoldina da Cruz Francisca Xavier de Paula Isidora Micaela Gabriela Rafaela Gonzaga de Habsburgo-Lorena e Bragança; 4 April 1819 – 15 November 1853) also known as "the Educator" () or as ...
necessitated the carriage, allowing a 26-hour trip from Montijo to Badajoz. But, the service was suspended in 1864.[
Aldeia Galega was one of the first centres to celebrate the implantation of the ]5 October 1910 revolution
5 October 1910 Revolution () was the overthrow of the centuries-old List of Portuguese monarchs, Portuguese monarchy and its replacement by the First Portuguese Republic. It was the result of a ''coup d'état'' organized by the Portuguese Repub ...
, before Lisbon and other major centres.[
]
Climate
Transport
The Vasco da Gama Bridge, inaugurated in 1998, connects Montijo with the capital city of Lisbon
Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
. Numerous roads, including the IC13, provide access to the south, east and west of Portugal.
Although the train service via the Ramal do Montijo rail line was discontinued, Montijo maintains a network of public transportation that connects it to other nearby major cities and villages by bus and by a river service connecting it with Lisbon.
Parishes
Administratively, the municipality is divided into 5 civil parishes ('' freguesias''):
* Atalaia e Alto Estanqueiro-Jardia
* Canha
* Montijo e Afonsoeiro
* Pegões
* Sarilhos Grandes
Panorama
Notable people
* Fialho Gouveia (1935–2004), TV entertainment pioneer and former radio host
* Jorge Peixinho (1940-1995), composer, pianist and conductor
* Dulce Pontes (born 1969), songwriter and pop, folk and classical music singer; helped revive fado
Fado (; "destiny, fate") is a music genre which can be traced to the 1820s in Lisbon, Portugal, but probably has much earlier origins. Fado historian and scholar Rui Vieira Nery states that "the only reliable information on the history of fado ...
* Rosinha (born 1971), Pimba singer, songwriter and accordion player
* Catarina Marcelino (born 1971), anthropologist, politician and Govt. minister
Sport
* Custódio Pinto (1942–2004), footballer
* Paulo Futre (born 1966), footballer
* Ricardo (born 1976), footballer
International relations
Montijo has no twin towns
A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties.
While there are early examples of inte ...
, but has international cooperation protocols with:
* Água Grande, São Tomé and Príncipe, since 2013
* Santa Catarina, Cape Verde, since 2010
* Svoge, Bulgaria, since 2010
References
External links
Town Hall official website
Photos from Montijo
{{Authority control
Cities in Portugal
Populated places in Setúbal District
Municipalities of Setúbal District