GUALDIM PAIS

THE PORTUGUESE GRAND MASTER WHO FOUGHT IN THE IBERIAN RECONQUISTA 1118-95 PORTUGAL

Although the Templars’ crusading activities were most famously active in the Holy Land, they also extensively crusaded in Iberia against the Moors. One of these Iberian Templars was Gualdim Pais, a Portuguese knight who served Afonso I, the first Christian king of a united Portugal.

Pais fought alongside Afonso at the Battle of Ourique in 1139 and was knighted for his bravery. He then became a Templar and crusaded in Palestine for five years. During this time, Pais participated in several sieges and battles before he returned home, and was appointed as the Templar Grand Master of Portugal in 1157.

As Grand Master, Pais founded several castles but his most significant achievement was establishing the city of Tomar in central Portugal. He built a formidable Templar stronghold within Tomar, called the Convent of Christ, which Pais successfully defended in 1190. The Templars were vastly outnumbered by Almohad forces commanded by Caliph

Yaqub Al-mansur but Pais’ victory strengthened the kingdom of Portugal.

Pais is buried in the Church of Santa Maria do Olival in Tomar, which has been a designated as a Portuguese National Monument since 1910