The Port of Póvoa de Varzim, during the Middle Ages known as Port of Varzim (Porto de Veracim in Old Portuguese), is a sheltered seaport built in Enseada da Póvoa Bay in the city of Póvoa de Varzim in Portugal.
It had a fundamental importance for the establishment of the municipality in 1308 and the development of Póvoa de Varzim. In this small bay the local fishermen developed the Poveiro boats and Povoan knowledge of the seas and shipbuilding were important during the Age of Discovery. In earlier times a commercial port, with routes to Northern Europe and later with the Portuguese Empire, it became a notable and prosperous fishing seaport from where Povoan boats departed to Newfoundland's codfish grounds.
The historical records of the seaport dates from the 11th century, when the sheltered bay started being regularly used by ships due to its sheltered characteristics.
In the 11th century, Guterre Pelayo, born in Gascony, came from France with count Henry and became Lord of Varzim. According to the Livro Velho de Linhagens, the Ancient Book of Ancestries, he got from the count the seaport of Varzim amongst several other possessions.[1]
One of the great-grandsons of Guterre Pelayo, Lourenço Fernandes da Cunha had great fortune in the town of Varzim and surrounding land. In the area of Veracim dos Cavaleyros (Knights' Varzim), that was a knights honor, he had two palaces for his sons and grandsons.
In the 1220 inquiries it was said that in the Royal Land of Varzim, a royal butler resting place, there were 20 families, who gave to the King, when he came into town, 6 dinheiros for the stay; and by Royal Charter, if they did not went to the sea on Friday, they paid 5 mealhas (small copper coin with little value); and paid from the fisheries, the navão (one fish for each boat).[1]
One of the sons of Dom Lourenço was Gomes Lourenço, very influential knight and godfather of King Denis.[2] Dom Gomes Lourenço, as it is deduced from his personal 1290 Inquiries, took advantage of his relationship with important people in order to get the recognition of the seaport of Varzim, located in Veracim de Jussãao (Varzim de Jusão or Lower Varzim), as his honor. He tried to convince King Denis, that the King's father, Afonso III, took it from him unfairly. In this way, Dom Gomes and his descendants, who are part of the honor of Varzim (honrra de Veracim), went to the seaport and got the navão from the fishermen, justifying the attitude with the honor.[2] Prior to that, Gomes and King Denis had disputes resolved in favor of the King by the ecclesiastical court of Braga in 1285.[2]
By this, King Denis granted a Royal Charter to Varzim in 1308, ordering the local inhabitants to build a maritime settlement (Póvoa), he promoted farming development and the use of the seaport for the transport of production such as bread, wine and salt, but also fisheries from which the king took the best profits "the whale, the dolphin or royal belongings", that is, the most profitable catches.[3] One of the terms of the charter ordered the inhabitants who brought bread, wine, salt or sardines, when unloading ferries or vessels in the port of Póvoa de Varzim, granted for each ferry of vessel, 7 soldos. These were the customs rights that belonged to the king and substituted the navão (a fish in each boat).[1]
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