page_title: Convent of Nossa Senhora do Carmo (Horta)
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Convent of Nossa Senhora do Carmo (Horta) / History
caption_attribution_description: English: The annex to the Church of Nossa Senhora do Carmo, and older Convent of Carmo, used now for storage by the Portuguese military (partial view), Matriz, Horta, Faial (Azores), Portugal Português: Convento do Carmo, anexo à Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Carmo, vista parcial, Horta, ilha do Faial, Açores, Portugal
context_page_description: The Convent of Carmo is a former-convent situated in the civil parish of Matriz, municipality of Horta in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. For several centuries it was one of the several convents that dotted the urban area of the island of Faial, but was damaged during several earthquakes. After the expulsion of the religious orders the convent began a slow decline, and was eventually expropriated by the Portuguese Armed Forces as an administrative post and garrison.
context_section_description: Its construction began in the 17th century, specifically in 1652, under the influence of D. Helena de Boim, wife of the captain-major Francisco Gil da Silveira.
  After the construction of a chapel, dedicated to the invocation of Nossa Senhora da Boa Nova (Our Lady of Good News), D. Helena de Boim decided to create a hospice, in order to lodge Carmelite friars, that included round-trips through the kingdom to the States of Brazil and Maranhão.
  To promote the convent, D. Helena de Boim donated her possessions to the Order of the Brothers of Mount Carmel, and lands alongside the chapel in order to begin construction of the monastery, and later the church.
  The building evolved considerably throughout the years, primarily due to reconstruction, following several earthquakes that struck Faial over the years. It also affected the churchyard, situated over the centre of town, which was restored, rebuilt and expanded.
  Much of the construction resulted from the earthquake that struck the island in 1926. A similar earthquake rocked the islands of the central group on 9 July 1998, provoking destruction in the areas of Ribeirinha, Pedro Miguel, Salão and Cedros, and destroying homes in Castelo Branco (Lombega), Flamengos and Praia do Almoxarife.
  The convent was transferred to the Lay Carmelites in 1836, as a consequence of the extinction of the religious orders in Portugal, and owing to the intervention of António de Ávila (later Duke of Ávila e Bolama) the convent was spared, even as other liberals wished to destroy the building.
  At the time of its extinction, there were 12 sisters and three studying form admission to the order.
  A year later, the convent passed into the possession of the Portuguese State, who installed a garrison and barracks. By the time of the 1926 earthquake its role had changed significantly, and continued in the possession of the Ministry of Defense to the present, functioning as a military post, thereby affecting its use as a tourist landmark.
  In 2016, the municipal council and Ministry of National Defense signed a memorandum of intent to integrate the structure into the Revive (Reabilitação de Património e Turismo), a program to requalify 30 public buildings in advance states of degradation, but elevated heritage value.
caption: A view of the vaulted archways of the cloister of the former-Convent of Carmo, annexed alongside the Church of Nossa Senhora do Carmo
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