Monserrate Palace

The Monserrate Palace is an exotic palatial villa located near Sintra, Portugal, the traditional summer resort of the Portuguese court.HistoryAccording some legends there was a chapel dedicated to Virgin built by Afonso Henriques after the reconquest of Sintra. On its ruins another chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Monserrate was constructed on the top of the hill In 1540. The estate was then owned by Todos os Santos Hospital of Lisbon. In the 17th century possession of the property was taken by the Mello e Castro family and after 1755 Lisbon earthquake the farmhouse became unlivable.An English merchant Gerard de Visme rented the farm in 1789 and built a neo-Gothic style house over the ruins of the former chapel. In 1793-1794 the estate was subleased by William Beckford and started to design a landscaped garden. Though the property was already in ruins when Lord Byron visited in 1809, its magnificent appearance inspired the poet who mentioned of the beauty of Monserrate in his poem Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage. After that, the property attracted foreign travelers’ attention. One of them was Francis Cook, a wealthy English merchant who subleased the Estate in 1856 and was graced with the title of Viscount of Monserrate by King D. Louis. Cook acquired the property in 1863 and started to work with the architect James Knowles on the remains of the house built by de Visme. The Palace became the summer residence of Cook family. The property and hunting grounds were acquired by the Portuguese State in 1949.