Parish of Marvila

Bairros de Lisboa

Juntas de Freguesias

The Parish of Marvila - the second most populous parish in Lisbon - is located in the East Zone of Lisbon, or Zona Oriental, as we prefer to say here.
Until 1886, Parish of Marvila belonged to the municipality (municipality) of Olivais, date from which it began to integrate the municipality (municipality) of Lisbon.





Marvila, with all the modernity of recent developments that are spreading by the parish, it is, however, a parish whose first references date back to the Middle Ages.

In other times, Marvila was also a stronghold of Lisbon's upper-middle and upper classes. Neighborhood with buildings signed by well-known Portuguese architects.


Curious about the origin of the name? Some claim that the name comes from "village of the sea" (Marvila), while for others, the origin of the name probably comes from the Arabic marbala which means "soil abundant in bushes, moor".

Location

With the River Tagus to the east, the Parish of Marvila is limited to the north by Olivais Parish and the Parque das Nações Parish, to the west with Freguesia de Alvalade, to the southwest with Areeiro, to the south with the Freguesia do Beato.

The Freguesia de Marvila is located at the eastern end of the city of Lisbon, the so-called Oriental Lisbon. From Lisbon Cathedral It is almost 7 km to Parish of Marvila by car.

Marvila's Contrasts

Very marked by its contrasts, densely populated areas, a lot of space to be built, the old and the modern Marvila, the Marvila of today and the one of the future that is already appearing with the modern and luxurious real estate projects that contrast with the poverty that prevailed until some decades ago in the social neighborhoods and popular. All this is Marvila.

The New Marvila

Of all the parishes in Lisbon, perhaps Marvila was the one with the most transformations it has undergone in recent decades. Modern buildings - such as the real estate development of the Braço de Prata - are spreading across the parish. Hence the great contrast!

Neighborhoods of Marvila

From the old housing nuclei, next to the convents (such as the Convent of Chelas) and the Thursdays emerged the current ones neighborhoods, time when Marvila was still part of the municipality of Olivais.
More recently, the Parish of Marvila was created in 2012, with the merger of the parishes of S. Joseph, Heart of Jesus and São Mamede.

Farms and vegetable gardens

For several centuries the lands of Marvila have been occupied by quintas (see some below), which belonged to aristocrats and the products of their gardens fed the city of Lisbon.

This was still the dominant landscape in Marvila throughout the second half of the 20th century: many of these farms continued or were gradually occupied by the new inhabitants who came to Marvila with the wave of industrialization that happened even in the second half of the last century. In these lands, the tents that soon they formed the popular neighborhoods, without public services (such as piped water), as was the case of the best known of these, the Chinese Quarter.

Later, the tents gave way to the social neighborhoods, with blocks of buildings and towers built by public authorities, a process that was intensified for the holding of Expo 1998, but which has not yet been concluded.

Parks and gardens

In addition to the farms (see below) with vegetable gardens on all sides, two large parks complete the parish's green spaces: the Bela Vista Park, where the Rock in Rio Lisboa, and the Parque do Vale do Fundão.

Convents and Churches

St. Augustine, revered in the Parochial Church of St. Augustine, on Rua Direita, is the patron saint of the parish.
The old convents, such as the Convento de Chelas and the Convento de Nossa Senhora da Conceição are also other highlights of the religious heritage of Marvila.

Find out more: Religious Heritage of Marvila

Farms and industries

The quintas (see also below) and its agricultural products, as is well known, profoundly shaped the landscape of Marvila for a long time, until the second half of the 20th century. In addition to providing food to the local market, witness to the Feira da Espiga, vendors even supplied part of the capital, Lisbon.

Marvila Industries
Afterwards, it was the turn of industries, which attracted a lot of manpower from other regions of Portugal, notably the Beiras and the North. Many neighborhoods made of stalls were appearing throughout the parish. The industries occupied the spaces from Rua do Açúcar to Braço de Prata (Railway Station). You highlights were the Abel Pereira da Fonseca wine warehouses, the former Fábrica do Soap.

Cultural centers and creative hubs
With the end of these industrial and commercial establishments in the parish, its old facilities and warehouses, when not demolished, were transformed into cultural centers, spaces of coworking, among others.

Industrial phase

After the more rural phase, with its aristocratic farms or properties belonging to religious orders, there a new moment in the history of Marvila. The installation of industries, especially in Braço de Prata and Chelas, profoundly transformed the landscape of the parish. for these industries, workers were attracted from various parts of Portugal (mainly from the North and the Beiras), who had no housing option but to build tents where remained for several decades. Other inhabitants joined these tents rehoused there from other districts of the capital (Alcântara, with the construction of the bridge today called April 25). The collapse of the old industries left the legacy of the people in the barracks.

Social neighborhoods
In order to modify this situation, the so-called social neighborhoods (or city district). Marvila originated from its beautiful farms and entered the wave of social neighborhoods, which, due to some of their deficiencies, left a negative image in the parish, as being the "ghetto of Lisbon".

Social neighborhoods and occupations

With the coup d'état of April 25, which overthrew the dictatorship of Salazar, Some housing occupations took place, as was the case in the Amendoeiras neighbourhood. The occupations also forced the new government to build social housing, which made well-known social neighborhoods, relatively frequent in Marvila.

Much has been done over the years to improve the living conditions of residents of social neighborhoods. But, "despite that, Marvila and, in particular its “social neighborhoods, continue to have a negative image that drags with it the population that resides there" [Espiral Project, CESIS].

Area and Population

Declining resident population
With 7.12 km², the Parish of Marvila has a population of 35,482 inhabitants (INE, 2021). In 2011, the parish had 37,793 inhabitants (idem), having had a significant drop in population resident during this period.

Marvila's golden years

In the early 1990s, Marvila had almost 48,000 inhabitants. Currently, the parish is still an option to live: considering the proximity to the city center, and the services offered to the population, of which two metro stations (Amendoeiras and Bela Vista).

Expo 98 and Marvila

Expo 98 (the Universal Exposition of 1998, in Lisbon) was the great event that impacted the Parish of Marvila.

Thanks to the Universal Exposition of 1998, many redevelopment works and urbanization plans in Lisbon were accelerated with a view to ending the slums and "shacks" where many families lived, especially in Marvila. In fact, Marvila has "70 percent of the population living in social housing" [RTP, May 6, 2008].

On the other hand, luxury condominiums are also being built, which has driven land prices available to have significant price increases.

RTP in Marvila

Rádio Televisão Portuguesa, RTP, has its headquarters and studios in Parish of Marvila, on Avenida Marechal Gomes da Costa, since 2004.
On site there is also an RTP museum, with free entry, open to the public every day.

Address / Address: Rádio e Televisão de Portugal (RTP)
Avenida Marechal Gomes da Costa 37. 1849-030 Lisbon. Telephone: +351 21 794 7000

A look at the real estate market

"Between Santa Apolónia Station and Parque das Nações Marina, there is a 6 kilometer line in front of the River Tagus that includes some of the lesser toponyms valued from Lisbon: Xabregas, Grilo, Beato and Marvila" [Dinheiro Vivo, July 6, 2022].

Neighborhoods of Marvila

Marvila has had many industries in the past which employed thousands of workers. Precarious housing conditions led public authorities to create social neighborhoods to rehouse people who lived in more than precarious conditions.

Learn more: Bairros de Marvila


Marvila, from Porto to the Fundão Valley
The Parish of Marvila extends from the River Tagus, where the Porto de Lisboa to Parque do Vale do Fundão, heading northwest.

In fact it is "a geographically extensive parish, crossed by two railway lines, with a industrial riverside and an interior area dotted with municipal neighborhoods and vegetable gardens" [DN, September 3, 2021].

Tourist attractions

The Parish of Marvila has among its attractions: the parks, the Church of Santo Agostinho, the Convent of São Félix and Santo Adrião, the Urban Park of Vale do Fundão, the Convent of Noosa Senhora da Conceição and Praça 25 de Abril, on the right bank of the River Tagus.

Main attractions in Marvila

Among the attractions of its rich natural, historical and religious heritage, stand out:

• the Bela Vista Park (Rock in Rio Lisboa)

• the Convent of São Félix and São Adrião (Chelas)

• the Urban Park of Vale do Fundão

• Praça 25 de Abril (on the bank of the Tagus River)

• the Walk along the Tagus River

• the Convent of Our Lady of Conception:

• the Parish Church of Marvila

• the Palace of the Marquis of Abrantes

• the Palace of Mitra

• the parks and farms (Quinta das Amendoeiras, Quinta do Alfenim...)

Rock in Rio de Lisboa

Rock fans already know Marvila because it is in the beautiful and big Bela Vista Park the Lisbon version of the famous carioca rock festival Rock in Rio Lisboa takes place.

Fundão Valley Urban Park

The Urban Park of Vale do Fundão, with an area of 9 hectares, is one of the sights of Lisbon, also considering the fact that it was once an area where there were farms that supplied their products to the city. Among the main species of interest are olaias, stone pine, poplars and wild olives.

The Quintas de Marvila

As a legacy of its rural past, the farms of the Parish of Marvila are an attraction history apart. There are several farms that can be visited: the Quinta da Rosas, Quinta do Marquês de Abrantes, Quinta das Amendoeiras, Quinta do Alfenim. the Quinta das Flores, Quinta da Salgada, Quinta dos Alfinetes also called Quinta do Marquês (where the Chinese Quarter was located, in Chelas), Quinta das Conchas (Chelas), Quinta das Flores (formerly Quinta das Cadetas) and Quinta do Ourives.

Quinta do Marquês de Abrantes

In the grounds of this farm, in the second half of the 20th century (1950s-70s) there was the so-called Chinese Quarter, a cluster of of shacks where families from the north of the country lived, especially from the Beiras. It was a typical favela where the local factory workers.

"They came to Lisbon looking for a better life. The industry needed arms to give muscle to the growth. But wages, higher than those in the province, were not enough to pay the rent on the house. Giant neighborhoods were born tin and, decades later, housing estates" [Radio Renascença, sapo.pt, March 1, 2016].
Later, the Chinese Quarter came to be called the PRODAC Quarter.
These inhabitants, around the year 2000, were relocated to the Bairro Marquês de Abrantes.

Some farms remained (Quinta da Rosa, Quinta das Amendoeiras...), but they were transformed to social occupation, some were "occupied" during and after the movement created by the 25th of April.
At the end of the 20th century, it experienced its moments of glory with the Expo 98 in Lisbon.
Closer to the present day, however, the parish has been losing population significantly. In 1991, it had a population of 47,827 inhabitants. In 2021, this number dropped to 35,482 inhabitants. I.e, a drop of almost 26% of the population (25.81%)! other attractions.

Marvila social neighborhoods

These were neighborhoods created by the government to relocate people in situations of social precariousness, such as Bairro da PRODAC, in Vale do Fundão or Bairro do Relógio, in Chelas.
"There are decades of public policies to combat exclusion and inequalities. They are paper documents that did not go out into the street. Marvila is the champion of social housing in Lisbon. There are ten. The best known is the Zone J. There, stigma and prejudice go hand in hand" [Radio Renascença, sapo.pt, March 3, 2016].

Find out more: The Neighborhoods of Marvila

What to see in the Parish of Marvila

Among the main attractions of the Parish of Marvila, the highlight is the Urban Park of Vale do Fundão. Other tourist attractions in the parish are the farms, the 25 de Abril Park (on the banks of the Tagus River), .
See also: Historical Center of Lisbon

Opportunities in Marvila

Many changes and transformations took place in Marvila; the old Marvila is disappearing slowly. A new reality, marked by modernity, tends to make Marvila an extension of the modern neighborhood of Parque das Nações. This perspective attracts new investors and real estate projects in this sense advance.

Vale Formoso

Vale Formoso is a town along the well-known Rua do Vale Formoso, in the Parish of Marvila. This street follows the train line and continues to Avenida Marechal Gomes da Costa, which separates Marvila from the Parish from Parque das Nações.
In another part of this town, on the side of Avenida Infante D. Henrique, you can already see new and modern residential buildings, next to Largo da Associação Ester Janz.

What to do in the Parish of Marvila

As a neighborhood with a traditional agricultural vocation in the past, the main options for activities there are walks in parks, on farms and squares; walk along the riverfront of the River Tagus, in the 25th of April Park.

Important urban roads

In addition to subway stations (Amendoeiras, Bela Vista), large avenues and streets pass by by Parish of Marvila, such as Avenida Infante Dom Henrique (extension), Avenida Marechal Gomes da Costa, Avenida da Ukraine, Avenida Dr. Augusto de Castro, Avenida General Antônio Spínola, Estrada de Marvila, Largo da Quinta das Salgadas, among other important roads.

+ Information

• Address/Address: Av. Paul VI 4
• Telephone: 218 310 350
• Official Link: JF de Marvila

Lisbon Region

For those who stay a little longer, discovering the surroundings and the Greater Lisbon also, it is an unmissable program.