The convent of São Vicente, founded in 1147, was delivered to the observing canons of Santo Agostinho. In 1582 the primitive building was destroyed and the construction of the new church began, being the first mass celebrated in 1629. It later suffered other changes.

The property had in symmetric composition around a Mall at the top of a monumental staircase. Is one of the best testimonies of an era in which it was possible to produce the city consistently. The Instituto Superior Técnico combines the efficiency to monumentality, being one of the best representatives of modernism in Portugal. The classification refers to the set of primitive by architect Pardal Monteiro.