Tomar

Convent • Tomar, Santarém

On a hilltop overlooking Tomar, the Convent of Christ brings together the former Templar Castle, the convent of the Order of Christ and other spaces connected with its historic enclosure. Its history begins in 1160, with the foundation of the castle by the Templars. At its centre stands the Charola, a Romanesque oratory inspired by the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, later enriched with painting, sculpture and gilded woodcarving. After the extinction of the Templars, the Order of Christ received this heritage; under Prince Henry the Navigator new cloisters were built, and King Manuel I enlarged the convent church, where the celebrated Chapter House Window stands out. Built over several centuries, the complex brings together Romanesque, Gothic, Manueline, Renaissance, Mannerist and Baroque elements. Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1983, it remains a monumental reading of Portuguese history.

Castle • Tomar, Santarém

On the hilltop overlooking Tomar, the Castle of Tomar marks the beginning of the great Convent of Christ complex. The fortification began to be built in 1160, after the donation of the region to the Templars, and is linked to Gualdim Pais, master of the Order of the Temple. Its position protected a strategic point between the Tagus and Coimbra, then the capital of the kingdom. Even today, Romanesque military solutions associated with the Templars can be read in the walls, such as the sloping base that strengthened them, and the keep, rising above the citadel. In the lower enclosure stood the former fortified town; to the west was placed the Charola, the Templar oratory that would later become part of the Convent of Christ. Classified as a National Monument in 1910 and included in the ensemble inscribed by UNESCO in 1983, the castle preserves the defensive memory that shaped Tomar.