2024Alcobaça Monastery - Unesco World Heritage - First Day Cover

Founded in 1153 by the first king of Portugal, Afonso I, and the last to be founded by the Order of Cistercians during the lifetime of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, the Alcobaça Monastery is one of the most complete and well-preserved Cistercian architectural complexes in all of Europe. With a vast territory of around 440 km2 (the famous “Coutos of Alcobaça”) and protected by the Portuguese monarchy over the centuries, the “Royal Abbey” of Alcobaça became the burial place of the kings Afonso II and Afonso III and queens Urraca of Castile and Beatrice of Castile, as well as King Peter I and Inês de Castro, whose tragic love story was immortalised in their magnificent tombs.