Valdevez Encounter

Arcos Tour
4 days ago
3 min read

Once upon a time…

In the verdant heart of Alto-Minho, there was a valley crossed by a river called "Vez," where nature sculpted serene landscapes between high mountains and fertile fields. In that tranquil place, in the year 1141 , an episode so unique and so decisive unfolded that the people never forgot it. It was there that the Battle of Valdevez took place, an unexpected confrontation that would later give rise to the legend that it was in that valley that Portugal was founded.

In those times, Portugal was not yet a kingdom, but the County of Portucale, led by Afonso Henriques, a man determined to assert the independence of his people. His cousin, Afonso VII, reigned over León and Castile and styled himself Emperor, expecting all the rulers of the Peninsula, including his Portuguese cousin, to recognize his authority. This difference in visions quickly turned into a latent conflict that had been dragging on since the signing of the Treaty of Tui in 1137 , an agreement that did little more than postpone the war.

Two years later, in 1139 , after the celebrated victory of Ourique over the Moors, Afonso Henriques gained confidence and political strength. Emboldened by the triumph, he decided to advance on Galicia and conquered castles under the Emperor's protection. This initiative broke the delicate balance between the two cousins and inflamed a tension that would lead their armies to clash.

The Emperor responded quickly. He gathered a large army and crossed mountains and valleys until he entered Portuguese territory. He descended the Serra do Soajo and arrived at Terras do Val do Vez , where Afonso Henriques was already encamped with his men. The atmosphere was tense, and the two armies positioned themselves as if the fate of the county was about to be decided in a bloody battle.

But the story took an unexpected turn, and it is here that the legend begins to take shape. Although King Alfonso VII's army was larger in number, Afonso Henriques was positioned in the Castle of Santa Cruz , which gave him a strategic advantage. It is said that, after hours of provocations and small skirmishes, both leaders, perhaps driven by the need to save men for the Christian war against the Moors to the south, perhaps by honor, decided to avoid a pitched battle. Instead, they agreed to resolve the conflict through a bafordo, a kind of medieval tournament in which the best knights from each side would fight according to the rules of chivalry, this being the only medieval tournament in the history of Portugal.

The valley, where Campo Transladário is today, was transformed into an arena. Experienced knights advanced with lances and shields, each charge laden with courage and skill. The clash of weapons echoed through the hills, and dust rose beneath the horses' hooves. Some say that the Vez River turned red due to the spilled blood. The knights of Afonso Henriques emerged victorious. Their skill and bravery convinced the Emperor that persisting in the fight would be an imprudence that would bring unnecessary losses. Thus, war gave way to diplomacy. The two cousins met in a tent between the armies, spoke privately, sealed the peace, and put an end to the conflict that threatened to devastate the Minho region.

Two years later, in 1143 , this conflict gave rise to the Treaty of Zamora , where Afonso Henriques was finally recognized as King of Portugal. It was then that the County of Portucale took the name Portugal and asserted itself as an independent kingdom before Christian Europe. And so, looking back, it becomes clear that the Battle of Valdevez was the decisive step that prepared the official birth of the country.

Over the centuries, artists and historians have brought this episode back to life. In the tiles of São Bento Station in Porto, Jorge Colaço immortalized the tournament. In Arcos de Valdevez, the sculptor José Rodrigues created an imposing equestrian monument celebrating the courage of those who fought there. And every year, at the Paço de Giela , the Municipality holds a historical reenactment that makes the past reborn before those who witness it.

Thus was born and grew the legend of the Encounter of Valdevez, the Reencounter of Valdevez, the Breath of Valdevez, or the Tournament of Valdevez, a unique moment where war gave way to diplomacy and where the courage of the knights paved the way for the recognition of Portugal as an independent nation. That is why it is said, with pride and truth:

Arcos de Valdevez, Where Portugal Was Made