Visiting Mafra and the Mafra Palace
A Rulers Delusions of Grandeur
A mere 20 minute drive from Ericeira lies the town of Mafra. Mafra is famous for its huge palace called Mafra national palace, or Convent of Mafra (Palácio de Mafra). If you come from Lisbon to Ericeira you are able to spot the palace from the highway. Some of the buses from Ericeira to Lisbon makes a couple of stops in Mafra, one of the stops is right outside the palace.
The Mafra Palace
The Mafra Palace is impressive in its sheer volume, it is also beautiful. With the yellow 220 -meter -long facade, built with local limestone, its glistering in the sun. Inside there are 1200 rooms. The palace is wort a visit if you are interested in history or if the weather in Ericeira is gloomy and you are up for a short road trip.
Mafra itself is not particularly interesting. Just have a short walk around, we recommend having a coffee at one of the cafes with a view of the palace. While you sip on the coffee you can ponder over the colossal mountain of a building and what the king hoped to achieve. Don’t forget to send out a thought to the stone masons and workers that made this dream become a reality. According to historian 1383 people died during the record short 13 years it took to build the palace. The king could afford such a grandiose project because of all the gold he plundered from Brazil.
Inspiration to José Saramago
The Palace of Mafra inspired Nobel prize winner José Saramago to write his novel Baltasar and Blimunda, in Portuguese the novel is called Memorial do Convento.
If you are the kind of person who enjoys reading about the place you visit, we recommend picking up this book. A word of caution though, it’s not the most relaxing beach read, the prose is dense and done in an unconventional style.Thus you should be prepared to put in a bit of work to enter Saramago’s world.
The Story Behind the Mafra Palace
It’s a crazy story how the Palace came about. The king, Johan V of Portugal, was still childless after 3 year of marriage. He then promised God and the friars a convent if he just could get an heir to the throne. His daughter was born 1711 and the same year he set out to start by acquiring the land. Construction began in 1717.
The plan was modest in the beginning. But for reasons we can only speculate about, a certain dash of megalomania? The joy of making money and spending them? Inspiration from the pyramids? He quickly decided on a more ambitious plan. The architect was a German called Johann Friedrich Ludwig and he had studied architecture in Rome and knew contemporary Italian art. The Mafra Palace is regarded as a Baroque building.
Visiting the Mafra Palace
Visiting the palace is easy, although not all parts are open to the public. The opening hours is 09:30 – 17:30 and the admission fee is 6 euros, children under 12 enter for free.
The library in the Mafra Palace is especially renowned, mentioned as one of the most spectacular libraries in the world. It is located in an 85 meter long room and contains over 36,000 leather-bound volumes.
The general rules of access to the Palace Library’s collection allow the reading of the books by historians, investigators and students over 18, under strict surveillance by the palace staff. So don’t expect to be browsing around the volumes.
Other Things to do in Mafra
After your visit to the Mafra Palace you can visit the former royal hunting ground (Tapada) to enjoy the nature and some wildlife. There are a couple of different trails to choose from.
I you want to have lunch in Mafra we recommend Adega do Convento, it’s an old warehouse turned restaurant. The restaurant is located in the historic center, so you go here for the atmosphere as well as the food. It’s a bit more upscale, and the prices are thereafter. But their Polvo à Lagareiro comes in huge portions. Finish with coffee and a house dessert.
Now you can return to Ericeira and the beach, satisfied with having received a big dose of culture on your holiday.