S. Torcato is a small village 6 km from Guimarães, with a rich historical and cultural heritage, where one can feel the harmony between the Earth, people, and the river—always connected by paths steeped in history that we will strive to restore and preserve. As a valley of rural traditions, with the introduction of hard corn in the mid-16th century, the mills played an important role in local economic development.

 

The distinctive trellised vineyards, which flank the farmlands and the river, in harmony with the mills, lend a and distinctive scenic beauty unique to this region of Minho.

 

A land of faith and strong, centuries-old traditions and culture, the veneration of St. Torcato culminates in the Great Pilgrimage on the first Sunday in July.

 

The town offers visitors other points of interest, in addition to the beautiful granite basilica, the surrounding parks, the Ethnographic Museum, and the Sacred Art Museum, the Chapel of Fonte do Santo—the site where St. Torcato was martyred in the year 715, when he sought to halt the advance of the Arab army led by Muça, Tarik’s general, into the region. According to tradition, his body was discovered by a Benedictine monk under a pile of stones, at the site where the Chapel of Fonte do Santo stands today.

 

The monument with the richest history is, without a doubt, the Old Church of St. Torcato, where, for centuries, the saint’s incorrupt body was kept.