After the conquest of the region from the Moors in the Portuguese Reconquista, the land was granted in 1159 as a fief to the Order of the Knights Templar. Under the modern city lies the Roman city of Sellium. The town was especially important in the 15th century when it was a center of Portuguese overseas expansion under Henry the Navigator, the Grand Master of the Order of Christ, successor organization to the Knights Templar in Portugal.Ĭastle and Convent of the Knights Templar of Tomar transferred in 1344 to the Knights of the Order of Christ Tomar was the last Templar town to be commissioned for construction and one of Portugal's historical jewels.

The town of Tomar was created inside the walls of the Convento de Cristo, constructed under the orders of Gualdim de Pais, the fourth Grand Master of the Knights Templar of Portugal in the late 12th century. The town proper has a population of about 20,000. Tomar ( Portuguese pronunciation: ( listen)), also known in English as Thomar, is a city and a municipality in the Santarém district of Portugal.

Virtual villagers 5 aqueduct