about the place
Ourém is located in the District of Santarém, in central Portugal, in a landscape of hills and valleys that has preserved centuries of history. The Municipality was granted a royal charter in 1180 by D. Teresa de Portugal, daughter of D. Afonso Henriques. The name of the town is believed to derive from a Moorish princess, captured in 1158 and baptised Oureana — the root from which Ourém would emerge. The castle, built in 1136 and restored in the 15th century by the 4th Count of Ourém, still dominates the skyline of the medieval village today.
