TOMAR: CONVENTO DE CRISTO
Founded in 1162 by the Grand Master of the Templars, the Convent of Christ
still retains some reminders of these monk-knights and the inheritors of
their mantle, the Order of Christ. Under Henry the Navigator, the Governor
of the Order from 1418, cloisters were built between the Charola and the
Templars’ fortress, but it was the reign of João III (1521–57) that saw the
greatest changes. Architects such as João de Castilho and Diogo de Arruda,
engaged to express the Order’s power and royal patronage in stone, built the
church and cloisters with dazzling Manueline flourishes, which reached a
crescendo with the window in the west front of the church.
- 15 minute walk from Tomar centre.
- Tel: 249 313 481.
-
-
from Lisbon, Coimbra
& Leiria. -
9am–6:30pm daily (Oct–May: to
5:30pm; last adm: 30 mins before closing). -
1 Jan, Easter, 1 May, 25
Dec. -
(free 9am–2pm
Sun). -
(no
flash/tripod).
Cemetery Cloister
Monks’ tombstones pave the perimeter of this early 15th-century cloister,
the first to be built here. In one corner stands a well.
Great Cloister
Begun in the 1550s, probably by Diogo de Torralva, this cloister reflects
João III’s passion for Italian art. Concealed spiral stairways in the
corners lead to the Terrace of Wax.
The nucleus of the monastery is the 12th-century Charola, the Templars’
oratory. Like many of their temples, its layout is based on the Rotunda of
Jerusalem’s Holy Sepulchre, with a central octagon of altars. In 1356, Tomar
became the headquarters of the Order of Christ in Portugal, and the
Charola’s decoration reflects the Order’s wealth. The paintings and frescoes
(mostly 16th-century biblical scenes) and the gilded statuary below the
Byzantine cupola have undergone much careful restoration.
When the Manueline church was built, an archway was created in the side of
the Charola to link the two, making the Charola the church’s main
chapel.
