In this event we'll visit some of Lisbon's most interesting spots, such as the Amoreiras Garden, pass under the Triumphal Arch of the Águas Livres Aqueduct, visit the Estrela Garden and the surrounding area, visit the magnificent Estrela Basilica and take a guided tour of the São Bento Palace (Assembly of the Republic). Another event not to be missed!

Jardim da Estrela:

The Guerra Junqueiro Garden, known as the Estrela Garden, was built in the 19th century (1842) on the initiative of the statesman Bernardo da Costa Cabral, Marquis of Tomar. It is a naturalistic garden with a romantic design, inspired by the English type of park, surrounded by a railing, with very interesting vegetation, both in terms of quantity and diversity.

Estrela Basilica:

It is one of the most brilliant achievements of the late Baroque period, with the inclusion of neoclassical elements. The Estrela Basilica is the very pantheon of Queen Maria I, the only queen of the Bragança Dynasty who is not buried in the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora.

St Benedict's Palace:

The São Bento Palace is a neoclassical palace located in Lisbon and has been the seat of the Portuguese Parliament since 1834. It was built at the end of the 16th century (1598) as a Benedictine monastery (Mosteiro de S. Bento da Saúde) in the style of Baltazar Álvares, with a Mannerist and Baroque style. It was once home to the National Archives of Torre do Tombo. With the extinction of the religious orders in Portugal, it became state property. In the 17th century, the crypts of the Marquises of Castelo Rodrigo were built.

After the establishment of the liberal regime in 1834, following the Portuguese Civil War, it became the seat of the nation's General Courts and became known as the Palácio das Cortes. Following the changes in the official name of the Parliament, the Palace also had several official names: Palácio das Cortes (1834-1911), Palácio do Congresso (1911-1933) and Palácio da Assembleia Nacional (1933-1974). In the middle of the 20th century, the name Palácio de S. Bento was generally used in memory of the former convent. This name was retained after 1976, when it became the seat of the Assembly of the Republic.

Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, the Palace underwent a series of major interior and exterior remodelling works that made it almost completely different from the old Monastery. Of particular note at the end of the 19th century was the remodelling by Ventura Terra and in 1936 the monumental staircase, added by António Lino and completed by Cristino da Silva. The palace has a central body with arcades on the ground floor and a colonnaded gallery above them, topped by a triangular pediment decorated with stucco. The interior is equally grandiose, full of wings, including the Chamber of Deputies, the Hall of Lost Steps, the Great Hall, among others, as well as works of art from different periods in Portugal's history.

Note:

Visits to the São Bento Palace are free and can be booked at: https://www.parlamento.pt/EspacoCidadao/Paginas/VisitasPalacioSBento.aspx

- Jardim da Estrela - Jardim das Amoreiras - Basílica da Estrela - Triumphal Arch of the Águas Livres Aqueduct - Guided tour of the São Bento Palace - Other points of interest in the city -