The pine forest was initially planted by King Afonso III (1248-1279) in the 13th century, with the aim of halting the advance and degradation of the dunes, as well as protecting the city of Leiria and its Castle and agricultural land from degradation due to wind-blown sand, which had become a major concern for the region's inhabitants. It was then substantially expanded by King Dinis I between 1279 and 1325 to its current size. A large area along the coast was then planted, especially with maritime pine.[3] Some authors even attribute the beginning of the planting of the Leiria pine forest to King Sancho II (1223-1248).
Whenever trees were cut down, they were replanted - in this way the pine forest remained intact. Since at least the last quarter of the 15th century, the position of Chief Guard of the King's Pine Forests or Royal Pine Forests of Leiria, Guard and Gamekeeper of the King's Pine Forests, was hereditary in the Rodrigues Veloso, Costa de Mesquita and, finally, Silva de Ataíde families, until its extinction in 1835.[4]
The Leiria pine forest was very important for the Maritime Discoveries, as the wood from the pine trees was used to build ships. Pitch was also used to protect the caravels. There are still ovens where it was made.
It would become very important for the economic development and demographic growth of the region in the 18th and 19th centuries, as it was one of the main drivers of industries such as shipbuilding, glassmaking, metallurgy and resin products (through the extraction of pine gum in the 19th century) - the wood was used both as a raw material and as a source of energy for industries and homes.
Forest fires
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Fires are part of the history of Pinhal. In 1824, a fire consumed around 5,000 hectares.[5] In 1916, the journalist and poet Acácio de Paiva pointed out "repeated fires in the Leiria pine forest", one of which consumed 150 hectares.[6] At the same time, the famous cyclone of 15 February 1941 is said to have affected around 300,000 trees in Pinhal, according to sources; The storm caused damage across the country, with winds of around 130 km/h. In 2017, during the Portuguese forest fires of October 15 and 16, 86% of the pine forest was completely burned. A TVI report published in April 2018 claims that this large fire was caused by a group of loggers called the "Pine Forest Mafia", intensified by strong winds caused by Hurricane Ophelia passing through western Portugal. Three years after the fire, 11% of the burned area has been reforested, and problems such as burnt wood that has not yet been removed and the emergence of invasive species remain. The lack of a reforestation plan with defined goals raises fears that the forest will return almost exclusively to a pine forest, despite the efforts of civil society organizations to diversify the biological composition.[9] In January 2022, a new version of the Forest Management Plan for the Leiria National Forest was made available for public consultation, reflecting the analysis carried out after the fire. It is recognised that pine is the most suitable tree for the soil, but other species will also be planted, although not as much as would be desirable due to the scarcity of organic matter. It should be noted that before the 2017 fire, only 3% to 4% of the forest was not planted with maritime pines.[10] In September 2022, almost five years after the great fire of 2017, the problems of slow reforestation, lack of undergrowth clearance and burnt trees persist, but especially the multiplication of invasive species, namely acacia. The wooded area represents 46.5% of the area burned in 2017, and of the 4,396ha already reforested, 1,773ha were reforested naturally and 2,652ha by plantation.
(Source: Wikipedia)