During the Roman occupation of the Iberian peninsula, the territory of Mirandela was intensely populated; owing to its fertile, arable land it was an important agricultural centre. In the Trás-os-Montes region, Mirandela has always occupied a central place within the territory. In 1198, one of the first references to the settlement occurred with the stay of King D.
Sancho I when Bragança was under siege by troops loyal to King
Alfonso IX of León. Notice in 1401 indicated that public works were being undertaken on the walls and dungeons through the initiative of the Crown, owing to the war. A 1688 municipal document mentioned the
Postigo de São José that existed in one of the walls of the castle. Father Carvalho da Costa, writing in 1706: the town
"is walled for old use with feeble wall with parts in ruin and three doors". Another contemporary at the time, J. Alvarez Colmenar referred to Mirandela as being situated on the margins of the Tuela River and defended by a castle in 1715. With loss of its strategic/defensive role and growth in economic development, many builders looked to the unused walls as potential building material. From the 19th century on, the castle became a source of stone, helping to pave new streets and building houses. The walls of the castle were lowered by half a meter, in order to support the repaving of the city streets. Between 1874 and 1884, various parts of the walls were knocked down in order to construct buildings in the town. At the beginning of the 20th century, two of the four gates still remained at the castle: one of the gates was destroyed intentionally by the municipality. This occurred even as in May 1950, the municipal authority placed a plaque on the interior arch, commemorating the 700 years since Mirandela's elevation to the status of town. The remains of the medieval wall, represented by the
Santo António Gate, was classified as a
Property of Public Interest by decree published on 20 October 1955. By the 1970s notices describe the castle of Mirandela as in ruin. Yet, in May 2000, another plaque was erected to mark the 750 anniversary of the towns elevation. ==Architecture==