the last medieval palace to survive in Portugal
What you see in the historic centre of Sintra, with its two 33-metre conical chimneys crowning the silhouette, is the only medieval Portuguese palace to have survived as a complex. It was inhabited for almost eight centuries by the royal family, and has passed through the whole of Portuguese history, from the first dynasties to D. Maria Pia, the last queen to live here. Its origins go back to the Islamic period (10th-11th centuries, when Sintra was Muslim territory), and the structure known today is the result of successive additions over the centuries. It was rebuilt from the late 15th century, with works that extended through the following reigns, and has been classified as a National Monument since 1910; it forms part of the Cultural Landscape of Sintra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995.
The landmark visible from a distance is the two conical chimneys, built in the first quarter of the 15th century during D. João I's reign, attributed to master mason João Garcia de Toledo. They serve the monumental palace kitchen, scaled for the hunting banquets prepared here: several hearths, two large ovens, a hot-plate to keep food warm, and a collection of tin-plated copper (casseroles, pots, pans, fish kettles). The white tiled walls with the arms of Portugal and Savoy were added in 1889 by D. Maria Pia. The kitchen alone justifies the entrance fee.
Looking at the rooms, the palace mixes layers. The Sala dos Brasões, built on D. Manuel I's orders between 1508 and around 1520, has a ceiling covered with the coats of arms of 72 noble Portuguese families and the king's eight children (with his own arms at the centre). It's one of the most complete heraldic rooms in Europe. The Sala dos Cisnes takes its name from the 27 swans painted on the ceiling, and is linked to the figure of Infanta D. Isabel, daughter of D. João I, who married the Duke of Burgundy in 1430 (tradition connects the presence of the swans to that dynastic link). In the Sala das Pegas, tradition links the decoration of 136 magpies on the ceiling, each with a "Por bem" (For the good) in its beak, to a public kiss D. João I gave a lady at court, and to the reaction of the other ladies who gossiped about it. The phrase became the king's motto.
The circuit takes in many more rooms. The Sala dos Archeiros (at the entrance), the Câmara do Ouro, the wardrobe, the Camarim, the Sala das Galés, the chambers of D. João III, the Manueline Room, the Chapel with its Mudéjar ceiling, the Casa do Conselho, the chamber of D. Afonso VI (where the king was imprisoned by his own brother between 1674 and 1683), the apartments of D. Maria Pia, and the Central Courtyard with the Gruta dos Banhos. In almost every room, what draws the eye most is the Hispano-Moorish tile work imported from Seville by D. Manuel I, which reflects the Mudéjar taste (the synthesis between Christian and Islamic art that marks the whole architecture of the palace). Allow two to three hours to take the complex at a comfortable pace.
the whole scene
- the only surviving medieval Portuguese palace, inhabited for almost eight centuries
- two 33-metre conical chimneys, the defining silhouette of the town of Sintra
- Sala dos Brasões with the arms of 72 noble families and D. Manuel I's eight children
- Sala dos Cisnes and Sala das Pegas, each with its own legend and painted ceilings
- Mudéjar taste and Hispano-Moorish tilework throughout the complex
