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"No ano de 1178 é fundado o castelo e em 1180 D. Teresa, filha de D. Afonso Henriques atribuiu a carta de foral a Ourém, tornando-a pelo valor militar do seu castelo num dos primeiros concelhos de Portugal.

Mas é no séc. XV com o Conde D. Afonso, neto de D. Nuno Álvares Pereira que, ao estabelecer, em 1422 aqui a sua corte senhorial se inicia o período áureo da vida de Ourém, com a construção do Paço, dos dois Torreões, da primitiva Igreja da Colegiada e das actuais muralhas que cercam o burgo.

O terramoto de 1755 e as devastações das invasões francesas em 1810, provocaram a decadência do velho burgo medieval, afastando a população para a pequena aldeia da Cruz, situada no sopé do monte e no meio da fértil várzea da Ribeira de Seiça. Esta vila foi elevada em 1841 pela Rainha D. Maria II a sede de concelho com o nome de Vila Nova de Ourém. Para formarem a actual cidade de Ourém, ambas as vilas se uniram em 1989.
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"Ourém’s history confirms that it was once called Abdegas and that King Afonso Henriques conquered it from the Moors in 1136. There are innumerable legends and traditions involving stories of enchanted Moorish maidens, such as the Moorish Fátima, who, having fallen in love with the brave Knight Templar, Gonçalo Hermingues, was converted to Christianity and given the name Oureana, the origin of the town’s present name. In 1178 the triangular shaped Castle was founded, and in 1180, Ourém received its first charter from Teresa, the daughter of King Afonso Henriques, becoming, for the military value of its Castle, one of the first Portuguese municipalities.

It was in the 15th century that D. Afonso, the 4th Count of Ourém, grandson of King John I, set up his court in Ourém (1422), and gave t he town defensive walls, built turrets and the ancient Collegiate Church as well as his royal palace. With the damages caused by the 1755’s earthquake and Napoleon's invasions, the people of the old town came down into the valley to the little village of Cruz, situated in the base of the hill and in the fertile land of Seiça’s brook. Queen Mary II named it Vila Nova de Ourém and granted it the status of municipality, in 1841. In 1989, both cities joined to form the present town of Ourém. Within this municipality, the parish of Fátima, now a city, is one of the most important pilgrimage centres for the Catholic World. It was separated from the Ourém Collegiate in 1568.

In the municipality’s area three specialities deserve one’s attention: “Mutton Vale Travesso’s style”, the “Friginada” and the “Ensopado de Vilar de Prazeres”. Preferring sweets one must try the local biscuits and cakes. A reference must be made to the excellent wines of Alburitel and Gondemaria."
by http://www.rt-leiriafatima.pt/