TOWER OF BELEM-by Marta González-Hidalgo

Tower of Belém

This year, at our prom trip, we were in some different places like Caceres or Trujillo, but the best one was Lisbon.  Lisbon is the capital of Portugal and it's a nice city; although we were for only a short time, I loved it and so I will talk about one of the most important monuments of the city, the tower of Belém.

As I said, the tower is one of the main tourist destinations due to its architectural beauty and history.  The tower which is one of the best examples of Manueline architecture, is a Portuguese architectural style that was developed in the reign of Manuel I of Portugal. It was built to serve as a center for tax collection to enter to the city because it was located in a zone where ships had to pass to enter the city. 

Its construction began in 1514, under the reign of Manuel I of Portugal, and the architect was Francisco de Arruda. The works of construction of the tower were completed in 1520.

The tower is located at the mouth of the Tagus River in the Santa Maria de Belém. The monument is from the Eastern and has Islamic influences and its beauty is especially from abroad.Its structure consists of two main elements: the tower and ground. Inside the tower there are some floors:

     First floor - Living the Governor.

     Second floor - Sala de los Reyes, elliptical ceiling and fireplace decorated with hemispheres.

     Third floor - Courtroom

     Fourth floor - Chapel

     Fifth floor - Terrace Tower

Belém Tower was declared World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1983