The story of the Convent of the Christ in Tomar, Portugal, takes us back to the 12th century. It is a gigantic, beautiful and fascinating place linked to the Templars and the history of Portugal. Let’s explore…
We should start by a little outline on the Knights Templar
The order of the Knights Templar was founded in 1119 and created as a monastic order, which role was to protect the pilgrims, on their way to Jerusalem.
As you know, they became so much more than this, and their history has been spread far and beyond, and is being romanticized even today.
The Templars were to follow strict rules including of chastity, and poverty. However, this did not stop the Templars’ order from becoming extremely powerful in Europe, and in the East, which lead to their terrible fate.
Around 1303, Philip IV of France, who had borrowed considerable amount of money from the Templars for his war against England, started accusing the Templars of extremely inappropriate behaviors. These accusations might have been linked to his inability to reimburse them! So getting confessions, under torture of course, and using such confessions to tarnish the whole order and eventually getting the order dissolved was, to be fair, a brilliant idea. No reimbursement needed after that!
Well, Philip IV had to convince Pope Clement V, as well. A bit of pressure, a few threats of war, and the Pope agreed and officially dissolved the Templars’ order in 1312.
Now, in most of Europe, the Templars immense wealth and assets were transferred to another ‘competing’ order, the Hospitallers, but not in Portugal…
The Order of the Christ
In Portugal, King Denis I, was in no hurry to follow the papal order and basically refused to burn at the stake all the Templars, who had been instrumental to the reconstruction of Portugal.
In 1319, Denis I founded the Order of the Christ and all assets and wealth of the former Templars were transferred to this new order, with the benediction of the new pope.
And amongst the assets of the new order of the Christ, was the castle in Tomar.
The construction of the Tomar castle
In 1118, Gualdim Pais was born in the North of Portugal. He was to become the Grand Master of the Order of the Knights Templar in 1157, after having fought the Moors with King Afonso Henriques in the battle that led to the creation of Portugal, and after a few years crusading of course.
In Tomar, Gualdim Pais started the construction of the castle in 1160. Some say the castle was built on a military strategic location. With its position on a hill, high above the city, you easily understand this. However, others attribute the location to slightly more mystical choices.
In any cases, Gualdim Pais is considered as the founder of Tomar, and his statue can be seen on the town main square.
Form the 14th century on
From 1319 onward, the new order of the Christ was able to resume their activities and the Templars’ philosophy was well alive.
In 1357, the order’s headquarter was transferred back to Tomar which lead to some new additions to the site.
In 1420, Henry the Navigator was appointed as Grand Master of the Order and as his name suggest, he lead the order into discovery voyages… and some new conquests of course!
The Order of the Christ continued on the steps of the Templars, for most of the 15th century.
But by 1529, the order was reformed and transformed into a closed order, under the strict rules of Saint Benedict. There after there was a strict separation between knights and friars.
This is an important timeline because, obviously, it affected greatly the architecture of the convent.
Some architecture highlights
The Templars started the construction of the castle in the 12th century but obviously construction lasted over the centuries to come. Time transformed the place. From a defensive medieval castle, to the incredible convent we get to admire today.
Within the medieval surrounding walls, you will therefore get to admire an exceptional array of architectural styles.
Roman and Gothic, as well as the Portuguese Manueline style, of course. In my humble opinion, the Convent of the Christ is actually a great introduction to Manueline style. It’s not as overwhelming, as it might be in the Jerónimos Monastery for exemple, so it makes it easier to understand, to grasp its specificities.
The medieval castle and walls
As you know, the 12th century was the golden ages of medieval castles.
Quick reminder: if you need a little help with architecture terms, do check out my medieval castle mini guide!
The Templars being masters of the art of war and master builders, they introduced in Portugal some of the most modern features of the art of castle. Namely the central keep and the round towers in the outer walls which are much stronger than square ones.
Today, the city is outside the huge outer walls but at the time, most people lived within such protective walls.
Do walk on such walls, you’ll get magnificent views of the convent.
The 12th century rotunda
Undoubtedly the centerpiece of the huge complex is the 12th-13th century rotunda which was built by the Knight Templars.
Round churches were a staple of Templar architecture. Think of Temple Church in London as a prime example, of course!
Clearly, the Tomar rotunda is the most beautiful of them all.
Under Henry the Navigator (so early 15th century), a gothic nave was added to the rotunda.
At the very beginning of the 16th century, both the rotunda and the nave were renovated and ‘upgraded’ to the Manueline glorious standards!
Therefore, in the rotunda, in addition to the Romanesque capitals of the columns, late gothic & manueline sculpture and paintings can be admired.
Around the same time, the choir was added which lead to the addition of the magnificent South Portal and of course, the most impressive & famous Manueline window on the West Portal.
The convent
The convent of the Christ existed before 1530 and hosted friars and knights. It is difficult to find how many of them there were at the time and precisely what part of the convent already existed.
The date 1530 is important as it marks the beginning of the transformation of the convent, following the reformation we talked about earlier. The convent of Tomar was to become a model for the World, in terms of modernity, functionality, and excellence in style and a leading place for intellectual development of course.
The Manueline Convent
Again, I had a hard time pointing to the part of the Convent that already existed before 1530.
The Cemetery Cloister was built under Henry the Navigator between 1420-1423.
The Washing Cloister (Claustro da Lavagem) was built in 1423 as a 2 story gothic cloister. As the name indicates, that’s where the monks did their laundry.
This lead me to think that basically everything between the church and the castle were probably built before 1530. This includes also the infirmary, apothecary and the Knight’s surgery and logically the mews and stables.
I am not saying there was nothing on the over side, but it does confirm that the ‘new’ convent was erected toward the West.
Planned around a central cruciform shape passageway, there are the 4 main cloisters described below.
The Saint Barbara’s Cloister was added to link the Manueline Choir and the new buildings. It is a mixed of architectural languages, a beauty on its own.
The 4 main cloisters
The Great Cloister or the cloister of João de Castilho was started 1533 and left unfinished in 1545. Construction & transformation resumed in 1558 and ended in 1591.
As you can tell, it is completely different in style! This is called Mannerism or late Renaissance and is more delicate and light than Manueline style. Although I fell shame to even compare the 2.
Do admire the corner staircases and notice the differences between the original design and the new one.
The Hospedaria or guest house Cloister was built between 1541 and 1542. Since this was to accommodate guest, it was built to impress! While the ground floor are roofed with rib vaults, the upper floor has timber beams and coffered ceilings. The view on the church is pretty epic!
The Crows’ Cloister was built between 1537 and 1546.
The Micha or Bread Cloister was built between 1530 and 1546.
These 2 cloister were more functional and weren’t as richly decorated. The Bread Cloister was at the time the main entrance of the Convent.
Do go on the first floor of the Bread Cloister to admire the Novitiate Rooms.
There is another little part sticking out… its the lavatories or the Bloco des Necessaria.
The other areas of the convent
The dormitory and its crossed hallway and chapel is pretty amazing.
The kitchen and the refectory leaves you feeling a little weird.
There are plenty of other little areas to explore like the oil storage room, the library, the oven room, the study room, the new sacristy which is now a café.
Do step outside on the Cryptoportico Balcony to admire the last part we’ll discuss…
The Chapter House
You will see it on your left when arriving in the courtyard but it is from the Cryptoportico Balcony that you will get the best view.
The Chapter House remains in the distance in the picture above and on the left in the picture below.
Work on the Chapter house probably started around 1515 but were never finished despite having resumed in 1530. It is a bit of a mystery.
A marvelous visit where you get to explore on your own and get lost in the details of the architecture. You can get lost physically as well as it is huge! Yes, I got slightly lost and disoriented!!
A couple more pictures before you go… before you really want to explore the gardens and see the aqueduct!
Things to know before you go
The official website is: http://www.conventocristo.gov.pt/en/index.php
The Convent of the Christ was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1983.
To download an amazing plan, go to: http://campanha.cmjornal.pt/portugal-monumental/
There you’ll find other amazing Portugal sites too!
I was disappointed that you can not get into the actual castle. Maybe it was temporarily closed? Maybe it will be open in the future?
Follow the exploration of the Convent of the Christ by a little walk on the Tomar aqueduct.
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