Igreja de São Domingos, Lisbon

São Domingos is the Catholic church of St. Dominic before you, a Lisbon church with a long and difficult history. Its dedication dates to 1241, and its character is predominantly Baroque.

In 1506, this church and its square became the setting for the Lisbon massacre, in which thousands of New Christians were killed by a Christian mob. The 1755 earthquake almost destroyed the building, and rebuilding continued until 1807. Then, in 1959, a fire gutted the interior; it lasted more than six hours and killed two firefighters.

The church reopened in 1994, with the restoration intentionally preserving traces of the blaze. The cracked columns and scarred surfaces are therefore part of the church’s documented story, not later decoration. Before the modern republic, Portuguese royal weddings were commonly held here.