São Vicente (Abrantes)
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São Vicente is a former ''
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 Portuguese over ...
'' ("civil parish"), located in the
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' ...
of
Abrantes Abrantes () is a concelho, municipality in the central Médio Tejo Subregion, Médio Tejo subregion of Portugal. The population was 39,325, in an area of . The municipality includes several parishes divided by the Tagus River, which runs through ...
, in
Santarém District The District of Santarém ( ) is a district of Portugal, located in Portugal's West and Tagus Valley region. The district capital is the city of Santarém. The district is the 3rd largest in Portugal, with an area of , and a population of 475 ...
, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish
Abrantes (São Vicente e São João) e Alferrarede Union of Parishes of Abrantes e São Vicente e São João e Alferrarede is a ''freguesia'' ("civil parish") in the municipality of Abrantes on Santarém District Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iber ...
. The population in 2011 was 11,622, in an area of 38.20 km2. It included the northern part of the city of
Abrantes Abrantes () is a concelho, municipality in the central Médio Tejo Subregion, Médio Tejo subregion of Portugal. The population was 39,325, in an area of . The municipality includes several parishes divided by the Tagus River, which runs through ...
.


History

A parish of São Vicente is the principal religious organ of the community of Abrantes, and its foundation dates back to the
Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is ...
.Arquivo Distrital de Santarém (2010) The ancient church of São Vicente was founded in 1149, after
Afonso Henriques Dom Afonso IOr also ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonso'' ( Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin version), sometimes rendered in English as ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', depending on the Spanish or French influence ...
took
Abrantes Castle The Castle of Abrantes () overlooks the city of Abrantes, in the municipality of Abrantes Municipality, Abrantes in the Santarém District, district of Santarém, Ribatejo, divided between the two civil parishes of São João (Abrantes), São Joã ...
, but it subsequently received damage from Moorish attacks and was rebuilt. It was known until 1150, as the parish of Nossa Senhora da Conceição and reconsecrated by the first ''alcaide'' from permission obtained from
Afonso Henriques Dom Afonso IOr also ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonso'' ( Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin version), sometimes rendered in English as ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', depending on the Spanish or French influence ...
(a reliquary of São Vicente Mártir was installed in the church). The church was reconstructed under the initiative of King Sebastião, a project that concluded in 1590 under Philip I, completed and elaborated in the mannerist style. It became a
priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...
and
vicarage A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or Minister (Christianity), ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of n ...
of the Royal Prior, Father Carvalho e Avelino de Almeida, but by 1758 these institutions (including many of the religious parishes, ''paróquias'', of Abrantes, such as São Pedro and Santa Maria do Castelo) were under the protection of the Marquis of Abrantes. Parish records for 1862 refer to São Vicente being passed on to the Marquis of Abrantes by the Order of Christ. The vicar of São Vicente represented the clergy of São Pedro de Alvega, São Silvestre de Aboboreira, Santa Eufémia de Rio de Moinhos and Santa Luzia do Pego, alternately with the parish of São João Baptista which was the seat of the adjunct, treasury and administration of the diocese. The parish administration of São Vicente was merged with that of Santa Maria do Castelo around 1834, although records for the latter continued until 1774. Today, the religious parish is part of the diocese of Portalegre-Castelo Branco.


Geography

The long and narrow parish of São Vicente, which includes the northern half of the city of Abrantes, is mostly a large rural community. Its immediate neighbors are the
Abrantes Abrantes () is a concelho, municipality in the central Médio Tejo Subregion, Médio Tejo subregion of Portugal. The population was 39,325, in an area of . The municipality includes several parishes divided by the Tagus River, which runs through ...
parishes of Carvalhal (to the north),
Alferrarede Alferrarede is a town and a former ''freguesia'' ("civil parish"), located in the Municipalities of Portugal, municipality of Abrantes, in Santarém District, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Abrantes (São Vicente e São Jo ...
(to the east), São João (to the southeast), São Miguel do Rio Torto (in the south), Tramagal (in the southwest), Rio de Moinhos and Aldeia do Mato (to the west) and Souto (to the northwest), as well as the municipality of
Sardoal Sardoal () is a municipality in the district of Santarém in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 3,939, in an area of 92.15 km². The present Mayor is Miguel Borges, elected by the Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Pa ...
(in the northeast). It has as its border the right margin of the
Tagus River The Tagus ( ; ; ) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales between Cuenca and Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally westward, and empties into the Atlantic Ocean in Lisbon. Name T ...
, which it shares with São Miguel do Rio Torto and Tramagal.


Architecture

* Convent of Santo António (), located in the Quinta da Arca, and likely founded in 1526, but found in a state of decay and ruins, emblematic for its iconic 17 archways. It was built under the orders of Philip I of Portugal, who order the transfer of the original convent from Ribeira da Abrançalha at the end of the 16th century or beginning of the 17th century, with the support of Lopo de Almeida, Count of Abrantes. But, by the end of the 17th century the convent had already been largely abandoned by the monks, who moved to the centre Abrantes and the property sold to Diogo Marchão and Maria Gamita. In the second half of the 19th century the land was obtained by João Freire Temudo Fialho de Mendonça and became part of the Quinta da Arca. * Hermitage of São Lourenço (), a small chapel dating back to the 16th century, alongside the Abrante's Parque Urbano ()


Culture

Among its many religious or secular holidays, the parish of São Vicente is remembered for the ''Festa de São Lourenço'' (which falls on the last weekend of August and first of September) and the ''Festa da Abrançalha'' (which occurs on the last weekend of May or first weekend of June). In addition, the feast days of Paul (July), Our Lady of Graces (May) and Our Lady of Light (8 September) round out the religious celebrations with the community.


References

;Notes ;Sources * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sao Vicente (Abrantes) Former parishes of Abrantes