View source for Monastery of the Holy Cross (Coimbra)

{{more citations needed|date=June 2018}}
[[Image:StCruz-CCBY.jpg|right|220px|thumb|Main façade of the Monastery of the Holy Cross of [[Coimbra]]]]
The '''Monastery of the Holy Cross''' ({{langx|pt|Mosteiro da Santa Cruz|links=no}}), also known as the '''Church of the Holy Cross''', is a [[List of national monuments of Portugal|National Monument]] in [[Coimbra]], [[Portugal]]. Because the first two kings of Portugal are buried in the church it was granted the status of National Pantheon. Founded in 1131 outside the protecting walls of Coimbra, the Monastery of the Holy Cross was the most important monastic house during the early days of the [[Portuguese monarchy]]. Saint [[Theotonius]] founded this community of [[Canons Regular of the Holy Cross of Coimbra]] and served as their first [[Prior (ecclesiastical)|prior]]. The monastery and church were erected between 1132 and 1223. The monastery was granted numerous [[Pope|papal]] privileges and royal grants, which allowed the accumulation of considerable wealth, at the same time as it consolidated its position on the politico-institutional and cultural scene. Its school, with its vast library, was highly respected in medieval times and was a meeting point for the intellectual and power elites. Its ''scriptorium'' was used for the consolidation of royal power by King [[Afonso I of Portugal|Afonso Henriques]], thus it was not considered strange that he decided to be buried there.
==Architecture==
Nothing remains of the early [[Romanesque architecture|Romanesque]] monastery. It is known that it had only one nave and a high tower in the façade, as typical of the Augustinian-Romanesque constructions, but none of those elements subsisted. In the first half of the 16th century, the Monastery was completely renovated by King [[Manuel I of Portugal|Manuel]]'s order, this monarch having assumed the Monastery tutelage.
[[File:Monasterio de Santa Cruz, Coímbra, Portugal, 2012-05-10, DD 09 organ edit.jpg|thumb|left|Baroque pipe organ of the 18th century inside the Monastery of the Holy Cross]]
The whole monastic complex, the church and the tombs of King Afonso Henriques and of his successor, King [[Sancho I of Portugal|Sancho I]], were rearranged and transferred to the main-chapel in 1530, where they still lie in a sculptural work by [[Nicolau Chanterene]]. The architect [[Diogo de Boitaca]] was responsible for the layout of the Manueline church and the [[chapter house]] with its basket-handled and ribbed ceilings. Marco Pires gave continuity to the work, with the completion of the church, the Capela de São Miguel (St. Michael's Chapel) and the Claustro do Silêncio (Cloister of Silence). The main portal, built between 1522 and 1525 under Chanterene, is the most emblematic piece of the whole monastic ensemble, harmonising the artistic elements of the Manueline with other features from Renaissance inspiration.
Through the whole 16th century, the most respected architects, sculptors, and painters worked at the Monastery of the Holy Cross of Coimbra, such as Diogo de Castilho, Machim and Jean of Rouen, [[Cristóvão de Figueiredo]] and [[Grão Vasco|Vasco Fernandes]] besides the already mentioned Chanterene, Boitaca and Diogo Pires the Younger. The sacristy dates back to the 17th century and keeps some notable 16th-century canvases.
==Members of the community==
Saint [[Anthony of Padua|Anthony of Lisbon]], more widely known as Saint Anthony of Padua, was a member of the community of canons regular, and after his ordination, he was placed in charge of hospitality for the monastery. It was in this capacity that he welcomed the remains of the [[Berard of Carbio|Franciscan protomartyrs]], whose remains were being transported back to [[Assisi]], after their deaths in [[Morocco]]. This led to his decision to leave the security and ease of the life of a canon for that of the newly founded [[Franciscan]]s.<ref>{{cite book|author=Ernest Gilliat-Smith|author-link=Ernest Gilliat-Smith|title=Saint Anthony of Padua according to his contemporaries|url=https://archive.org/details/MN41677ucmf_1|year=1926|publisher=J. M. Dent|location=London|isbn=978-5-87123-627-7|pages=[https://archive.org/details/MN41677ucmf_1/page/n45 26]–37}} [a hagiographical account]</ref>
{{clear}}
==See also==
*[[Livro da Noa]]
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==Bibliography==
*{{cite book|last=Cruz|first=António |title=Santa Cruz de Coimbra na cultura portuguesa da Idade Média|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eRvSAAAAMAAJ|year=1964|publisher=Universidade do Porto|location=Porto|language=Portuguese}}
* David, Pierre (1947). "Regula Sancti Augustini, à propos d'une fausse chartre de fondation du chapitre de Coimbre," ''Revista Portuguesa de História'' 3 (1947), pp.&nbsp;27–39.
*{{cite book|author=João Madre de Deos|title=Memoria sobre a existencia de real mosteiro de Santa Cruz de Coimbra: supprimido por um decreto no anno de 1834|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4wkSAAAAYAAJ|year=1839|publisher=C.A. da Silva Carvalho|location=Lisbon|language=Portuguese}}
* O'Malley, E. Austin (1954). ''Tello and Theotonio, the Twelfth-century Founders of the Monastery of Santa Cruz in Coimbra'' (Washington, DC: Catholic University Press, 1954).
*{{cite book|author=Sousa Viterbo, Francisco, Marques de|title=O mosteiro de Sancta Cruz de Coimbra: Annotações e documentos|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xnY9AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA19|year=1890|publisher=Imprensa da Universidade|location=Coimbra|language=Portuguese}}
==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20150102141845/http://www.coimbraportugal.org/attractions/santa-cruz-church-coimbra Monastery of the Holy Cross of Coimbra]
{{Commons|Mosteiro de Santa Cruz}}
{{Coord|40|12|39.40|N|8|25|43.91|W|source:ptwiki_region:PT_type:landmark|display=title}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Roman Catholic churches in Coimbra]]
[[Category:Manueline architecture]]
[[Category:Gothic architecture in Portugal]]
[[Category:1131 establishments in Europe]]
[[Category:Augustinian monasteries]]
[[Category:Christian monasteries in Portugal|Santa Cruz]]
[[Category:Christian monasteries established in the 1130s]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Coimbra]]
[[Category:Churches in Coimbra District]]
[[Category:12th-century establishments in Portugal]]
[[Category:National monuments in Coimbra District]]