Alcobaca Monastery

The Mosteiro de Alcobaca (Alcobaca Monastery) is a large medieval monastery and UNESCO World Heritage Site in the small town of Alcobaca in Central Portugal, not far from Leiria. Like the monastery of Santa Cruz in Coimbra, it was the first Gothic building to be built in Portugal.

The Gothic architecture of the Monastery of Mosteiro de Alcobaca in Alcobaca is embellished with later Manueline elements, and construction work on the building has been going on for over a century. It is still the largest church in Portugal with the largest cloister and functions as a state-run museum. Its imposing and magnificent monastery complex is one of the finest examples of early Gothic architecture in Portugal.

The only real flash of artistic beauty is the tomb of King Pedro and his wife Inaas, and their fateful story is the highlight of every visit to the Mosteiro de Alcobaassa. The monastery was built over a mighty church and dates back to a time when monks had a hard and difficult vocation, and the monastery reflects this austere and austere life. The church was hired in 1153 by King Afonso Henrique to demonstrate the power of the new ruling dynasty after the Christian crusades forced the Moors out of Central Portugal.

The Mosteiro de Alcobaca (Alcobaca Monastery) has been attracting visitors for over 800 years. It is one of the most emblematic buildings in Portugal and is about 90 minutes by car from Lisbon. Those who like to visit old buildings, but do not get to the monastery itself, should take a look inside to tempt to a short trip.

It is one of the most important monasteries in Europe from the time of the monks and was a center of religious studies and cults, in which until the dissolution of the monastic orders in Portugal in 1834 more than 1,000 monks lived. The monastery was founded in 1153 by the first Portuguese king Afonso Henrique and developed a close relationship with the Portuguese monarchy during its seven hundred-year history. It was built to strengthen the Christian presence along the Tagus when the Portuguese kingdom expanded its territory southwards.

The monastery church was the first Gothic building in Portugal after the older Augustinian monastery of Santa Cruz in Coimbra. The monastery of Alcobaca is one of Portugal’s most important medieval monasteries. Due to its artistic, cultural and historical relevance, the monastery was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1989.

The monastery of Alcobaca was declared a national monument on 1 January 1907 and included in a special protection zone on 16 August 1957. In December 1989 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The monastery was built in the early Gothic style, which represents the arrival of style in Portugal.

The monastery of Santa Maria d’Alcobaca in Lisbon paid tribute to the Cistercians for their support of the conquest of Santarem in 1152, knowing that they would colonize and cultivate the surrounding land.

Founded in 1153 to commemorate the victory over the Moors, the Abbey of Santa Maria was completed in 1223. It is Portugal’s largest church and one of its most outstanding architectural monuments. The Cistercian monastery of Mosteiro de Santa Maria was founded in 1178 in honour of a vow made by Portugal’s first king, Afonso Henrique, when he faced the Moors in Santarem. In the Middle Ages, the monastery was one of the richest and most prestigious in Europe.

The monastery church is one of the few European monuments to preserve intact a whole group of medieval buildings, the largest early Gothic building in Portugal. The construction of the abbey began in 1178 with the construction of the abbey of Clairvaux, the seat of the Cistercian order in France.

It was founded in 1153 by Bernard of Clairvaux as a gift to the first Portuguese King Afonso I (Afonso Henrique, 1112a1185) after the kings had conquered the town of Moors in March 1147. Construction began in 1178, 25 years after the first Cistercian monks settled in the region of Alcobaassa. The monks lived in a wooden house before moving into the monastery in 1223. The history of the Monasteryas Foundation is told on eighteenth-century azulejo panels lining the walls of the Sala dos Reis (Royal Hall).

The church next to the monastery is an early example of Gothic architecture in Portugal and was the largest in the country at the time of its completion. Behind an imposing baroque façade hides a high, austere monk’s church, free from the forest and unadorned with arches from the 12th century.

The monastery was founded by Afonso Henrique, the first king of Portugal in 1153 in honor of a vow he made during the Reconquista of Santarem in 1147. His estate became one of the richest and most powerful in the country. It included 999 monks who held mass in layers. Built in the 13th century by the Abbey of Pontigny in French Burgundy, the most magnificent monastic building under construction, the church’s intellectual and political influence spread to the western part of the Iberian Peninsula.

The importance of the monastery can be measured by the fact that in the 13th and 14th centuries many monarchs were buried there. The most important things are the tombs of Ines Castro and King Pedro (1320-1367). But the most interesting are not the royal tombs of the monasteries.

If you enjoyed this article you might also like to read about Most Famous Monasteries in Portugal

2 thoughts on “Alcobaca Monastery”

Leave a Comment