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Vila
Real de Santo António
The original town of Santo António de
Arenilla, built by fishermen on a sand bar in the river Guadiana,
was swept away in a violent storm.
With the same determination he showed in rebuilding Lisbon after
the earthquke of 1755, the Marquês the Pombal decided
in 1774 to raise a new Santo António from the ruins of
the old. Nearly a century after the original settlement was
destroyed, Vila Real de Santo António was built. It took
just five months. The town, laid out in a grid design drawn
up by the architect Reinaldo Serrano recalls the Baixa quarter
of Lisbon. At its heart lies the old Praça
Real, a model of classical harmony and proportion. The
square is paved in the tradicional Portuguese style, with a
circular pattern that frames the obelisk erected in honour of
the town's founder.
Once rebuilt, Vila Real soon reestablished itself as a fishing
port and went on to become a thriving centre for trade with
neighbouring Andalusia.
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