The royal tombs of Don Pedro and Inés

Inside of Alcobaca Monastery, there is one of the tourist attractions: the royal tombs of the lovers the king Peter I (from 1320 to 67) e Ines de Castro (1325-55).

They met when Pedro was forced to marry the young woman Constance of Castilla in 1339, where his maid of honor was Inés, daughter of a Castilian aristocrat. Pedro fell in love with Inés and took her as his lover. After Constanza died in 1349, Pedro refused to marry again and remained devoted to Agnes, with whom he had several children.

Pedro recognized all his children with Agnes and favored the Castilians at court, bringing Pedro's father, King Alfonso IV, to their relationship as a threat to his kingdom. Thus, in 1355, the king had assassinated her. Two years later, Alfonso IV died and Pedro became king.

King Pedro I immediately declared that Agnes had been married in a secret ceremony in Bragança, making her his rightful queen.

King Peter commissioned marble tombs for himself and his beloved, facing each other. Although damaged, its sarcophagi are the largest pieces of sculpture from 14th century Portugal. Both tombs have effigies of the deceased with the assistance of angels.

The sides of Pedro's tomb are decorated with episodes from the life of Saint Bartholomew and scenes from his life with Agnes, including the promise that they will be together até ao fim do mundo (until the end of the world). His tomb is decorated with scenes from the life of Christ and the Last Judgment.

Likewise, in the monastery is the Royal Pantheon, it was destroyed in the Lisbon earthquake of 1755 and rebuilt shortly after in a neo-Gothic style. It contains the 13th century tombs of Queen Urraca of Castile (d.1220, wife of King Alfonso II) and Queen Beatrix of Castile (d.1303, wife of Alfonso III). The most notable tomb is that of Queen Urraca, which is richly decorated with late-night Romanesque reliefs of the royal family, the apostles, and Christ within a mandorla.


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