Francisco de Almeida Cardoso de Albuquerque, 1st Count of MangualdeMaria Teresa de Sousa Botelho e Melo, Countess of Mangualde to the 2nd Count of Mangualde with her sister, Maria dos Prazeres de Sousa Botelho Mourão e VasconcelosFernando de Albuquerque, 4th Count of Mangualde, 6th Count of Vila Real and 5th Count of Melo
The countship represented the elevation of the Viscountcy of Mangualde, originally granted to Dom Francisco de Almeida Cardoso de Albuquerque by King Carlos I of Portugal on 23 April 1891.[1] He was the fourth son of Tiago da Silva Albuquerque e Amaral de Almeida Cardoso, holder of the entailed estate of Nabais, Lord of the House and estates of Mangualde, and, through marriage, Lord of the House of Portela in Mesquitela.[2]
Dom Fernando de Almeida Cardoso de Albuquerque, 2nd Count of Mangualde (post-Monarchy) acquired the family seat in the 19th century from the heirs of Bento José do Amaral,[2][3][4] establishing it as the residence of the Counts of Mangualde. Fernando was the son of Dom Francisco de Almeida Cardoso de Albuquerque, 1st Viscount (1889) and later 1st Count of Mangualde (1905), was born in Mesquitela, and had served as President of the Municipality of Mangualde and Civil Governor of Viseu. Built in the 18th century, the house features a decorative façade with curved-lintel windows and a main entrance crowned by a semicircular pediment bearing the Amaral and Saraiva coat of arms. The rear overlooks a serene Baroque-style garden with ornamental plants, mazes, and a water basin.[2][3][4][5]
Today, the house has been converted into a guesthouse[6] and has been classified as a Property of Municipal Interest since 2010.[2][3][4][5]
Dom Francisco de Sousa de Albuquerque, 3rd Count of Mangualde (post-Monarchy), established, in 1970, the Fundação da Casa de Mateus, in a distinctive manner that ensured the preservation of heritage and history.[7][8] It aimed to conserve and restore archives, and, in 1971, was granted public utility status.[8]Dom Fernando de Sousa Botelho de Albuquerque, 4th Count of Mangualde, became Executive Director in 1973,[9][10] and following his death in January 2022, Teresa Margarida Gomez de Sousa Botelho de Albuquerque assumed the role.[8][10] In 2021, Fernando de Albuquerque was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Prince Henry by the President of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.[8][9][10][11]
1 2 "Nobreza de Portugal e do Brasil", Direcção de Afonso Eduardo Martins Zúquete, Editorial Enciclopédia, 2.ª Edição, Lisboa, 1989, Volume Segundo, pp. 717-8
1 2 3 4 5 "Monumentos". www.monumentos.gov.pt (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 2025-08-25.
1 2 3 4 "PESQUISA GERAL". imovel.patrimoniocultural.gov.pt (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 2025-08-25.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
