Belmonte, Portugal

Belmonte

Municipality

Belmonte Castle

Flag

Coat of arms

Coordinates: 40°21′N 7°21′W / 40.350°N 7.350°WCoordinates: 40°21′N 7°21′W / 40.350°N 7.350°W

Country

Portugal

Beiras e Serra da Estrela

District

Castelo Branco

Area

• Total

118.76 km² (45.85 sq mi)

Population (2011)

• Total

6,859

• Density

58/km² (150/sq mi)

Time zone

WET/WEST (UTC+0/+1)

Website

http://www.cm-belmonte.pt

Belmonte (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˌbɛɫˈmõt(ɨ)]) is a municipality in the district of Castelo Branco, Portugal. The population in 2011 was 6,859, in an area of 118.76 km².

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 in Portugal (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.

Administratively, the municipality is divided into 4 civil parishes (freguesias):

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Wikipedia