Cascais
Encyclopedia
Cascais is a coastal town in Cascais Municipality
Cascais Municipality
Cascais Municipality is located in Lisbon District. It contains the town of Cascais. It has 205 117 inhabitants, according to 2011 census, in 2001 it had 170 683 inhabitants...

 in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

, 30 kilometres west of Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...

, with about 35,000 residents. It is a cosmopolitan suburb of the Portuguese capital and one of the richest municipalities in Portugal
Municipalities of Portugal
In Portugal, municipality or concelho is the most stable subdivision of Portugal since the foundation of the country.Portugal has an entirely separate system of cities and towns. Cities and towns are located in municipalities, but often do not have the same boundaries, even if built-up is continuous...

. The former fishing village gained fame as a resort for Portugal's royal family
Royal family
A royal family is the extended family of a king or queen regnant. The term imperial family appropriately describes the extended family of an emperor or empress, while the terms "ducal family", "grand ducal family" or "princely family" are more appropriate to describe the relatives of a reigning...

 in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Nowadays, it is a popular vacation spot for both Portuguese and foreign tourists. It is located in the Estoril Coast (named after Estoril
Estoril
Estoril is a seaside resort and civil parish of the Portuguese municipality of Cascais, Lisboa District. The Estoril coast is close to Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. It starts in Carcavelos, 15 kilometres from Lisbon, and stretches as far as Guincho, often known as Costa de Estoril-Sintra or...

, a civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

), in the Greater Lisbon subregion. It has an airport for general aviation
General aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...

 serving the Lisbon Region in Tires (S. Domingos de Rana), Aeroporto Municipal de Cascais
Cascais Aerodrome
Cascais Municipal Aerodrome is located near the town of Tires, São Domingos de Rana, Cascais Municipality, in Greater Lisbon....

.

History

The coastal settlement of Cascais originated in the 12th century, depending administratively on the town of Sintra
Sintra
Sintra is a town within the municipality of Sintra in the Grande Lisboa subregion of Portugal. Owing to its 19th century Romantic architecture and landscapes, becoming a major tourist centre, visited by many day-trippers who travel from the urbanized suburbs and capital of Lisbon.In addition to...

, located to the north. In its humble beginnings, Cascais lived from the products of the sea and land, but already in the 13th century, its fish production served the capital Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...

, located nearby. During the 14th century, the population increased to the outside of the walls of its castle. Its prosperity led to the administrative independence from Sintra in 1364. The village and its surroundings were owned by a feudal lord; the most famous of them was João das Regras
João das Regras
João das Regras, in English, literally John of the Rules, was a Portuguese jurist of the second half of the 14th-century. João das Regras was born in Lisbon in an unknown date and died there on 3 May 1404...

 (died 1404), a lawyer and professor of the University of Lisbon that was involved in the ascension of King John I
John I of Portugal
John I KG , called the Good or of Happy Memory, more rarely and outside Portugal the Bastard, was the tenth King of Portugal and the Algarve and the first to use the title Lord of Ceuta...

 to power as the first King of the House of Aviz
House of Aviz
The House of Aviz is a dynasty of kings of Portugal. In 1385, the Interregnum of the 1383-1385 crisis ended with the acclamation of the Master of the Order of Aviz, John, natural son of king Peter I and Dona Teresa Lourenço as king...

.

Since the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

, Cascais lived from fishing, maritime commerce (it was a stop for ships sailing to Lisbon), and from agriculture, producing wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...

, olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...

, cereal
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...

s, and fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...

s. Due to its location close to the Tagus
Tagus
The Tagus is the longest river on the Iberian Peninsula. It is long, in Spain, along the border between Portugal and Spain and in Portugal, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Lisbon. It drains an area of . The Tagus is highly utilized for most of its course...

 estuary, it was also seen as a strategic post in the defence of Lisbon. Around 1488, King John II
John II of Portugal
John II , the Perfect Prince , was the thirteenth king of Portugal and the Algarves...

 built a small fortress in the village, located by the sea. This medieval fortress was not enough to repel the invasion and in 1580, Spanish troops led by the Duque of Alba took the village during the conflict that led to the union of the Portuguese and Spanish crowns
Struggle for the throne of Portugal
The 1580 Portuguese succession crisis came about as a result of the 1578 death of young King Sebastian I of Portugal in the Battle of Ksar El Kebir...

. The fortress was enlarged towards the end of the 16th century by King Philip I
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....

 (Philip II of Spain), turning it into a typical renaissance citadel
Citadel
A citadel is a fortress for protecting a town, sometimes incorporating a castle. The term derives from the same Latin root as the word "city", civis, meaning citizen....

 with the characteristic flat profile and star-shaped floorplan. Various fortresses were built on the coast around Cascais during the 17th century, and many of them still exist.

In 1755, the great Lisbon earthquake destroyed a large portion of the village. Around 1774, the Marquis of Pombal, prime-minister of King José I, took protective measures for the commercialisation of the wine of Carcavelos
Carcavelos
Carcavelos is a parish in the Portuguese municipality of Cascais, about 12 km west of Lisbon. The village used to be known for the Carcavelos wine, but since the wine production is nowadays reduced, Carcavelos is better known among surfers because of the good surfing condition of the...

 and established the Royal Factory of Wool in the village, which existed until the early 19th century. During the invasion of Portugal by Napoleonic troops
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...

 in 1807, the citadel of Cascais was occupied by the French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...

, with General Junot staying some time in the village.

This situation of decadence started to change when King Luís II
Luís I of Portugal
|-...

 decided to turn the citadel of Cascais into his summer residence. From 1870 to 1908, the Royal Family came to Cascais to enjoy the sea, turning the somnolent fishing village into a cosmopolitan address. The citadel gained electric light
Electric light
Electric lights are a convenient and economic form of artificial lighting which provide increased comfort, safety and efficiency. Most electric lighting is powered by centrally-generated electric power, but lighting may also be powered by mobile or standby electric generators or battery systems...

 in 1878, the first in the country, thanks to King Luís. The village gained better roads to Lisbon and Sintra, a casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...

, a bullfight ring
Bullring
A bullring is an arena where bullfighting is performed. Bullrings are often associated with Spain, but they can also be found in neighboring countries and the New World...

, a sport club
Sports club
A sports club or sport club, sometimes athletics club or sports association is a club for the purpose of playing one or more sports...

, and improvements in the basic infrastructure for the population. The railway arrived in 1889. Many noble families built beautiful mansions in Cascais, as can still be seen in the centre and surroundings of the town.

In 1896, King Carlos I
Carlos I of Portugal
-Assassination:On 1 February 1908 the royal family returned from the palace of Vila Viçosa to Lisbon. They travelled by train to Barreiro and, from there, they took a steamer to cross the Tagus River and disembarked at Cais do Sodré in central Lisbon. On their way to the royal palace, the open...

, a lover of all maritime activities, installed in the citadel the first oceanographic laboratory in Portugal. The King himself led a total of 12 scientific expeditions to the coast, only ended in 1908 with his assassination in Lisbon.

Another important step in the touristic development of the area was given in the first half of the 20th century in neighbouring Estoril
Estoril
Estoril is a seaside resort and civil parish of the Portuguese municipality of Cascais, Lisboa District. The Estoril coast is close to Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. It starts in Carcavelos, 15 kilometres from Lisbon, and stretches as far as Guincho, often known as Costa de Estoril-Sintra or...

, in which a casino was built and the infrastructure for luxury vacations was created around Monte Estoril.

Due to Portugal's neutrality
Neutrality (international relations)
A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...

 in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 and the town's elegance and royal past, Cascais became home to many of the exiled royal families of Europe, including those of Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, Italy
House of Savoy
The House of Savoy was formed in the early 11th century in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, it grew from ruling a small county in that region to eventually rule the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 until the end of World War II, king of Croatia and King of Armenia...

, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

 and Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

.

Nowadays, Cascais and its surroundings are a famous vacation spot for the Portuguese and foreigners, aiming at both the "jet-set" and normal tourism, who seek to enjoy its beaches.

Tourism

Today, there is a large yacht harbour
Marina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....

 and several small sand beaches in and around town. Cascais is easily reached from Lisbon by car, (A5 Lisboa-Cascais highway), or by frequent inexpensive commuter trains. It has the ruins of a castle, an art and sea museum, as well as parks and the charming cobbled streets of the historic centre. The town has many hotels and tourist apartments as well as many good restaurants of varying cost. It is a fine base to use for those visiting Lisbon and its environs who prefer to stay outside of the city yet in an equally urban and sophisticated environment.

Cascais is surrounded by popular beaches, such as Guincho Beach
Guincho Beach
Praia do Guincho is a popular Atlantic beach located on Portugal's Estoril coast, 5 km from the town of Cascais, and is located in the municipality of Cascais, more precisely in the parishes of Cascais and Alcabideche, in the District of Lisbon...

 to the west, and the lush Sintra
Sintra
Sintra is a town within the municipality of Sintra in the Grande Lisboa subregion of Portugal. Owing to its 19th century Romantic architecture and landscapes, becoming a major tourist centre, visited by many day-trippers who travel from the urbanized suburbs and capital of Lisbon.In addition to...

 mountains to the north. Some of its shoreline is cliff-y, attracting tourists for its seascapes and other natural sights such as the Boca do Inferno
Boca do Inferno
Boca do Inferno is a chasm located in the seaside cliffs close to the Portuguese city of Cascais, in the District of Lisbon. The seawater has access to the deep bottom of the chasm and vigorously strikes its rocky walls, making it a popular tourist attraction.-References:...

. It is also becoming a popular golf destination, with over 10 golf courses
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

 nearby. Surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...

, sailing
Sailing
Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...

, windsurfing
Windsurfing
Windsurfing or sailboarding is a surface water sport that combines elements of surfing and sailing. It consists of a board usually two to four metres long, powered by the orthogonal effect of the wind on a sail. The rig is connected to the board by a free-rotating universal joint and comprises a...

, and kitesurfing
Kitesurfing
Kitesurfing or Kiteboarding is an adventure surface water sport that has been described as combining wakeboarding, windsurfing, surfing, paragliding, and gymnastics into one extreme sport. Kitesurfing harnesses the power of the wind to propel a rider across the water on a small surfboard or a...

 are also popular in the region around Cascais due to favourable weather, wind, and sea conditions. In 2007, Cascais was the official host of the ISAF World Championship in sailing for dinghies and racing yachts.

The municipality also hosts international tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

 and motorcycling events and hosted for many years the FIA F1 Portugal Grand Prix. The famous Estoril Casino is one of the largest in Europe. Near the casino is the "Hotel Palácio" (Palace Hotel), a 5-star hotel where scenes of the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...

 movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (film)
On Her Majesty's Secret Service is the sixth spy film in the James Bond series, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Ian Fleming. Following the decision of Sean Connery to retire from the role after You Only Live Twice, Eon Productions selected an unknown actor and model, George Lazenby...

were shot.

Twin towns — Sister cities

Cascais is twinned
Town twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...

 with:
Salvador, Bahia
Salvador, Bahia
Salvador is the largest city on the northeast coast of Brazil and the capital of the Northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia. Salvador is also known as Brazil's capital of happiness due to its easygoing population and countless popular outdoor parties, including its street carnival. The first...

, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

, since 1985 Biarritz
Biarritz
Biarritz is a city which lies on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast, in south-western France. It is a luxurious seaside town and is popular with tourists and surfers....

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, since 1986 Vitória, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

, since 1986 Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...

, Palestinian Authority Santana, São Tomé and Príncipe
Santana, São Tomé and Príncipe
-Persons:*Alda Bandeira, a São Tomean politicianSantana has schools or collegiates , a lyceum , a small gymnasia , a few churches, a beach, a small port and a few squares ....

, since 1986
Atami, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, since 1990 Wuxi
Wuxi
Wuxi is an old city in Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China. Split in half by Lake Tai, Wuxi borders Changzhou to the west and Suzhou to the east. The northern half looks across to Taizhou across the Yangtze River, while the southern half also borders the province of Zhejiang to the south...

, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

, since 1993 Sal, Cape Verde
Sal, Cape Verde
Sal is an island in Cape Verde. It belongs to the northern group of islands, called Barlavento. The island is composed by a single administrative division, the Sal municipality. The island is home to Amílcar Cabral International Airport, the main airport of Cape Verde.- Geography :The island is...

, since 1993 Guarujá
Guarujá
Guarujá is a municipality in the São Paulo state of Brazil. The population in 2006 was 305,171, the population density is 1,969.47/km² and the area is 143 km². This place name comes from the Tupi language, and mean "narrow path". The population is highly urbanized.-Geography:Guarujá is...

, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

, since 2000 Xai-Xai
Xai-Xai
Xai-Xai is a city in the south of Mozambique. It is the capital of Gaza Province. As of 2007 it has a population of 116,343 -Portuguese rule:...

, Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

, since 2000

Notable people

  • Francisco Pinto Balsemão
    Francisco Pinto Balsemão
    Francisco José Pereira Pinto Balsemão, GCC , is a former Prime Minister of Portugal, who served from 1981 to 1983.-Background:He is the son of Henrique Patrício de Balsemão and wife Maria Adelaide van Zeller de Castro Pereira , granddaughter in male line of an adulterine son of King Pedro...

    , former Prime Minister
    Prime minister
    A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...

     of Portugal
    Portugal
    Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

    .
  • Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa
    Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa
    Marcelo Nuno Duarte Rebelo de Sousa, ComSE, GCIH is a Portuguese politician and former Minister and Member of Parliament, law professor, former journalist, political analyst and pundit.-Background:...

    , Portuguese politician
    Politician
    A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

     and former Minister
    Minister (government)
    A minister is a politician who holds significant public office in a national or regional government. Senior ministers are members of the cabinet....

    .
  • Nadir Afonso
    Nadir Afonso
    Nadir Afonso, GOSE is a geometric abstractionist painter. Formally trained in architecture, which he practiced early in his career with Le Corbusier and Oscar Niemeyer, Nadir Afonso later studied painting in Paris and became one of the pioneers in Kinetic art, working alongside Victor Vasarely,...

    , geometric abstractionist painter.
  • Manuel Ulrich Garnel, Digital Artist and Creative Poet.
  • Ana Free
    Ana Free
    Ana Free is the stage name of Ana Gomes Ferreira, a singer, musician, songwriter and performer who has had a series of top-five hit singles, including a number one, in Portugal...

    , singer/songwriter made popular by Youtube
    YouTube
    YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

    .
  • Jorge Marcel, Portuguese poet and profect
  • José Man, plastic artist and runner
  • Paulo Ferreira
    Paulo Ferreira
    Paulo Renato Rebocho Ferreira is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Chelsea as a defender. However, in his recent years, Ferreira has been noted to play as an attacking forward, in which he is famous for his through balls out to the wingers and/or striker-Early career:He started his career in...

    , football player
  • Daniela Ruah
    Daniela Ruah
    Daniela Sofia Korn Ruah is a Portuguese-American actress best known for playing NCIS Special Agent Kensi Blye in the CBS series NCIS: Los Angeles.-Early years:...

    , actress, currently starring in the TV series NCIS: Los Angeles
  • Palma brothers, founders of the Cascais Moustache Club
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK