first combat between the French and Anglo-Portuguese troops was fought almost beneath its walls in the month of August, 1808. Wellesley had landed near the Mondego, and advanced as far as Leiria. Junot, still in occupation of Lisbon, sent Delaborde to check the British advance. After trying to find a position at Batalha, Delaborde withdrew to Obidos, where he took his stand on high ground in the middle of the valley. Driven from there his next defence was made at Roliça, which closes in the long valley further south. After a fierce engagement, in which the English, though victorious, lost an unnecessary number of men through the impetuous charge of the main body without waiting for the flanking columns to come up, the French office was forced to retreat to Lisbon.
Apart from the Anglo-historical interest of this district Obidos has a cachet peculiarly its own as one of the few completely walled cities still existing in the Peninsula. On the west the ramparts, with their turreted angles, stretch along the brow of a steep, arid slope, like those of a miniature Jerusalem. The south wall climbs the ridge of a lofty crag, which is crowned by a mediæval castle, strong and imposing, attributed to the reign of D. Diniz, and from here looking north to the houses of Caldas far away, the view is magnificent. Ancient convents of curious build are below in the well-watered plain, which is called the Varzea da Rainha, probably after Queen Catharine, wife of D. João III, who built the aqueduct of the city. The little river Arnoia bathes the foot of the hill. The town is entered by two pointed archways in the walls, and is a veritable museum of old architecture, few buildings being less than two centuries old, some of the sixteenth century, and others more ancient still. A quaint hexagon-shaped church is among these, inclining one to the opinion that Obidos Castle may at one time have been a
197
