About Fornos de Algodres

Fornos de Algodres is a municipality in the district of Guarda, Portugal. The population in 2011 was 3,831, in an area of 184.57 km². Fornos de Algodres has a continental climate with mild winters and hot summers. The average temperatures are 14.6 °C in the summer and 4.2 °C in the winter. The municipality of Fornos de Algodres includes the villages of Algodres, Ardãos, Cancela, Casal de São João, Casal dos Bernardos, Casal Novo, Fornos, Mesquitela, Moimenta, Mourão, Pedrógão, Pinheiros Altos, Poiares, São Cristóvão, São João de Areias, São Lourenço, São Pedro de Areias, São Sebastião da Feira, São Vicente, Vale deovião and Vila do Touro. Fornos de Algodres was founded in 1258 by King Afonso III, and its name comes from the furnaces (fornos in Portuguese) used to extract iron ore from the mountains nearby. The municipality is known for its iron mines, which were worked since Roman times. The small town of Fornos de Algodres was once an important centre for the iron industry. The last mine was closed in the 1970s. The municipality of Fornos de Algodres is crossed by the Rio Algodres, a tributary of the Rio Mondego. The economy of Fornos de Algodres is mainly based on agriculture and forestry. The main crops are cereals, potatoes, olives and vines. Fornos de Algodres is twinned with: Bourg-Saint-Andéol, France Castelo Branco, Portugal Chaves, Portugal Guarda, Portugal Mondim de Basto, Portugal Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal