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ThePantheonsMonasteryofBatalha

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ThePantheons
THEPANTHEONS

ThemajesticgroupofmonasticbuildingsthatistheMonasteryofBatalhaharboursbehinditswalls
two pantheons, designed in their entirety by Huguet, and which had not been included in the basic
plan for the monument: the Founders Chapel and the Unfinished Chapels, both with a centralised
layout.Hecompletedtheformer,intendedforKingJooIashispantheon,andhereshowedhisfull
technical and artistic prowess, nurtured over many years while in charge of the construction site of
Batalhaandalreadyputtothetestinthedaringvaultofthechapterhouse.Thischapelcombinestwo
types of building plan which, within a single square space 19.8 m long, arranges eight columns
supportingogivalarchesatanincline,thusforminganoctagon.Thisoctagoncoveredbyacomplex
vaultedceilingintheshapeofastarwithakeystoneshowingthearmsofKingJooIhastwofloors,
reachinghigherthanthesurroundingspace.Thesquareandoctagonalplansplayagainsteachother
andcreatetwodifferingarchitecturalvolumes.
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Nothingremainstodaytoremindusofthebasicplanfortheinteriorandexteriorofthechapel,given
the alterations that came about through natural happenstance, such as the earthquake of 1755, or
human meddling at the hands of French troops in 1810 who, among many contemptible acts broke
into the tombs and destroyed and pillaged the chapel, or after 1834, when the Dominicans left,
resultinginanewperceptionofthespacethatdevaluedprimitivespiritualityinfavouroftheprofane
expressedthrougharomantic,nationalisticandcelebrativesymbolism.Followingtheearthquakethe
slender pyramidal needle on the exterior of the octagonal chapel was never rebuilt, in lieu of the
solution we see there to this day. As for the tombs vandalised by the French, they needed to be
restored,aprocessthatcontinuedthroughthelastquarterofthe19thcenturyuntilabout1930,when
its frontispieces were substituted by new copies. In turn this new look for the Founders Chapel
meant that, following the removal of all liturgical objects and religious ornaments as well as the
demolition of the altars, practically all traces of its past as a quintessential place of worship were
wipedout.
Asforthesecondpantheon,orderedbyKingDuarte,sonofKingJooI,andalsointendedasafamily
pavilion, it was to remain uncompleted to this day, giving rise to the commonly used name of the
UnfinishedChapels.
BuiltbyHuguetonlyasfarastheheightofitslacedogivearches,thechapelsweregraduallyvaulted
ondifferentoccasions.Employinganelaboratestyle,ofwhichtheuseofhangingkeystonesaccording
tothetasteforEnglishGothicverticalsstandsout,thoseintendedfortheKingJooIIandhiswife
Queen Leonor (14581525) are particularly noteworthy. The dense, intricate work of the vaulted
ceilingofthischapel,togetherwiththeportalbyMateusFernandes,makesitoneofthemostoriginal
monumentsintheManuelinestyle.
InspiteofanattempttofinishtherotundaasenvisionedbyKingManuelI,thevaultedceilingwas
nevercompletedbyhumanhand,thusleavingtheskyasthelimit...
Inthefirstfewdecadesofthe20thcenturythedoubletombofKingDuarteandQueenLeonorwas
placedintheaxialchapel,thecoupleshownhandinhandinclearimitationofthetombofKingJooI
andQueenFilipadeLencastre,theirparents.
At the same time, the decision to reintegrate the monument brought to the pantheon all the tombs
dottedaroundthechurch,eventhosethatborenorelationtoit.
During the second half of the 19th century the Pantheon of King Duarte was the object of major
restorationaswellassimplerconservationmeasures,suchaspreparingthecentraloctagonfornew
flooring,asmuchasforaestheticreasonsastoavoidweedsgrowingthere.

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