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Monastery of Alcobaça

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The Monastery of Alcobaça, also known as the Royal Monastery of Santa Maria de Alcobaça (its official name in the Congregation of Alcobaça that it headed), is a monastery located in the city of Alcobaça, in the district of Leiria in the Centro region of Portugal.

It is the first fully Gothic building to have been erected on Portuguese soil, and its construction began in 1178 by the monks of the Cistercian Order.



At the end of the 10th century, a new Benedictine monastery was organized in Cluny, Burgundy, which sought to follow the Rule of St Benedict with fervour. Over time, however, this fervor waned, the Rule of Saint Benedict was “lightened” and, in 1098, some monks left their monastery in Molesme, also in Burgundy, to found a new monastery in Cister, south of Dijon. The religious of Cistercianism sought to follow the Rule of St. Benedict to the letter; they wanted to live from their work and not accumulate wealth. Bernard of Clairvaux, who had retired to Cîteaux in 1112 and left there in 1115 to found the Abbey of Clairvaux, gave great impetus to this reform, which restored all the original rigor to the Rule of Saint Benedict.


While King Afonso Henriques was engaged in the Reconquest, the Cistercian monks who were to found the Monastery of São João de Tarouca around 1142 arrived in Portuguese territory in 1138.



D. Afonso Henriques, the first king of Portugal, donated and granted St. Bernard a lot of land in the Alcobaça region, in fulfillment of a promise made in 1147 during the conquest of Santarém. The beginning of the provisional construction of the monastery dates from around 1152, and a reference to its abbot is known from the same year. However, the letter of donation was signed by King Afonso Henriques the following year, in 1153, for this monastery to promote the settlement and plowing of the lands conquered from the Muslims. If we compare the plan of the church of the Monastery of Alcobaça with that of the second church of Claraval, we see that they have almost the same size and spatial layout.


The first monks of Alcobaça, known as the White Monks, had a remarkable civilizing action. They also provided assistance and charity through the apothecary (pharmacy) and the distribution of bread and alms at the gatehouse.

In 1834, the monks were forced to leave the monastery following the decree to suppress all religious orders in Portugal, issued by Joaquim António de Aguiar, Minister of Ecclesiastical Affairs and Justice in the government of Pedro, Duke of Bragança.


It has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1989 and as a Portuguese National Monument since 1910. On July 7, 2007, it was chosen as one of the Seven Wonders of Portugal.


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