A city worth seeing, once fiercely contested
The history of the city goes back to Phoenician times. It was Roman and, as Xelb, became the magnificent capital of 500 souls in the Moorish province of Al-Gharb for 30.000 years. The dominant location made Silves the ideal fortress town.
Arab historians exuberantly praised its beauty, which was only surpassed by the splendor of Granada. And so, of course, it was bitterly defended. King Sancho I took possession of it only for a short time in 1198 and King Alfonso III did not succeed until 1242. the final conquest. The city's former glory quickly faded, and after the bishop's seat, which was founded in the middle of the 13th century, was moved to Faro (around 1580) and due to the severe damage caused by the great earthquake of 1755, Silves became an almost insignificant city.
However, Silves is still a very worth seeing city with the quiet squares, the old houses and the castle Castelo dos Mouros. A tour of the walls of the castle opens up delightful views of the place and its surroundings. The Sé Cathedral, a three-aisled late Gothic building well worth seeing with a massive transept, late Gothic choir and multi-tiered main portal, is also impressive.
Also note the Cruz de Portugal, the Cross of Portugal, a 3 m high Manueline cross at the exit of the town.
