Nelas

Nelas is a municipality located in the Centro Region of continental Portugal. The population in 2011 was 14,037, in an area of 125.71 km².HistorySettlement of the territory of Nelas date back to the settlement by Neolithic and Stone age cultures, between 5000 and 3000 BC. Many of the structures that developed in this period were stone slabs and large rocks, and included megalithic monuments such as the Orca Pramelas, in Canas de Senhorim, and Outeiro Roque, near the village Lapa do Lobo.The Roman settlements also intersected this territory, with the construction of roads (such as that still visible in Santar and Vilar Seco).Remnants of Middle Age influences can be since in the gravestone in Pedras da Forca.The municipality of Nelas was created on 9 December 1852, during the politico-administrative reforms following the Liberal Revolution, that rationalized the chaotic local administration, and merged the two older municipalities of Senhorim with Canas de Senhorim. By Decree, Queen Maria II of Portugal and the Queen's Minister Rodrigo da Fonseca Magalhães, created the municipality of Nelas.The municipality advanced due to is privileged geographic situation, at the junction of several roadways connecting Viseu to the Serra da Estrela mountain range, and the railway way that also crossed the mountains. This position allowed the municipality to become the major industrial centre of the district of Viseu during the 20th century.GeographySituated within the Centro region, the municipality is located on the Beirão plateau, surrounded in the south and east by the Serra da Estrela, the Serra Açor, and the Serra da Lousã mountain ranges; to the west the Serra do Bussaco, Serra do Caramulo, Serra da Freita and Serra do Montemurro. To the southwest is the right margin of the Mondego River, while to the northwest is the left bank of the Dão River. The accented topography of approximately 124.57km2 ranges from 256to above seal level.