The history of the sanctuary began at the end of the 13th century, when a Caceres shepherd, Gil Cordero, discovered close to the river Guadalupe a statue of the Virgin Mary that had been buried by Christians from Seville around 714 when they were fleeing before the Moorish invaders. The shepherd built a chapel near the river to house the statue. A few years later it became a church, which was enlarged in 1337 by command of Alfonso XI, who visited it on several occasions.
This king invoked the protection of Our Lady of Guadalupe for the battle of Salado in 1340 and, following his victory, declared the church to be a Royal Sanctuary, founding a secular priory there. Shortly afterwards, he conferred the temporal overlordship on the prior and ordered the church to be further enlarged. Reverence for •the statue of the Virgin became widespread, but particularly in the kingdoms of Castille and Portugal.