Museu Militar do Porto
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Museu Militar do Porto | |
 Main building of the museum | |
 | |
| Established | April 1, 1977 |
|---|---|
| Location | Bonfim, Porto, Portugal |
| Coordinates | 41°08′45″N 8°35′43″W / 41.1459°N 8.5953°W |
| Type | Military museum |
| Director | Carlos de Oliveira Andrade |
| Owner | Portuguese Army |
| Website | exercito.pt/sites/MusMilPORTO |
The Museu Militar do Porto (translated: Military Museum of Porto) is a pertaining institution to the Portuguese Army, dedicated for the preservation of military history, located in Porto, Portugal.
The creation of a military museum in the city of Porto dates back to the late 19th century, when a portuense painter, Joaquim Vitorino Ribeiro, started collecting pieces and documents related to military history. This collection was then the base of an exposition inaugurated on August 24, 1920, by President António José de Almeida, marking the centenary of the Liberal Revolution of 1820. The exposition resulted in an interest by the City Council in creating a permanent military museum in the city.
By 1957 the commandant-in-chief of the Military Region of Northern Portugal, based in Porto city, conducted a study in order to adapt the Castle of São João da Foz, at Foz do Douro parish, for a museum. However, the idea was definitively abandoned by 1970, due to the high cost of the adaptation of the building. A new location was identified in 1977, in a building in the Rua do Heroísmo, where the delegation of the former secret police PIDE/DGS used to be located between the 1940s up to 1974.
In 1977, the Revolutionary Council, created after the Carnation Revolution of 25 April 1974, legislated the founding of the Museu Militar do Porto. After the proper adaptation of the building and installation of all the contents, the inauguration took place on 21 March 1980 by the President of the Republic, Ramalho Eanes.
In 2025, a proposal by the Portuguese Communist Party was approved to relocate the Military Museum to make way for the creation of a Museum of Anti-Fascist Resistance in Porto.[1][2]
