Coordinates:40.2112390, -8.4290130
The Municipality of Coimbra, made up of 18 administrative areas, covers an area of 319 km² and has around 145,000 inhabitants. Made up of rural and urban areas, its most significant activities are services, health and commerce, which are carried out in the most emblematic and important areas of the municipality, helping Coimbra to stand out and be recognized as a city of knowledge.
With its vast wealth of heritage, Coimbra has created in the national consciousness the notion of a multicultural city with a unique identity, given its intellectual, cultural and professional plurality, which is evident in the associations that exist in the municipality.
Since Roman times, the occupation and desire of the population to dominate its hill and fertile fields by the river, strategically located and easily defensible, has been all too evident.
Chosen as the capital of the Kingdom of Portugal by King Afonso Henriques, Coimbra achieved hegemony in the different areas of knowledge. It is the birthplace of kings and a center of multiculturalism that sees its plurality recognized with the definitive installation in the city of the most important educational institution in Portugal: the University.
Closely linked to the city and the university are the academic traditions, the sororities, the student life and the song of Coimbra, where the erudite and the popular meet and mix and which constitute its intangible heritage of excellence.
Pleasant parks and gardens embellish the landscape and invite moments of contemplation, ennobling Coimbra’s history and natural and built heritage.
Some of the most emblematic national figures have passed through the city, spreading their name around the world. Examples include: St. Teotónio, the first Portuguese saint, founder of the Monastery of Santa Cruz, a landmark institution in the affirmation of Portugal’s independence and a center of exceptional national intellectuality; St. Anthony, Canon Regent of Santa Cruz, who decided to embrace the Franciscan order in Coimbra; Queen St. Elizabeth, founder of the Monastery of Santa Clara and venerated in the city since the reign of King Manuel I; Sister Lúcia, who was the first to visit the city. Manuel I; Sister Lucia, a Carmelite, who chose this city for her spiritual retreat, strategically located on the religious routes: Rota Mariana and Caminhos de Santiago.
Coimbra, illustriously recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, is a land of charm and culture, experiences and traditions, singers and authors, politicians and philosophers, scientists and so many others who were and are the essence of the Portuguese nation.
Website:http://www.cm-coimbra.pt/