Belmonte Municipality
| Belmonte | |||
| Municipality (Concelho) | |||
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| Official name: Concelho de Belmonte | |||
| Country |  Portugal | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Region | Centro | ||
| Subregion | Cova da Beira | ||
| District | Castelo Branco | ||
| Municipality | Belmonte | ||
| Coordinates | 40°21′N 7°21′W / 40.350°N 7.350°W | ||
| Area | 118.8 km2 (46 sq mi) | ||
| Population | 7,662 (2001) | ||
| Density | 65 / km2 (168 / sq mi) | ||
| LAU | Concelho/Câmara Municipal | ||
| - location | Rua Pedro Álvares Cabral, Belmonte, Belmonte | ||
| Municipal chair | Joaquim Feliciano da Costa (PS) | ||
| Timezone | WET (UTC0) | ||
| - summer (DST) | WEST (UTC+1) | ||
| ISO 3166-2 code | PT- | ||
| Area code & prefix | (+351) XXX XX XX XX | ||
| Municipal address | Rua Pedro Álvares Cabral, 135 | ||
| Municipal holidays | 26 April | ||
 Location of the municipality of Belmonte in continental Portugal
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| Wikimedia Commons: Belmonte | |||
| Statistics: Instituto Nacional de Estatística[1] | |||
| Website: http://www.cm-belmonte.pt | |||
| Geographic detail from CAOP (2010)[2] produced by Instituto Geográfico Português (IGP) | |||
Belmonte (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˌbɛɫˈmõt(ɨ)]) is a municipality in Portugal. It has a total area of 118.8 km² and a total population of 7,662 inhabitants.
History
Belmonte is the birthplace of Pedro Álvares Cabral, the navigator who discovered the land of Vera Cruz, now known as Brazil. Located in the Church of Santa Maria is the iconic statue of Nossa Senhora da Esperança (Our Lady of Hope), which Cabral took with him in his voyage. Until 1834, the statue was held by the Monastery of Nossa Senhora da Esperança. The former religious facility has been adapted for use as a modern boutique hotel.
The singer Zeca Afonso lived in Belmonte for part of his childhood, between 1938 and 1940. He lived with his uncle, the mayor of the town, whilst his parents were living in Mozambique.
Belmonte is home to the last remaining community of marranos (known as the Belmonte Jews). They officially returned to Judaism in the 1970s and opened a synagogue in 1996.
In 2003, the American Sephardi Federation founded the Belmonte Project, designated to raise funds to acquire Judaic educational material and services for the community, which now numbers 160-180. They opened a Jewish Museum of Belmonte (Portuguese: Museu Judaico de Belmonte) on 17 April 2005. In the summer of 2006, the American Sephardi Federation ceased to have the Belmonte Project under its auspices.
Geography
Located in the historic district of Castelo Branco, the municipality is composed of five parishes:
- Belmonte
- Caria
- Colmeal da Torre
- Inguias
- Maçaínhas
References
- Notes
- ↑ INE, ed. (2010), Censos 2011 - Resultadas Preliminares [2011 Census - Preliminary Results] (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal: Instituto Nacional de Estatística, retrieved 1 January 2012
- ↑ IGP, ed. (2010), Carta Administrativa Oficial de Portugal (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal: Instituto Geográfico Português, retrieved 1 January 2012
External links
- Town Hall official website
- American Sephardi Federation newsletter, Spring 2003
- Photos from Belmonte
- After 500 Years in Hiding, Jews Bring Prosperity to Iberian Town
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