Perhaps the most important historic place in the Algarve is the hilltop town of Silves. There are many things of historical interest to see there, but this article will limit itself to three of them – the Cross of Portugal, Silves cathedral, and the great castle.

Although many groups occupied the site of present-day Silves over the centuries, it only became a major town under the rule of the Moors, who named it “Xelb”, and ruled the Algarve from it most of the time from the 8th through the 12th centuries. Besides ... (more)