Historic Centre of Guimarães and Couros Zone
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How it came to be
Guimarães in northern Portugal is linked with the emergence of Portuguese national identity in the 12th century. In 950 the countess Mumadona Dias founded the Monastery of Santa Maria here and took vows in it. To protect the monastery from raids by Norsemen and Moors she had a fortification built on the high ground of the town; a codicil of 4 December 968 describes the castle as just constructed.
At the end of the 11th century Count Henry of Portucale greatly enlarged the castle and made it his residence. The Battle of São Mamede in 1128 set Portucale on the road to independence. An upper town and a lower town grew around the castle and the monastery, and houses from the 15th to the 19th century kept to traditional materials and techniques. The national monuments service began restoring the castle in 1937 and reopened it on 4 June 1940.
The historic centre was inscribed as a World Heritage site in 2001. On 19 September 2023, at the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee, the Couros Zone was added. The quarter and its river are named after the old craft of leather tanning, and tanneries, workers' houses and streets from the 19th and early 20th centuries survive there.
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