President Droupadi Murmu visited the Church of Santa Maria and laid a wreath at the tomb of Luis Vaz de Camoes — the national poet of Portugal.

President Murmu also visited the Monastery of Jeronimos — a masterpiece of 16th-century architecture in Portugal.

The monastery also houses the tomb of Vasco da Gama, the legendary Portuguese explorer whose legendary voyage to India in 1498 opened maritime routes between Europe and Asia.

Some points on Luis Vaz de Camoes:

• Luis Vaz de Camoes was a poet, soldier and a traveller. 

• Portugal’s National Day is celebrated annually on June 10. The date commemorates the death of national literary icon Luis de Camoes on June 10, 1580.

• He was born in a time when the Portuguese seafarers were rapidly discovering new lands across the World.

• As a young nobleman, he attended the court of King John, the Third of Portugal. There, he became known for his bravery and poetry.

• As a soldier, he served militarily in Northern Africa, where he lost one of his eyes while battling. He returned to Portugal and finally left to Asia, where the Portuguese have started to settle since some time ago.

• It was in Asia where Camoes presumably wrote his epic poem ‘The Lusiadas’ (Os Lusíadas). It was published in 1572. It narrates the voyage of Vasco da Gama from Portugal to the Indian subcontinent around the Cape of Good Hope. It also gives a glimpse of the history of Portugal till the 16th century.

• Camoes also wrote lyric poetry, many times in the form of sonnets.

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