The monumental complex of the Monastery of Alcobaça is one of the most remarkable and well preserved examples of the architecture and philosophy of the Order of Cister. It is the first fully Gothic monument in the country. The Abbey was founded in 1153, by donation of D. Afonso Henriques to St. Bernard of Clairvaux. The church, 100 meters long, represents the largest Gothic religious space in the country. Its plant, in the form of a Latin cross, contemplates an ambulatory that includes nine radiant chapels.