VIRTUAL: Prague Heritages

Abstract

Angra do Heroísmo is a Portuguese new town founded on Terceira island (The Azores – Portugal), dating back to the last quarter of the Sixteenth century and one of the first colonial towns to be built in the Portuguese overseas. In 1980 the city was almost entirely destroyed by a violent earthquake. A strong dynamic emerged from this tragedy and heritage was used as a major political argument and practice by the new Regional Autonomous Government, which had just been established, in the aftermath of the democratic Carnation Revolution in 1974. But also by the central government, serving the political goals of an also new democratic government, namely regarding its integration in international affairs, after almost 50 years of dictatorship. Four years after the earthquake, and following three UNESCO missions, Angra do Heroísmo was listed as World Heritage UNESCO, being the first Portuguese historical urban area to accomplish such an achievement. Drawing on a local perspective on the specific case study of Angra, the aim of this paper is to give input to the history of heritage politics and policies: whether international, national, or local, as well as to highlight the importance of knowledge-based sustainability for heritage, namely concerning memory, identity, and local culture. Therefore, the paper will focus on the history of Angra and on the intertwined details of its reconstruction, with its recognition as a valuable asset and following classification as a world heritage.