Social Program

5th June - Welcome Party

The welcome party will be held at the headquarter of Military Academy in Lisbon.

Before the welcome party the participants of the conference will enjoy the historic visit at the Palácio da Bemposta where is the headquarters of Military Academy.

6th June - Excursion

Royal Palace of Ajuda

In the first half of the 18th century, King John V planned to build a summer residence in the Ajuda hill. The building of this Royal Palace in this place, however, would take place only after the Earthquake of 1755 which destroyed the royal residence, Paço da Ribeira (Ribeira Palace), at the Terreiro do Paço (Palace Public Square). On King José I 's initiative, the Royal Palace of Ajuda was built on the grounds acquired by his father firstly as a wooden building and then as the Palace as it is nowadays.

The original project showed clearly Baroque architectural trends, but it was soon replaced by another in neoclassic style by the architects Francisco Xavier Fabri and José da Costa e Silva.

The Royal family had to leave to Brazil in 1807 and soon the works went on slowly along the first half of the 19th century. Only in 1861, after the proclamation of King Louis I (1838-1889) and after his marriage to the Princess of Savoy, Dona Maria Pia (1847-1911), did the Ajuda Palace really become the official residence of the Portuguese Monarchy.

Balls and several ceremonies were held in the Palace rooms which became the centre of the Portuguese Court in the 19th century. The Palace was closed after the proclamation of the Republic in 1910 and reopened to the public in 1968, as a Museum. Gathering important collections from the 15th to the 20th century, mainly of decorative arts, the Palace is still used by the Portuguese State for official ceremonies.

Mosteiro dos Jerónimos

King Manuel I had the idea of erecting a large monastery close to the site where Henry the Navigator had built a church dedicated to Santa Maria de Belém in the 15th century. With a view to perpetuating the memory of Henry and acknowledging his own great devotion to Our Lady and St. Jerome, Manuel I chose to establish the Monastery of Santa Maria de Belém on a site just outside Lisbon on the banks of the River Tagus. The monastery was given to the Order of St. Jerome, which is why it was given the name of Jerónimos (or Hieronymite) Monastery.

The Hieronymite Monastery was declared a National Monument in 1907 and in 1983 UNESCO classified it as a "World Heritage Site".

Tower of Belém

Built on the northern bank of the Tagus between 1514 and 1520 as part of the Tagus estuary defence system, the Tower of Belém is one of the architectural jewels of the reign of Manuel I.

The Tower of Belém is a cultural reference, a symbol of the specificity of Portugal at the time, including its privileged exchange with other cultures and civilisations. As a protector of Portuguese individuality and universality, the tower saw its role confirmed in 1983 when it was classified by UNESCO as "Cultural Heritage of Humanity".

Monument to the Discoveries

The Monument to the Discoveries (in Portuguese “Padrão do Descobrimentos”), created by Cottinelli Telmo (1897–1948) and the sculptor Leopoldo de Almeida (1898–1975), was first erected in 1940, in a temporary form, as part of the Portuguese World Exhibition.

Standing alone in a striking position on the breakwater on the bank of the Tagus, the Monument to the Discoveries evokes the Portuguese overseas expansion, recalls the country’s glorious past and symbolises the enormity of the work carried out by the Infante, the driving force behind the Discoveries.

7th June - Conference Dinner

8th June - Military Exhibition