The Legend of Nazaré has it that on the early morning of September 14, 1182, Dom Fuas Roupinho, alcalde of Porto de Mós, Portugal, was out hunting on his domain near the coast, when he saw and immediately began chasing a deer. All of a sudden a heavy fog rose up from the sea. The deer ran towards the top of a cliff, and in the fog Dom Fuas was cut off from his companions. When he realised he was at the edge of the cliff, he recognised the place. He was next to a small grotto where a statue of Our Lady with the Infant was venerated. He prayed out loud "Our Lady, help me." The horse miraculously stopped at the end of a rocky point suspended over the void, the Bico do Milagre, saving the rider and his mount from a drop of more than 100 metres, which would certainly have caused their death.

Nazaré is a Portuguese town and municipality located in the Oeste region, in the historical province of Estremadura, and in the Leiria District. The municipality has a population of 14,889 in an area of 82.43 km2, while the town itself has around 10,000 inhabitants.