Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary of Fatima

The Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary of Fatima began to be built in 1928, to a design by Dutch architect Gerardus Samuel van Krieken. It stands on the spot where the Little Shepherds were playing at making a small stone wall when they saw the flash that made them think it was a thunderstorm on May 13, 1917.

The first stone was blessed by the Archbishop of Évora, Manuel da Conceição Santos, in 1928, and the consecration took place on October 7, 1953. In 1954 it was granted the title of Minor Basilica by Pope Pius XII.

The building, which measures 70.5 meters in length and 37 meters in width, was built entirely from local stone (from the place of Moimento) and the altars are made of marble from Estremoz, Pero Pinheiro and Fátima.

The bell tower is 65 m high and is topped by a 7000 kg bronze crown, built in the Bolhão foundry in Porto, topped by a cross, which is illuminated at night.
The carillon is made up of 62 bells, cast and tempered in Fátima by Manuel Gonçalves. The largest bell weighs 3,000 kg and the clapper 90. The clock is the work of Bento Rodrigues, from Braga. The marble angels on the façade are by Albano França.