Convento de Cristo e Castelo Templário (Convent of Christ & Templar Castle, UNESCO)

The Convent of Christ in Tomar began as a Templar castle founded around 1160 by Gualdim Pais, master of the Knights Templar in Portugal, and later became the headquarters of the Order of Christ, the successor organization that inherited Templar wealth and influence after the order's suppression in 1312. Its centerpiece, the 16-sided Charola (Templar rotunda church), modeled on Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre, was rebuilt in the early 16th century under King Manuel I with the famous Chapter House Window, one of the most elaborate examples of Manueline stone carving in Portugal, encrusted with maritime motifs of ropes, coral, and armillary spheres tied to the Age of Discoveries, which the Order of Christ helped finance. The complex also contains two Renaissance-era cloisters, notably the Cloister of Santa Bárbara and the Great Cloister designed by Diogo de Torralva, along with monastic dormitories, kitchens, and defensive castle walls from the Templar period. Interpretation guides visitors chronologically from the fortified Templar castle through the Manueline-era church expansion to the Renaissance cloisters, reflecting the site's transformation from military stronghold to wealthy monastic and administrative center. Restoration work over the 20th century has stabilized the Charola's frescoes and the carved window while leaving the older castle walls in their weathered stone state.