Proença-a-Nova

Proença-a-Nova lies in the interior of Beira, west of Castelo Branco. Once known as Cortiçada, the settlement belonged to the Hospitallers, who helped defend and organize lands held by the early Portuguese kings. In 1244 the order's prior, Rodrigo Egídio, granted its inhabitants a charter setting out their duties and rights. The older name gave way to Proença in the sixteenth century, and Manuel I renewed the charter in 1512. A description published in 1712 counted 150 inhabitants in the town.