Country Cape Verde Local time Saturday 4:36 PM UNESCO World Heritage Site inscription 2009 | Island Santiago Civil parish Santíssimo Nome de Jesus | |
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Weather 23°C, Wind NE at 40 km/h, 64% Humidity Municipality Ribeira Grande de Santiago, Cape Verde Points of interest Fortaleza Real de San Felipe, Fort Real de São Filipe, Pelourinho | ||
Vozes locais dr manuel monteiro de pina cidade velha cabo verde
Cidade Velha (Portuguese for "old city", in Cape Verdean Creole: Sidadi) is a town in the southern part of the island of Santiago, Cape Verde. It is situated on the south coast, 10 km west of the capital Praia. A former capital of Cape Verde, it is the oldest settlement in Cape Verde. Once called Ribeira Grande, its name was changed to Cidade Velha so to avoid confusion with Ribeira Grande on Santo Antão island. It is the seat of the Ribeira Grande de Santiago municipality.
Contents
- Vozes locais dr manuel monteiro de pina cidade velha cabo verde
- Map of Cidade Velha Cape Verde
- Isa pereira cidade velha at expo cape verde festival new york city
- Subdivisions
- History
- Sites of interest
- Agriculture
- Climate
- In the media
- Sports
- References
Map of Cidade Velha, Cape Verde
Located off Africa's northwest coast, this town was the first European colonial settlement in the tropics. Some of the meticulously planned original design of the site is still intact, including a royal fortress, two towering churches and a 16th-century town square. Today, Cidade Velha is an Atlantic shipping stop and center for Creole culture. The city became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2009.
Isa pereira cidade velha at expo cape verde festival new york city
Subdivisions
History
After the island was discovered, the city was named Ribeira Grande (Portuguese for large river) by António da Noli, in 1462. The settlement was built in a valley inside a large stream named Ribeira Grande, vegetation is dominant. The abundance of water and resources for agriculture made it suitable. The making of the main buildings, location on an accidental land, the settlement was built amphitheatrically, built within the sea. After discovery of the Americas, the settlement became an important port for trading slaves from Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone to Brazil and the Caribbean. Transcontinental slavery made Cidade Velha the second richest city in the Portuguese realm.
Cidade Velha's port was a stopping place for two great navigators: Vasco da Gama, in 1497, on his way to India, and Christopher Columbus, in 1498, while on his third voyage to the Americas.
Cidade Velha has the oldest colonial church in the world - Nossa Senhora do Rosário church, which was constructed in 1493 - 1495.
The location of the archipelago had a great strategic importance, located on the maritime routes with the Americas and the south of Africa. It supplied ships with water and fresh food and ship repairs. The island also served for bringing agricultural and animal species, European and African to the Pan-American continent and the Pan-American ones to Europe and Africa.
Requested by John III of Portugal to Pope Clement VII in 1532 and had a Papal bull pro excellenti in 1533, it became the seat of Africa's first diocese known as the Diocese of Santiago de Cabo Verde. During the Drake's raid, it was probably in Ribeira Brava. After the Cassard expedition, the seat may have moved to Ribeira Brava on the island of São Nicolau, today the seat is in Praia.
In the mid-16th century, the city had 500 buildings which were built from stone. It had other religious buildings including the church of Saint Roch (São Roque), Saint Peter's (São Pedro), Monte Alverne, Our Lady of Conception (Nossa Senhora da Conceição) and the chapel of Saint Lucy (Santa Luzia). Also located in the lower part was the church and hospital of Santa Casa de Misericórdia, in the upper part had the hospice and house of Companhia de Jesus.
The Sé Cathedral started construction in 1556 under Francisco da Cruz, the third bishop. It was a temple with large dimensions, located 25 meters above sea level, dominated the city with its presence. Its construction works were delayed, it was completed over a century later by the bishop Vitoriano Portuense in the 1693.
The fort Real de São Filipe overlooks the town. It was constructed in 1590 to defend the Portuguese colony from the attacks of the Frenchmen and English, in particular in 1585 when it was attacked and plundered by Francis Drake. However, it was sacked by French pirates as part of the Cassard expedition in 1712, much of its inhabitants including the bishop fled to the island interior. The capital was moved to Praia in 1770 as Ribeira Grande seemed dangerous to remain, the remaining population may have moved there.
In the mid 17th century, it had the convent of Saint Francis, located uphill, it laid in ruins, it is restored today and is a church.
Its civil, religious and military buildings laid in decay and ruin. The population did not grew again until the mid-20th century as inhabitants came from the interior to reinhabit the city, new simple buildings were built. Its notable buildings were started to be restored, the fort in 1968.
In 2000, under the coordination of the architect Álvaro Siza, it begun a preparation work of a dossier for candidacy to become a UNESCO's World Heritage Site, the dossier was presented on January 31, 2008.
Cidade Velha separate from Praia in 2005 and became the municipal seat of the new Ribeira Grande de Santiago municipality.
Sites of interest
Agriculture
Still used in the northern portion of the city today, it is the most notable is that grogue grown in the plantations of the valley of Ribeira Grande de Santiago. Distillation plants are located.
Climate
Cidade Velha features an mild desert climate (Köppen: BWh ) with a short wet season and a lengthy, very pronounced dry season. Outside of the months of August, September and October, little precipitation falls on Cidade Velha.
The city on average sees about 260 millimetres (10 in) of rain per year. Despite the fact that it has an arid climate, Cidade Velha seldom gets very hot or very cold, due to its oceanside location on Santiago Island. Temperatures are warm and constant with an average high temperature of 27 °C (81 °F) and an average low temperature of 23 °C (73 °F).
In the media
Sports
The only sports club in the city is named Ribeira Grande, it is based in the city and is the municipality's club, they played in their first competition in 2005. The club was founded before the municipality was created. Its matches are played in Praia at Estádio da Várzea and northwest of the center in Calabaceira.