Convento do Colégio dos Jesuítas (Old Jesuit College), Portimão
The Convento do Colégio dos Jesuítas (Igreja da Misericórdia) in Praça da República, is in the very center of Portimão.
History
The church dates from 1660, though it was not consecrated until as late as 1707.
Funds were provided for its construction by D. Diogo Gonçalves, a businessman who had made his money in the Orient, on the proviso that he should be buried inside.
Interior
The interior reflects the austere aesthetic of the Jesuits. The imposing main façade is the work of João Nunes Tinoco, a prestigious figure in Portuguese architecture of the second half of the seventeenth century.
The church has a single nave with high barrel vaulting.
As with so many other churches in the Algarve, the Baroque Igreja do Colégio was badly damaged in the 1755 earthquake, though not as badly as the older Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Conceição (Portimão Mother Church) nearby.
The church was restored over time and with the expulsion of the Jesuits from Portugal in 1759 the church changed hands first being given to the University of Coimbra and then later to the Order of Camillus de Lellis.
With the dissolution of the monasteries in Portugal in 1834 and the nationalization of their property the church went into serious decline before being restored. Various religious institutions now have a hand in the church's welfare.
Access
Igreja do Colégio, Portimão
Praça da República, 28
Portimão
Tel: 962 127 823
Nearby
The church is within easy walking distance of Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Conceição (Portimão Mother Church) and about 20 minutes from the worthwhile Museu de Portimão on the river front.
