It is located in the Historic Center of Guimarães, in the parish of Oliveira do Castelo, in the Historic Center of Guimarães, in the district of Braga, Northern Portugal
The Church of Nossa Senhora da Oliveira is one of the most significant examples of Gothic architecture in the north of the country.
The occupation of the site originates from a pre-Romanesque monastery founded by Mumadona Dias in 949, and to protect this monastery a fortification was built that preceded the current Castle of Guimarães.
The origins of the Insigne and Royal Collegiate of Nossa Senhora da Oliveira date back to the monastery dedicated to the Savior of the World, the Virgin of Santa Maria and the Holy Apostles, founded by Countess Mumadona Dias around 950.
At the beginning of the 12th century, this monastery would give way to the Collegiate Church of Santa Maria de Guimarães, one of the most important and richest religious institutions in the country in the Low Middle Ages.
A block of the cloister from the 12th century is preserved but was significantly modified during the Manueline period, where some capitals are visible, the front of the chapter room, a Romanesque capital dating from the second half of the 12th century and coming from the main portal of the church reveals a typically Benedictine iconography alluding to the confrontation between good and evil.
In the 14th century, the Collegiate Church became an important pilgrimage center due to the veneration of the image of Saint Mary, which would be the object of devotion by João I of Portugal on the eve of the battle of Aljubarrota.
The invocation of Our Lady of the Olive Tree prevails after 1342 with the revering of an olive tree in the front square.
In 1387, in fulfillment of a vow to Santa Maria, the sovereign himself financed the renovation of the building.
The works would be almost entirely completed in 1401, with work ceasing in 1413.
The church has a simple planimetric structure of three naves with three bays, with a projecting transept, a common solution in Mendicant Gothic, the window on the upper level of the large façade is organized like an altarpiece and constitutes one of the best Gothic iconographic programs in Portugal.
The Church is entirely dedicated to the genealogy of the Virgin composed of a Jesse tree and the Annunciation of the Marian message.
The temple from the Gothic period can still be seen in part of the roof trusses of the naves decorated with panels of paintings with heraldic and bestiary iconography.
The project was designed by João Garcia de Toledo, who was a court architect and linked to the main works during the reign of Fernando I of Portugal, who remained in office after the crisis of 1383-85.
In the modern era, the building underwent several changes and renovations: the new chancel dates from the reign of Pedro II of Portugal and is much deeper than the original.
The interior was covered with gilded carvings whose authorship is attributed to Pedro Alexandrino de Carvalho.
The Church of Nossa Senhora da Oliveira marks the end of a phase of national Gothic, with the following decades being marked by the enormous influence of English taste that the Batalha Monastery would exert throughout the territory.
The current building highlights elements from different periods, the Gothic reconstruction by D. João I, the church tower with Manueline characteristics (1513-1515), the main chapel, classical architecture rebuilt in the 19th century. XVII by D. Pedro II, the stuccos of the main and side chapels are references to the neoclassical reform begun in 1830, the last intervention intended to leave visible the granite of the walls and the columns of medieval origin (20th century).
The occupation of the site originates from a pre-Romanesque monastery founded by Mumadona Dias in 949, and to protect this monastery a fortification was built that preceded the current Castle of Guimarães.
The origins of the Insigne and Royal Collegiate of Nossa Senhora da Oliveira date back to the monastery dedicated to the Savior of the World, the Virgin of Santa Maria and the Holy Apostles, founded by Countess Mumadona Dias around 950.
At the beginning of the 12th century, this monastery would give way to the Collegiate Church of Santa Maria de Guimarães, one of the most important and richest religious institutions in the country in the Low Middle Ages.
A block of the cloister from the 12th century is preserved but was significantly modified during the Manueline period, where some capitals are visible, the front of the chapter room, a Romanesque capital dating from the second half of the 12th century and coming from the main portal of the church reveals a typically Benedictine iconography alluding to the confrontation between good and evil.
In the 14th century, the Collegiate Church became an important pilgrimage center due to the veneration of the image of Saint Mary, which would be the object of devotion by João I of Portugal on the eve of the battle of Aljubarrota.
The invocation of Our Lady of the Olive Tree prevails after 1342 with the revering of an olive tree in the front square.
In 1387, in fulfillment of a vow to Santa Maria, the sovereign himself financed the renovation of the building.
The works would be almost entirely completed in 1401, with work ceasing in 1413.
The church has a simple planimetric structure of three naves with three bays, with a projecting transept, a common solution in Mendicant Gothic, the window on the upper level of the large façade is organized like an altarpiece and constitutes one of the best Gothic iconographic programs in Portugal.
The Church is entirely dedicated to the genealogy of the Virgin composed of a Jesse tree and the Annunciation of the Marian message.
The temple from the Gothic period can still be seen in part of the roof trusses of the naves decorated with panels of paintings with heraldic and bestiary iconography.
The project was designed by João Garcia de Toledo, who was a court architect and linked to the main works during the reign of Fernando I of Portugal, who remained in office after the crisis of 1383-85.
In the modern era, the building underwent several changes and renovations: the new chancel dates from the reign of Pedro II of Portugal and is much deeper than the original.
The interior was covered with gilded carvings whose authorship is attributed to Pedro Alexandrino de Carvalho.
The Church of Nossa Senhora da Oliveira marks the end of a phase of national Gothic, with the following decades being marked by the enormous influence of English taste that the Batalha Monastery would exert throughout the territory.
The current building highlights elements from different periods, the Gothic reconstruction by D. João I, the church tower with Manueline characteristics (1513-1515), the main chapel, classical architecture rebuilt in the 19th century. XVII by D. Pedro II, the stuccos of the main and side chapels are references to the neoclassical reform begun in 1830, the last intervention intended to leave visible the granite of the walls and the columns of medieval origin (20th century).
The Classification of the Church of Our Lady of Oliveira
The Church of Nossa Senhora da Oliveira is located in the Historic Center of Guimarães and has been classified as a National Monument since 1910.
