Mafra National Palace and Convent

Mafra National Palace and Convent

The Mafra National Palace is an enormous Baroque and Italianized Neoclassical palace / monastery in the otherwise unremarkable small town of Mafra.When it was built in the early 1700s this was one of the largest buildings in Europe. Today it is still one of the biggest palaces in the world.

It was built by King João V to celebrate the birth of his daughter. Although it is also conveniently situated close to some of the best hunting forests of Portugal.