The small town of Torre de Moncorvo, in north-east Portugal, is famous for its Renaissance buildings and religious edifices and for its long-standing commercial importance, boosted in particular by the presence of the Marranos during the Inquisition. However, this did not prevent the Inquisition from bringing many cases to trial.
The Jewish presence goes back much further, probably to the Middle Ages, as evidenced by the centrality of the Moncorvo synagogue in regional religious affairs. The Jewish quarter was located near the Church of Mercy, where the Rua Nova now stands, which also housed a synagogue in one of its houses.
Among the city’s most prominent figures were the brothers and businessmen Manuel Rodrigues Isidro and Vasco Pires Isidro, the former working in banking and the latter in commerce.
Sources : Encyclopaedia Judaica, Rede de Judiarias