The origin of the monastery of Saint Vincent dates back to the siege of Lisbon in 1147. The knights who made up the 2nd crusade grouped in two camps outside the city walls, one to the west (currently Chiado) and the other to the east that would come to give rise to the Monastery of S. Vincent.
The monastery of S. Vincent was built by the 1st King of Portugal, Afonso Henriques, and was already very degraded in the 16th century. From this original monastery, the cistern for collecting rainwater has come to our days.
The new monastery began to be built in 1582 and was completed in 1629. The architecture is considered one of the examples of Mannerism in Portugal.
The visit to the monastery of S. Vincent is an important part of the visit to the eastern part of Lisbon, and can be combined with a visit to the National Pantheon, the Flea Market or Alfama.
There is no shortage of interesting reasons to visit, such as the cloisters, the large collection of Baroque tiles, the Braganza family pantheon, the cardinals’ pantheon, the fables of La Fontaine presented in 18th century tiles and, the icing on the cake , the roof of the church that can be walked along the entire length and constitutes the best viewpoint of the old city.
Recommended duration of visit: 2h to 2h30m
Hours of Operation:
Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 18:00 with the last entry at 17:00 (if you can, go earlier)
The entrance is made through a door in the side wall, on the right side facing the Church.
Closed January 1, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Christmas Day.
The entrance price is €5 but there are several discounts (seniors and young people). Admission is free for children
Warning: the visit can be challenging for people with reduced mobility, especially access to the roof of the Church.
Curiosities:
- Emperor Pedro I of Brazil was buried in this place until 1972, the year in which he was transferred to the monument of independence in Brazil
- Catherine of Braganza, who was Queen Consort of England after her marriage to Charles II, is buried here
- the church has one of the few church ceilings in Lisbon that survived the 1755 earthquake
- from the roof of the Church you can see the National Pantheon from an upper level
- the church and the monastery, although co-existing, are managed by different entities
- in the monastery, more than 100,000 tiles from the 18th century can be seen
- the monastery is said “from outside” because in the 12th century. it was located outside the walls