The city of Leiria, organised from a fortified strategic position, will undergo, just like any other Portuguese medieval town south of Coimbra, a development that combines a process of pacification and the retreat of the Arab world with a growing population. In 1211 given the rising number of inhabitants, the following parishes already existed in the town of Leiria: Santa Maria, S. Pedro, Santiago, Santo Estêvão and S. Martinho. At the end of the year S. Miguel de Colmeias, Santa Maria de Litém (later called Santa Maria de Vermoil), S. Simão de Litém, S. João de Espite and S. Salvador do Souto also received that title. The medieval villages grew on the outskirts, at the town gates, and in the specific case of Leiria, there is the certainty that this growth was the outcome of the amassing of a population of different cultures and religions, not only Christian but also Jewish and Muslim, drawn by the growing economic dynamics.
