In 2014, the Portuguese Parliament unanimously decided to institute the 20th of October as the National Day of the Lines of Torres Vedras, thus honoring the memory and resistance of the Portuguese people, combined with strategy and military engineering. This deliberation publicly recognized the spirit of sacrifice of all those who fought against the invader by joining the allied army or by building fortifications, as well as those that, by abandoning their homes and destroying their property, deprived the French army of local food supplies.
The choice of the 20th of October is highly symbolic, since it was on this date that the defensive strategy of the Lines of Torres Vedras began to be drawn on the ground: 20th of October [1809] is the date on the memo that Lord Wellington directed to its main engineer, Richard Fletcher, ordering the recognition of the terrain and the fortification of the most convenient and defensible points, creating a defense system north of Lisbon.
These were temporary fortifications, erected in record time using the workforce of around 150,000 Portuguese, and which constituted a decisive turning point in the history of the Napoleonic Campaigns, assuming great importance both for the History of Portugal and for the contemporary world History.
Since its establishment, the Historical Route of the Lines of Torres Vedras celebrates the National Day of the Lines of Torres Vedras. Annually, it is up to one of the founding municipalities to host the commemorative ceremony, which is part of an extended program that cuts across the entire RHLT territory.
This program seeks to reconcile culture and history with relaxing and leisure experiences that include horseback riding, equestrian baptisms, geocaching, workshops, guided tours, gastronomic shows, wine tasting, and spectacles, among other initiatives.
In 2019, Arruda dos Vinhos was responsible for hosting the commemorative ceremony, the opening of which was the responsibility of Rute Miriam, member of the RHLT board and vice-president of the municipality of Arruda dos Vinhos. The opening was followed by the public presentation of the first issue of INVADE! and a concert by the Euterpe Chamber Orchestra.
Preceding the ceremony was enacted, in Sobral de Monte Agraço, a recreation of the Escaramuça of Vila de Sobral, which took place on October 12, 1810, when the advanced guard of the 8th Junot Corps marched on the northern flank of Sobral, attacking Spencer's outposts. The fight continued within the village, which eventually ended in the hands of the enemy, with more than a hundred casualties on both sides.
The recreation of the episode was commented on by Colonel Ribeiro Faria and preceded by a march of troops on Avenida Marquês de Pombal, having ended with the laying of a wreath on the plaque evocative of the population's effort in building the forts and strongholds of the Defense Lines of Lisbon.
The initiative was organized by the Associação de Cultura e Recreio September 13, 1913, which counted with the participation of historical recreational groups from the Portuguese Napoleonic Association and with the support of the municipality of Sobral de Monte Agraço, through the Interpretation Center of the Lines of Torres Vedras (CILT).
Between 18 and 25 October various activities were held for the general public, for families with children, and for schools, namely visits to the Fortes da Carvalha and Cego (Arruda dos Vinhos); to the Bucelas CILT and to the Forte da Ajuda Grande, with notes of historical recreation and demonstration of period weapons (Loures); the simulation of ‘an invaded fort’, the short story ‘Ficaram a Ver Navios’ (‘They stood empty-handed’,) integrated in the Cycle of Tales with History Inside and the GeoWigo activity ‘Discovering the Lines of the 21st century’ (Mafra); the pedestrian walk to the Forts of Serra da Aguieira, equestrian baptisms in Morgado Lusitano, tasting of the “Encostas de Xira” wines, a show of Raízes Ribatejanas liqueurs and A Cozinha d'Anita jams and the theatrical staging ‘Vila Franca at the time of the French Invasions ‘, With the participation of the Cooperativa Eseliora CRL.
During the weekend of October 19 and 20, another edition of ‘Eating with the Generals’ was held, an initiative in which the participating restaurants present in their menus a dish or set of choices inspired by the period. Gastronomic experiences with local ingredients are proposed, accompanied by anecdotes or short stories to better recreate 19th century palates.
This year, the National Day commemorative ceremony will be hosted by Torres Vedras, with the usual program extending to the entire territory of the Lines of Torres Vedras.
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