Agrupamento de Escolas de AlvideEB1 Nº 4 de Cascais

Comenius Project“Tell me How it was

in your time, grandfather”

"Country and community history"

Between September and December of 2012, Cascais Elementary School N.4 3rd year class, did some research on the history of Cascais, the origin of its name, its

legends and its landmarks. The pupils had the cooperation of their family members for this research, specially their grandparents who came to the school for

workshops with their grandchildren about our village.

The pupils of other classes also wanted to take part during the family week, that took place from December 10th to December 14th, and also invited their

grandparents for workshops.

They made the famous butter biscuits Areias de Cascais, worked on portuguese stone pavement (Calçada Portuguesa) similar to the one existing in the Cascais bay

and illustrated and played an act of the legends of the Guincho Beach and of the Boca do Inferno site (Hells Mouth - an abyss formed by marine erosion were the

sea enters under a rock arch).

We shall now present a brief report of the research made about our village, as well as some pictures of our first skype videoconference with Hungary pupils, in

November 2012, and of the Family workshops mentioned above.

"Country and community history"

CASCAISResearch made by 3rd year pupils and their parents

Cascais is a costal village, only 20 Km away from Lisbon. It is a touristic place famous for its beaches, a place where you will wish to retun. It is located west from the Tagus river estuary, between the Sintra Massif and the Atlantic Ocean. Cascais county borders with Sintra County at North, South and West with the ocean and East with the Oeiras County.

The region is rich in biodiversity, a strong landscape and beautifull monuments that reflect a strong historical heritage.

The climate is mild, with more than 260 days without rain.The restaurants offer a wide range of gastronomy, fish, wine and desserts tipical of the

region .

Origin of CASCAIS

The first records of human ocupation of the region known today as Cascais county go back to the Inferior Paleolithic , according to traces found North of Talaíde, at Alto do Cabecinho (Tires) and South of Moinhos

do Cabreiro.

Cascais in the Roman PeriodAs evidence of the Roman period the highlights are the villae of Freiria (São Domingos de Rana) and Casais Velhos (Charneca), as well as a group of ten tanks discovered at Rua Marques Leal Pancada in Cascais, part of a manufacturing facility for salting fish. The Roman influence was also felt on the names of the places (as

in Caparide, from the Latin Capparis, meaning caper) and through some inscriptions, mostly funeral. 

Cascais in the Arabian PeriodThe presenceof the Arabs gave abundant place names, for example Alcoitão or Alcabideche, the birthplace of the poet Ibn Muqãna who, born in the early eleventh century, referred in his poetry to his farm experience

and the windmills.

Cascais in the Medieval Period

In the second half of the twelfth century, Cascais was a small village of fishermen and farmers. The name Cascais seems to derive from the plural of Cascal (lots of shells), which must relate to

the abundance of marine mollusks that existed in the area.Still, the territory that currently houses the county was mostly inhabited in the inland,

denouncing the dominance of agricultural activities and the fear of pirate attacks from Moors and Normans.

Although initially dependent from Sintra administration, because of its bay privileged geographical location, Cascais became a busy fishing port.

As a result, on June 7th 1364 King D. Pedro I elevated the place from hamlet to village.

In 1867, Cascais became for the first time, the beach resort of the Royal Court, when Queen Maria Pia chose the village to the practice of sea bathing, knowing that in mid-September, when the north wind usually calms down at the Atlantic coast, the sea becomes usually calmer. The stay of the Royal Family would be reinforced three years later, after converting the former house of the Governor, the Citadel, in a modest Palace, where the Court would be seasonally installed.Since there existed few accommodations equipped with the conditions required by these new type of visitors, it began since then, a building project of new housing - like the Tower of S. Sebastian, where today is the Museum-Library Condes de Castro Guimarães, or the Casa Santa Marta - which still constitute the hallmarks of a village which bases in tourism and in the art of welcoming, one of its main attractions.

FESTIVALS AND TRADITIONS

Festival of the SeaThe procession of Our Lady of Navigators is part of the Sea Festival (before the Fishermen’s

Festival ) and began in 1965 at the initiative of Lieutenant Commander António Cardoso.In the following year, the festival was a major success and could now count with the

collaboration of the Association of Fishermen, Tourism Board and City Council.In 1968, the newspaper “A Nossa Terra“ (Our Land) resumed the Fishermen’s Festival, repeating

the initiative again in 1970. After a two decades pause, the Sea Festival returned in 1992.

GASTRONOMYCarcavelos Wine

The Carcavelos wine was, and still is, a product of winemaking excellence. The ancient quality of this precious nectaris is proven in a 1772 Permit, kept in the National Archives of Torre do Tombo, which protected Carcavelos viticulture and ordered that the price of the wine should be raised due to its quality, although there are records from the export of Carcavelos wine from Quinta dos Padres Jesuits in Carcavelos to England in the seventeenth century. According to reports of the time, Carcavelos wine did even reach a production of three thousand barrels in the early nineteenth century, as a result of the significant volume of export to this country.

Tradicional Sweets

Some may say that Cascais has no typical sweets, traditional of the region, excepting, perhaps, the famous Areias (butter biscuits) and Nozes (almond and egg sweets with a

walnut on top) de Cascais.Such an idea is certainly contradicted by older inhabitants of Cascais, who can still remember the cakes factories Fábrica de Bolos de Cascais, Casa Faz Tudo or Casa

Tavares, where were manufactured, for example, the Joaninhas (ladybugs) biscuits, made of almonds, eggs and sugar, dating back at least to the late nineteenth century, but also the royal sweets – since they were produced (and much appreciated) for King D.

Carlos – Pratas crackers and areias – considered to be the sweets for the rich people – in oposition to lard cookies (with lard and cinamon), a humbler recipe of usual

comsumption among the fishermen.

Cascais Museums

In 2011 the Library-Museum Condes de Castro Guimarães, the Sea Museum - King D. Carlos and the Portuguese Music Museum – Casa Verdades de Faria, were accredited and integrated in the portuguese network of museums. This had a major importance since it was a formal recognition of these museums technical quality.

Now we will present some photos of the Skype

videoconference and the Family Week Workshops…

Teacher Antonio is greeting the theachers in Hungary.Teacher Sónia is translating to the pupils…

Teacher Krystina is happy to be able to talk to us!

Teacher Krystina’s students share with us their researchs… some parents of my pupils came to help with the videoconference.

My pupils present themselves… nervously and in English, with the help of the English teacher.

Drawings of the Condes Castro Guimarães Museum.

A description of a family celebration of one of the pupils… and a most heterogenous family tree.

December 10th to December 14th 2012

First year class pupils baking “Areias de Cascais” biscuits with their grandparents.

Teacher Filipa helps her pupils…

Second year pupils recreated Cascais Coat of Arms…

This picture shows their work with stone pavement (Calçada).

The posters on the History of Cascais that third year pupils did with their grandparents during the workshop.

Parents and grandparents in active cooperation…

Different generations working together with a great envolvement of the families…

The pupils sang and danced a music to thank the help of the families that came to the workshop.

Teacher Marinela working on Cascais legends with her pupils and their families.