Coimbra is a city and a municipality in Portugal. Coimbra is one of the most important urban centers of Portugal after the much larger Lisbon Metropolitan Area and Porto Metropolitan Area conurbations, and plays a role as the chief city of the central part of the country. Coimbra developed into an important cultural centre, mainly because of the University of Coimbra founded in 1290. The university is one of the oldest in Europe and due to its monumental buildings and history attracts tourists from around the world.

History and attractions

Many important monuments of the city date from the 13th century, like the Old Cathedral, the Church of St. James (Igreja de Santiago) and the Santa Cruz Monastery, which was the most important Portuguese monastic institution at the time.
Already in the Middle Ages Coimbra was divided into an upper city (Cidade Alta or Almedina), where the aristocracy and the clergy lived, and the low city (Cidade Baixa) by the river where most commercial activities took place. The city was encircled by a fortified wall, of which some remnants are still visible like the Almedina Gate (Porta da Almedina). The most important work in gothic style in the city is the Old Santa Clara Convent (Convento de Santa Clara-a-Velha), founded in the left side of the river Mondego by Queen Elizabeth in the first half of the 14th century. The Monastery was located too close to the river, and frequent floods forced the nuns to abandon it in the 17th century, when the New Santa Clara Convent (Santa Clara-a-Nova) was built uphill. The Queen's magnificent gothic tomb was also transferred to the new convent. The ruins of the old convent have recently been unearthed and can be seen today in the left bank of the river.
The University of Coimbra was definitely transferred to the premises of Coimbra Castle in 1537 by King John III. Since then, the city life has revolved around the state-run university, and for many decades, several colleges (colégios) created to provide an alternative to the official form of teaching and established by the religious orders in the city, which were later gradually discontinued through the times with the secularization of teaching in Portugal. Built in the 18th century, the Joanina Library (Biblioteca Joanina), a baroque library, is other notable landmark of the ancient university, and the University Tower (Torre da Universidade), a baroque construction.