Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Graça - Sagres

  • Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Graça - Sagres
    Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Graça
    feworave
  • Igreja de Nossa Sra. da Graça - Sagres Fortress
    Igreja de Nossa Sra. da Graça
    Lusitana CC BY-SA
  • Altar of the Church of Nossa Senhora da Graça - Sagres
    Altar of the Church of Nossa Senhora da Graça
    Georges Jansoone CC BY-SA

Sagres Fortress Chapel

The small, whitewashed Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Graça (church of Our Lady of Grace), in the precinct of Sagres fortress, was built in the 1570s on the site of a chapel first erected by order of Infante D. Henrique (Henry the Navigator). 

The church interior is pleasingly simple, with a single aisle and a gold-painted wooden altar believed to date from the 17th century which has an image of Our Lady with the Christ Child in the centre. On either side of the altar are two statues, both believed to have been salvaged from the Franciscan convent at the Cape of St Vincent.  One of the statues depicts St Francis, and the other (shown holding a ship) depicts St Vincent, one of the patron saints of Lisbon.  The story goes that in 12th century, Afonso Henriques vowed to find the remains of the martyred saint if he was able to conquer Moorish occupied Lisbon. When the triumphant King sent his troops to search for the saint’s remains, they were found in a cave at the Cape of St Vincent, guarded by a flock of crows.  From here they were taken to Lisbon Cathedral, where, the story goes, they are protected by crows to this very day.

Adjacent to the church is a stone standard, replicating those used by explorers in the Age of Discoveries when claiming newly found territories for Portugal.

Address

Fortaleza de Sagres
Sagres
8650-360

Phone

+351 282 620 140

Attraction type

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Sagres travel guide »

Although Sagres is on the Algarve it doesn't have the same over-developed holiday town feel of some of those towns further east. Situated within a few kilometres of Europe's most south western point, Cape St. Vincent, the town has a rather windswept, remote feel about it.The town itself is pleasant enough in places, with an attractive square, but there is little of historical or architectural…