Santarém

 

(səntərĕm') , town (1991 pop. 23,690), capital of Santarém dist. and Ribatejo, W central Portugal, above the right bank of the Tagus River. Food processing, tourism, and the export of agricultural produce are important industries. The town has been important since Roman times because of its strategic location along the approaches to Lisbon. It was retaken from the Moors by the first king of Portugal, Alfonso I, in 1147.