This monument is dedicated to the Elected Bishop of Porto, Friar Manuel de Santa Inês. Chosen as prelate by King Peter IV himself when he arrived in Porto, Friar Manuel de Santa Inês was never considered a bishop by the Holy Cathedral. When he died- due to complications from the flu he caught after, in December 1839, he went to bless, under the cold and rain, the Prado do Repouso Cemetery (the first municipal cemetery in Porto)- his body was not taken by the canons to the usual burial place of bishops. The people took this attitude as an affront, because, even though Manuel de Santa Inês was considered by many more conservative canons as illegitimate, it was him who spiritually supported the people of Porto in an exemplary way during the Siege of Porto, a time when some of these canons had even fled the city. The city therefore owed a debt of gratitude to Friar Manuel de Santa Inês. During the commotion that arose during his funeral, the population began to shout "take him to Lapa!" - as, shortly before, a monument had been erected there by subscription to another great figure in the city (José Ferreira Borges) and, in this way, the people could contribute and pay for a worthy monument to their prelate, avoiding the disregard of being buried anonymously in an area of the city cathedral.
On this monument we can observe symbols related to religion and faith,and it initially had iron railings surrounding it, like it was done at the time in the Pére Lachaise cemetery, finding in this monument not only Italian influence, but also French. However, the railing on Manuel de Santa Inês’ mausoleum was later removed.