Alcobaça

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Long before the Christian presence that, without any doubt, deeply marked the history of Alcobaça, Man, judging by the lithic material found that makes us go back to the Paleolithic era, already occupied these lands since primordial times. The Romanization also left strong marks in the municipality, being the best example of this the archaeological station of Parreitas, and it is assumed that the origin of Alcobaça as a village reassembles this period. The name of the former village was "Helcobatie" and later, during the presence of the Arabs from the 9th century on, "Alcoboxo". It was at this point that the castles of Alfeizerão and Alcobaça emerged, which encouraged the monks three centuries later to the construction of the Alcobaça monastery. The establishment of the Cistercian order in Alcobaça is mainly attributed to donations of D. Afonso Henriques, thanks to whom the monastery was built in 1148, at the confluence of the Alcoa and Baça rivers, and which is stated to be the most pure and majestic abbey erected by monks throughout Europe and which earned it the rank of a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1983. The presence of this religious order marked the cultural, social and economic development of the region at the time and many were the privileges assigned by the kings of the first dynasty to the monks, with a vast territory granted to the monastery. After almost seven centuries, the monks abandoned the monastery in October 13th 1833, leaving behind them a small village with few inhabitants. Today, we are witnessing a strong development of the region, mainly supported by the tourism and the investment in construction of modern industrial zones, cultural, educational, sporting and environmental infrastructures, without ever leaving the traditions aside. The traditions are the ones that survive in the rich gastronomy of the municipality, filled with religious references, in delicacies such as the Delícias de Frei João (sweets made with several fruits and with chestnuts), the Pudim de Ovos dos Frades (kind of egg pudding), the Tachinhos à Dom Abade (sweets with egg and almond filling) or the famous Pão-de-ló de Alfeizerão (kind of sponge cake), the Pastéis da Padeira, the Tortas de Aljubarrota (orange and egg pie) and the Queijadas do Bárrio (kind of cheese sweets). From the handicrafts, the typical Alcobaça pottery and ceramics , which reproduce the blue and white of the old Portuguese faience from the 17th century, the crystals, the tapestries, the tattered blankets, wicker baskets or the colorful Junco de Cós mats stand out. A whole set of reasons that make this county a destination to take into account.