Santarém - Monsanto

When leaving Santarém, the landscape en-route starts to show signs of change, with expansive rural fields and the emergence of mountainous landscapes. The astonishing settlements along this stretch are a portrait of a Portugal almost untouched since the end of the 19th century, when farming dominated the region, with vineyards, orchards, olive groves, vegetable gardens and sowed fields. Vestiges of these bygone times remain in restored rural heritage as well as in the many items of religious and civil heritage that can still be found in their places of origin and in the memories of the populations. 

On the way we suggest a visit to the Church of Our Lady of the Conception in Azóia de Baixo, where the romantic writer and Portuguese historian Alexandre Herculano (1810-1877) was buried before being transferred to the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon. Alexandre Herculano retired here for the last 10 years of his life, disenchanted with the successive governments of liberalism and with the direction of their policies for the country.

When arriving in Monsanto, the baroque main church, dedicated to the Divine Holy Spirit, is the town’s centrepiece.