Torres Novas Municipality
| Torres Novas | |||
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| Municipality | |||
A general view of Torres Novas
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| Coordinates: 39°28′N 8°32′W / 39.467°N 8.533°WCoordinates: 39°28′N 8°32′W / 39.467°N 8.533°W | |||
| Country |
 Portugal
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| Region | Centro | ||
| Subregion | Médio Tejo | ||
| Intermunic. comm. | Médio Tejo | ||
| District | Santarém | ||
| Parishes | 17 | ||
| Government | |||
| • President | Pedro Ferreira (PS) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 270.00 km2 (104.25 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2011) | |||
| • Total | 36,717 | ||
| • Density | 140/km2 (350/sq mi) | ||
| Time zone | WET/WEST (UTC+0/+1) | ||
| Website | http://www.cm-torresnovas.pt | ||
Torres Novas (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈtoʁɨʒ ˈnɔvɐʃ]) is a Portuguese municipality in the district of Santarém, in the Médio Tejo of the Centro region. The population of the municipality was approximately 36,717 (from the 2011 census), with the city of Torres Novas (seat of the municipality) has a about 15,000 inhabitants in an area that econompasses 270 square kilometres (100 sq mi).
The territory of Torres Novas was settled as early as the Paelothic in areas situated along the margins of the carstic network of the River Almonda, such as the grottos in Buraca da Moura, Buraca da Oliveira and Lapa da Bugalheira.
During the primordial period before Roman occupation, there were various villae that were populated in the region. Vila Cardílio, a Luso-Roman settlement was occupied in the first or second century A.D. Along with Avita, archaeologists discovered coloured mosaics, coins, sculptures and Latin inscriptions, where one was inscribed with felicitous remarks to the villa da torre (town of the tower), an expression associated with the plausible origin for the toponymy Torres Novas.
Following the 12th century, the territory was known as Turris began to develop into its actual limits, with the expulsion of the Moors by forces loyal to 1148. The foundation of the municipality was attributed to the foral issued on 1 October 1190, by King Sancho.
The castle which had, by that time, been in ruins was reconstructed by King Fernando, to halt Castilian forces during the Iberian wars.
During the Middle Ages, the territory grew demographically and economically, receiving a Carta de Feira (authorizing a fair for this market) in 1263.
The lands of Torres Novas passed into the possessions of Queen Isabel of Aragon in 1304 (who was transferred into her title by King Denis. In the following years, Torres Novas was a meeting point for sessions of the Cortes, and historical points in the kingdoms history, like the wedding between Infanta Beatriz and Infante Henrique, children of King Fernando I and King João I of Castilo (in 1380); the establishment of regency of Queen Leonor of Aragon Aragon (due to the death of King Edward I), during the reign of Afonso V (1438); and the decisions of the Cortes, which gathered intermittently in Torres Novas, to manage the Kingdom's issues (1525).
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