The Monastery of Santa Maria da Vitoria was built by order of King Don Joao I as a result of a vow made to the Virgin after his glorious victory over the Castilian army in the Battle of Aljubarrota (1385) which brought Portugal its independence from Spain. Works started one year later under the Portuguese architect, Afonso Domingos, and throughout the centuries, the building underwent a variety of architectural styles from flamboyant Gothic to a more restrained look in the mid-fifteenth century to the style reflecting the Italian Renaissance in the sixteenth century. The Manueline style was also born at the Batalha Monastery and spread from there throughout Portugal. Of particular note are the medieval stained glass windows, used for the first time in Portugal (c.1430-1440) at Batalha, having been brought by master craftsmen from Germany and Flanders. In 1980, the Monastery was transformed into a Museum and, three years later, it was classified as a UNESCO World Heritage site. This magnificent building is the subject of Scala's next title in the series exploring UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Portugal. Jose Custodio Vieira da Silva, a specialist in fifteenth and sixteenth century architecture, explores the history, art and architecture in a fascinating and informative way and his text is accompanied by superb colour photographs commissioned by IPPAR - the Instituto Portugues do Patrimonio Arquitectonico e Arqueologico. 119 colour S19 b/w illustrations
