Cultural Heritage
The Mafra National Palace consists of a Royal Palace, a Basilica and a Convent. It was completed in 1735, by King João V, and became the residence of the royal family for a few years, until the monarch’s death. Even after that, it never ceased to be one of the court's favourite places. Later, during the French invasions of the early 19th century, and with the Portuguese royal family exiled in Brazil, the Palace was stripped of many of its treasures.
Nevertheless, it remains the most illustrative baroque monument in Portugal. It occupies about 38.000 square metres, with 1.200 rooms, 4.700 doors and windows and 156 stairs, an extravagance financed by the gold from Brazil. This complex and grandiose construction came to inspire one of the most famous novels by Nobel Prize winner José Saramago, Baltasar & Blimunda (originally Memorial do Convento).
Its main attractions include the famous Library, with about 36 thousand books dating from the 15th to the 19th centuries, covering themes as diverse as Theology, Canon and Civil Law, History, Geography and Travel, Mathematics, Art, Music and Medicine.
The Palace has six available venues, with a maximum capacity of 700 seats.
