The Church and the former Convento de Santo António dos Capuchos in Faro have been classified as a monument of public interest.
The Capuchin monks of the Província da Piedade settled in Faro in 1529 and later occupied the current convent which was completed in 1620 on land that then lay 'near the city centre.'
The church that was built as an attachment to the monastery was inaugurated in 1622 making this group of buildings some of the oldest standing in the Algarve.
The monks stayed in Faro until the end of the religious order in 1834. The convent lay unused until it was renovated and occupied by the GNR in the early twentieth century. The building also once served as the district jail.
The regional directorate of Cultura do Algarve said today that "the application for the classification of the Church and former convent went through a long process of public hearings and received much technical advice which accorded with the criteria listed in the Cultural Heritage Act, particularly as to its aesthetic value, architecture, as well as the fact that the buildings live in our collective memory.”
Faro complains of being ignored by tourists despite being only a few kilometres from the airport. The classification of such important buildings as being of national importance will help bring out of season, non-beach holidaymakers to the regional capital in search of the Algarve's rich history.
