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At the time when the Coach Museum celebrates 110 years of its opening to the public, we are now opening the modern architectural structure where its collection will from now on be permanently exhibited.

Throughout all these years, the Portuguese and many thousands of tourists were able to enjoy this extraordinary collection of vehicles that, opportunely, Queen Dona Amelia arranged to be kept, almost next door, in the facilities of the Royal Riding Academy.

It was thanks to that decision, remarkable in any aspect, that an original museum emerged, unique in Europe and all over the world, entirely dedicated to coaches and many accessories of the equestrian art.

It was thus possible to preserve the hereditary value of this notable collection of pomp and circumstance vehicles, until then scattered over the several royal palaces and which later would be augmented with coaches from other origins.

When transferring a major part of the museum’s exhibits to an entirely new space, newly built and in tune with the most advanced architectural values, it is fair to emphasize the pioneering spirit that was in its origin. Queen Dona Amelia revealed strategic vision when recognizing not only the hereditary value of the court’s vehicles but also that of their interest to the public.

The National Coach Museum is known worldwide as the most complete and grandiose collection of its kind, due to the quantity, the variety and the artistic quality exhibited by many of the original models kept and preserved here.

The extent and the rarity of the collection, which includes vehicles from the 17th to the 19th centuries, turn this museum into an authentic history book, not just concerning the last dynasty of Portuguese kings, but also the European monarchies of the time and the diplomatic relationships amongst the various States.

The Coach Museum shows the development of the techniques applied to transport and, simultaneously, the evolution of the decorative arts in the ornaments of the vehicles of pomp, reaching its apex during the so called «gold cycle».

It is not just the loftiness of the gala vehicles that is impressive. It is equally the wealth of figurative details that are shown, whether that of the paintings or of the golden wooden carvings, which truly transforms them into rarely seen beautiful sculptures.

The best evidence of the extraordinary uniqueness and hereditary value of this numerous set of carriages, berlins and coaches are the thousands of Portuguese and foreigners that annually visit the museum.

It is our duty to preserve this historical and cultural legacy and to create the conditions for it to continue duly conserved, studied and disclosed. The building we are inaugurating today offers the conditions and the equipment that enable the full enjoyment of the artistic quality of this heritage as well as its scientific study and restoration.

The modern and developed Portugal which we all want to construe cannot turn its back on the past. On the contrary, it must invest in the preservation of its own values, as a signal of identity in an ever more global world.

It is now widely known that hereditary values are a decisive factor towards the progress and the international assertion of the Country.

Development projects will be the more successful the better they are able to comprise the heritage – cultural, natural and urban – on which our culture is based.

It is for this reason that the requalification of our historical centres is absolutely necessary, as well as the preservation of the environment and of the natural assets which are such an important part of our national territory. This is very obviously demanded, both by the people’s quality of living and by the increase in tourism.

The new area where the Coach Museum is now installed, conceived by an architect of international renown, will certainly contribute towards the image of a Portugal that invests in being at the forefront, of a Portugal where progress and development are carried out when trailing a path of more than eight centuries.

Thank you very much.