Pousada

Pousada History

Since 1951 Obidos Pousada has stood in the castle of the medieval town of Obidos. The original Manueline palace in the castle’s northern wing was built by Joao de Noronha, count of Dijon and alcaide of the town of Obidos, in the beginning of the 16th century.

At the level of the noble’s gallery overlooking the palace are two Manuelino (Poruguese art) windows, and a doorway with an ornate lintel and molding in the fashion of intertwined tree-trunks, crowned with the coat of arms of Noronha family and the royal shied. This 16th century palace was meticulously restored after the damage during the 1755 great earthquake.

A medieval town with an important historical heritage, it has been targeted by UNESCO for a possible classification as part of the world’s historical and universal heritage.

History of Obidos

The village of Obidos was conquered from the Moors by king Afonso Henriques in 1148, and later given by king D. Dinis to his wife, the saint queen Isabel, thus becoming part of the Queen’s House.

In the beginning of the 16th century, D. Joao de Noronha, count of Dijon and the village mayor, introduced architectural alterations in pure Manuelino style, which can still be seen today, as for example the windows of the restaurant.

This small village has innumerable cultural treasures, such as 14 churches and chapels. The main church has the finest examples of different Portuguese tiles and paintings by Josefa Ayalla Cabrera (Josefa de Obidos).

Obidos’s outskirts are also interesting places to visit, such as aqueduct built by king Joao III’s wife, queen Catarina of Austria, dthe Obidos lagoon, where guests can go fishing and hunting, and the Bom Sucesso´s place, where the royal picnics used to take place. Obidos was the first time that a castle, a historical monument, was adapted into a Pousada in 1951.