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The Monastery of the Holy Cross ( pt, Mosteiro da Santa Cruz, links=no), also known as the Church of the Holy Cross, is a
National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...
in
Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2011 census was 143,397, in an area of . The fourth-largest urban area in Portugal after Lisbon, Porto Metropolitan Area, Porto, and Bra ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
. Because the first two kings of Portugal are buried in the church it was granted the status of National Pantheon. Founded in 1131 outside the protecting walls of Coimbra, the Monastery of the Holy Cross was the most important monastic house during the early days of the
Portuguese monarchy This is a list of Portuguese monarchs who ruled from the establishment of the Kingdom of Portugal, in 1139, to the deposition of the Portuguese monarchy and creation of the Portuguese Republic with the 5 October 1910 revolution. Through the nea ...
. Saint Theotonius founded this community of
Canons Regular of the Holy Cross of Coimbra The Canons Regular of the Holy Cross of Coimbra are a Catholic religious order of canons regular founded in Portugal in the 12th century. The follows the Rule of Saint Augustine. History The Canons Regular of the Holy Cross of Coimbra were founde ...
and served as their first
prior Prior (or prioress) is an ecclesiastical title for a superior in some religious orders. The word is derived from the Latin for "earlier" or "first". Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior. In abbeys, a prior would be l ...
. The monastery and church were erected between 1132 and 1223. The monastery was granted numerous
papal The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
privileges and royal grants, which allowed the accumulation of considerable wealth, at the same time as it consolidated its position on the politico-institutional and cultural scene. Its school, with its vast library, was highly respected in medieval times and was a meeting point for the intellectual and power elites. Its ''scriptorium'' was used for the consolidation of royal power by King
Afonso Henriques Afonso I of PortugalOr also ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonso'' (Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin version), sometimes rendered in English as ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', depending on the Spanish or French inf ...
, thus it was not considered strange that he decided to be buried there.


Architecture

Nothing remains of the early Romanesque monastery. It is known that it had only one nave and a high tower in the façade, as typical of the Augustinian-Romanesque constructions, but none of those elements subsisted. In the first half of the 16th century, the Monastery was completely renovated by King Manuel's order, this monarch having assumed the Monastery tutelage. The whole monastic complex, the church and the tombs of King Afonso Henriques and of his successor, King Sancho I, were rearranged and transferred to the main-chapel in 1530, where they still lie in a sculptural work by
Nicolau Chanterene Nicolau Chantereine (also called Nicolas Chanterenne or Nicolas de Chanterenne) (c.1485 – 1551) was a French sculptor and architect who worked mainly in Portugal and Spain. It is assumed that he was born in Normandy, France. It is not clear wh ...
. The architect
Diogo de Boitaca Diogo de Boitaca (c. 1460 – 1528?) was an influential architect and engineer of some of the most important Portuguese buildings, working in Portugal in the first half of the 16th century. Biography His name has been written in different fa ...
was responsible for the layout of the Manueline church and the
chapter house A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room that is part of a cathedral, monastery or collegiate church in which meetings are held. When attached to a cathedral, the cathedral chapter meets there. In monasteries, the whole communi ...
with its basket-handled and ribbed ceilings. Marco Pires gave continuity to the work, with the completion of the church, the Capela de São Miguel (St. Michael's Chapel) and the Claustro do Silêncio (Cloister of Silence). The main portal, built between 1522 and 1525 under Chanterene, is the most emblematic piece of the whole monastic ensemble, harmonising the artistic elements of the Manueline with other features from Renaissance inspiration. Through the whole 16th century, the most respected architects, sculptors, and painters worked at the Monastery of the Holy Cross of Coimbra, such as Diogo de Castilho, Machim and Jean of Rouen,
Cristóvão de Figueiredo Cristóvão de Figueiredo (died ) was a Portuguese Renaissance painter. Like many other important painters of the time, Cristóvão de Figueiredo was a pupil of Master Jorge Afonso, in Lisbon, in the early 16th century. He later worked together wi ...
and Vasco Fernandes besides the already mentioned Chanterene, Boitaca and Diogo Pires the Younger. The sacristy dates back to the 17th century and keeps some notable 16th-century canvases.


Members of the community

Saint
Anthony of Lisbon Anthony of Padua ( it, Antonio di Padova) or Anthony of Lisbon ( pt, António/Antônio de Lisboa; born Fernando Martins de Bulhões; 15 August 1195 – 13 June 1231) was a Portuguese Catholic priest and friar of the Franciscan Order. He was bor ...
, more widely known as Saint Anthony of Padua, was a member of the community of canons regular, and after his ordination, he was placed in charge of hospitality for the monastery. It was in this capacity that he welcomed the remains of the
Franciscan protomartyrs Berard of Carbio, O.F.M., was a thirteenth-century Franciscan friar who was executed in Morocco for attempting to promote Christianity. He and his companions, Peter, Otho, Accursius, and Adjutus, are venerated as saints and considered the Francis ...
, whose remains were being transported back to
Assisi Assisi (, also , ; from la, Asisium) is a town and ''comune'' of Italy in the Province of Perugia in the Umbria region, on the western flank of Monte Subasio. It is generally regarded as the birthplace of the Latin poet Propertius, born aroun ...
, after their deaths in
Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
. This led to his decision to leave the security and ease of the life of a canon for that of the newly founded
Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...
s. hagiographical account/ref>


References


Bibliography

* * David, Pierre (1947). "Regula Sancti Augustini, à propos d'une fausse chartre de fondation du chapitre de Coimbre," ''Revista Portuguesa de História'' 3 (1947), pp. 27–39. * * O'Malley, E. Austin (1954). ''Tello and Theotonio, the Twelfth-century Founders of the Monastery of Santa Cruz in Coimbra'' (Washington, DC: Catholic University Press, 1954). *


External links


Monastery of the Holy Cross of Coimbra
{{Authority control Roman Catholic churches in Coimbra Manueline architecture Gothic architecture in Portugal 1131 establishments in Europe Augustinian monasteries Santa Cruz Religious organizations established in the 1130s Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Tourist attractions in Coimbra Churches in Coimbra District 12th-century establishments in Portugal National monuments in Coimbra District