The Monastery Batalha

• Part of Scala’s prestigious series on Portugal’s most important historic monuments
• Beautifully illustrated with over 100 images

The Monastery of Batalha was built by order of King João I after his glorious victory over the Castilian army in the Battle of Aljubarrota (1385). Work began a year or two later under the Portuguese architect Afonso Domingues and throughout the centuries the building underwent a variety of architectural styles, from Flamboyant Gothic to the adoption of a more restrained quality in the mid-15th century, and, in the 16th century a style that reflected the Italian Renaissance. It is also acknowledged that the Manueline style was born at the Monastery of Batalha and spread from there throughout Portugal. Of particular note are the medieval stained-glass windows, the first to be used in Portugal (c.1430).

José Custodio Vieira da Silva lectures at the Universidade Nova, Lisbon, and is a specialist in fifteenth and 16th century architecture.