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Monsanto e Idanha-a-Velha is a civil parish in the municipality of Idanha-a-Nova, Portugal. Thanks to its fine collection of ruins, the village of Idanha-a-Velha has some of the country's most important archaeological sites. It stands in a place where a Roman city once lay, the capital of Civitas Igaeditanorum (1st century BC) and later the episcopal seat during occupation by the Suebi and Visigoths.
It was occupied by Muslims in the 8th century and taken back by Christians in the 12th century. It was donated to the Knights Templar in the 13th century and still has traces of different ages that attest to permanent occupation by various civilisations. Perched on a hilltop that oversees all the surrounding horizons, the village of Monsanto has a unique charm that has earned it two titles in the 20th century – the Most Portuguese Village in Portugal in 1938, a title awarded by the Portuguese Secretariat for Propaganda under the Estado Novo regime, and Historical Village in 1995.
Monsanto is one of the region's main tourist attractions and offers visitors a unique experience. It was granted charters by King Afonso Henriques, King Sancho I, King Sancho II and King Manuel. The oldest part is also the highest point, where the Knights Templar built a wall with the donjon.
References:The Château du Lude is one of the many great châteaux of the Loire Valley in France. Le Lude is the most northerly château of the Loire Valley and one of the last important historic castles in France, still inhabited by the same family for the last 260 years. The château is testimony to four centuries of French architecture, as a stronghold transformed into an elegant house during the Renaissance and the 18th century. The monument is located in the valley of Le Loir. Its gardens have evolved throughout the centuries.
