In 1854, the first contract was signed to construct a rail link between Sintra and Lisbon.
A decree signed on 26 June 1855 regulated the contract between the government and Count Claranges Lucotte but was later rescinded in 1861.
The connection was finally inaugurated on 2 April 1887.

The Portuguese Riviera originated when King Luís I of Portugal ordered a royal residence to be constructed in Cascais Citadel, starting the tradition of Cascais being the Portuguese royal family's Summer residence, which lasted from 1870 to 1908, transforming the seaside village into a cosmopolitan address.
Thanks to King Luís I, the citadel was equipped with the country's first electric lights in 1878.
Cascais also benefited with the construction of better roads to Lisbon and Sintra, a casino, a bullfight ring, a sports club, and improvements to basic infrastructure for the population.
Many noble families built impressive mansions still to be seen in the town centre and environs.
The first railway arrived in 1889.

In 1896, King Carlos I of Portugal, a lover of all maritime activities, installed in Cascais Citadel the first oceanographic laboratory in Portugal.
The King himself led a total of 12 scientific expeditions to the coast; these ended in 1908 with his assassination in Lisbon.

From the second half of the 19th century into the first decades of the 20th century, Sintra also became a privileged place for artists: musicians such as José Vianna da Motta; composers such as Alfredo Keil, painters like João Cristino da Silva (author of one of the most celebrated canvases of Portuguese Romantic art, "Cinco Artistas em Sintra"), writers such as Eça de Queirós or Ramalho Ortigão, all these people lived, worked or got inspiration from Sintra's landscapes.

By the beginning of the 20th century, Sintra was recognized as a summer resort visited by aristocrats and millionaires.
Among these, Carvalho Monteiro, owner of a considerable fortune (known as "Monteiro dos Milhões") constructed near the main town on an estate he bought from the Baroness of Regaleira, the Quinta da Regaleira, regarded as a prime example of Neo-Manueline architecture.
In 1854, the first contract was signed to construct a rail link between Sintra and Lisbon. A decree signed on 26 June 1855 regulated the contract between the government and Count Claranges Lucotte but was later rescinded in 1861. The connection was finally inaugurated on 2 April 1887.
The Portuguese Riviera originated when King Luís I of Portugal ordered a royal residence to be constructed in Cascais Citadel, starting the tradition of Cascais being the Portuguese royal family's Summer residence, which lasted from 1870 to 1908, transforming the seaside village into a cosmopolitan address. Thanks to King Luís I, the citadel was equipped with the country's first electric lights in 1878. Cascais also benefited with the construction of better roads to Lisbon and Sintra, a casino, a bullfight ring, a sports club, and improvements to basic infrastructure for the population. Many noble families built impressive mansions still to be seen in the town centre and environs. The first railway arrived in 1889.
In 1896, King Carlos I of Portugal, a lover of all maritime activities, installed in Cascais Citadel the first oceanographic laboratory in Portugal. The King himself led a total of 12 scientific expeditions to the coast; these ended in 1908 with his assassination in Lisbon.
From the second half of the 19th century into the first decades of the 20th century, Sintra also became a privileged place for artists: musicians such as José Vianna da Motta; composers such as Alfredo Keil, painters like João Cristino da Silva (author of one of the most celebrated canvases of Portuguese Romantic art, "Cinco Artistas em Sintra"), writers such as Eça de Queirós or Ramalho Ortigão, all these people lived, worked or got inspiration from Sintra's landscapes.
By the beginning of the 20th century, Sintra was recognized as a summer resort visited by aristocrats and millionaires. Among these, Carvalho Monteiro, owner of a considerable fortune (known as "Monteiro dos Milhões") constructed near the main town on an estate he bought from the Baroness of Regaleira, the Quinta da Regaleira, regarded as a prime example of Neo-Manueline architecture.
Portuguese Riviera