From Lisbon: Medieval Portugal – Batalha, Tomar, Alcobaça & Óbidos

The Monastery of Santa Maria da Vitória at Batalha was built between 1386 and 1517 to fulfil a vow made by King João I on the eve of the Battle of Aljubarrota (1385) — the decisive Portuguese victory over Castile that secured the kingdom's independence. The guide covers the extraordinary Gothic and Manueline architecture, the Unfinished Chapels (some of the most beautiful Gothic stonework in Europe), and the Royal Cloister containing the tombs of João I and Philippa of Lancaster alongside their son Henry the Navigator, whose expeditions began Portugal's Age of Discovery.

The Convent of Christ in Tomar was the headquarters of the Knights Templar in Portugal — and when the Templar Order was abolished in 1312, the Portuguese king simply renamed it the Order of Christ and kept everything. The Charola, the circular Templar church built in the 12th century modelled on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, allowed knights to worship on horseback. The extraordinary Manueline window on the Chapter House exterior is one of the most complex pieces of decorative stonework in the world — festooned with maritime imagery, anchor chains, coral, armillary spheres and the face of a man among the stone ropes.

The Monastery of Alcobaça was founded by Afonso I, first King of Portugal, following his defeat of the Moors in 1147. It became the royal pantheon of medieval Portugal. The guide tells the story of Dom Pedro I and Inês de Castro: Inês was the Galician noblewoman secretly married to Crown Prince Pedro, murdered by political rivals. When Pedro became king he had her murderers executed and their hearts ripped out, then had her body exhumed, dressed in royal robes and enthroned beside him at a formal court ceremony, forcing the nobility to kneel and kiss the hand of her decomposed corpse. Their Gothic tombs face each other across the chapel — so at the Resurrection they will see each other's faces first.

Óbidos is a medieval village entirely encircled by 12th-century castle walls — one of the most perfectly preserved medieval urban landscapes in Portugal. The castle was given by King Afonso II to his wife Urraca in 1228 as a wedding gift — a tradition that continued for 600 years, with successive Portuguese kings giving Óbidos to their queens. Walk the full circuit of the battlements for views over the village and surrounding plains. The village is famous for its ginjinha (cherry liqueur) served in chocolate cups — the local recipe dates to the 17th century.