Leça do Balio - Monastery of Leça - The Church of Santa Maria

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog :-)

One of these days on the way to work we noticed a walkway that had gone unnoticed for several months. Has it ever happened to you that you pass by the same place every day and go on "autopilot" in such a way that you no longer notice any changes?
As I'm quite curious, I researched where it started and where I went so I could go on this route.

On one of these weekends, we went to Leça do Balio and when looking for a place to park we found the Monastery of Leça, where the Church of Santa Maria is located.
I was amazed at the grandeur of this building just from the outside, never imagining the inside. It's huge, with a big garden in front and we hadn't even parked yet and the camera was ready to shoot!

In the garden facing the entrance there was a huge statue, without any identification, which immediately made me think that it had something to do with the monastery or the church and in fact it did.
It is represented by Leonor Teles, the first queen born in Portugal, and King Fernando I, her husband.
"On a visit to Sister Maria Teles, maid of Infanta Beatriz, King Fernando I of Portugal fell madly in love with Leonor, wanting her as a lover. Leonor resisted, revealing that she would only accept the king through marriage. With allegations of remote consanguinity , Leonor Teles' first marriage was annulled, preparing for the royal union.
The wedding took place at the Leça do Balio Monastery on May 15, 1372. In February 1373, Infanta Beatriz was born. A narrative of passion, marriage and intrigue intertwined in the history of the Monastery."

We are greeted at the entrance, on the right side with a model of the Monastery and Church and on the left a baptismal font.
We were alone and contrary to what was expected there was no silence but echoing songs that made us travel through the corners of this place.
As we advance to the three chapels, we see several heaters next to the benches where mass is attended so that no one gets cold and on the sides there are images dedicated to saints.
The ceilings are all covered in wood (until you reach the chapels) and the walls are all made of granite.

There is a set of funerary monuments, the main chapel displays the arcosolium with the tomb chest and praying statue of Friar Cristovão de Cernache, who died in 1569. On the Gospel side, there is the tomb of Friar João Coelho, prior of Crato, with a recumbent statue with a naturalistic expression, the work of Diogo Pires, the Younger. In the Iron Chapel, rests the shallow tomb of the founder who died in 1336, with a bronze plaque embedded in the wall, containing a long epitaph.

When we turned around to return to the main entrance, the statue of D. Leonor and D. Fernando aligns perfectly with the central corridor. A brutal spectacle that I think only witnessed live is capable of leaving your mouth open. Everything lines up, everything is in perfect condition.
This fact can be understood by the fact that in 1930 restoration work was carried out on the entire monument by the General Directorate of Historical Monuments.

In 1996, the monastery began to be the site of improvement works supported by Unicer, under the Patronage Law and in 2016 it was acquired and redeveloped by Lionesa Group.
Outside we still see some renovation work in the part of the monastery that is temporarily closed but as soon as it becomes available, we will make a point of visiting.

After this new history lesson, we went in search of the walkway which is also being redeveloped but which unfortunately was no longer possible for us to do in its entirety.

I hope you enjoyed.
See you around.
Wishing you much peace and health

Those who pass by us do not go alone. They leave a bit of themselves, taking a piece of us."
Author: Antoine de Saint-Exupery, The Little Prince.

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Text & Photography by @Onyfest

With love @onyfest