Visit University of Coimbra’s Historical Buildings, Coimbra, Portugal

Since it was the first capital of the newly formed Portugal, we knew Coimbra would have wonderful architecture. As we discovered it definitely does, especially the elegant royal palace. The unusual fate of these regal buildings is that they would end up being a part of a university campus. As we explored the University of Coimbra’s lovely historical buildings we couldn’t help but think of the lucky 16th century students who were able to study inside the former royal residence and read books in the lavish library.

At the end of the 13th century, King Dinis founded the University of Coimbra. This date makes it the oldest, continuously operating university in Portugal, and one of the oldest in the world. In its early years, the school had faculties of theology, law, medicine, and literature. Initially it was independent, but after a short while it merged with a Jesuit college.

In the 16th century the university was moved from Lisbon to Coimbra by King João III. Coimbra was the first capital of Portugal so therefore, it was already filled with wonderful buildings, including the king’s palace. Since the capital had already been moved to Lisbon, what better use of the beautiful Alcaçova Palace than as a centre for higher learning. That is how it came to be called Palace of Schools (Paço das Escolas). ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).