Vila Franca do Campo was then the provincial capital and is located on São Miguel Island in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores.

The shaking had a maximum intensity of X (i.e., "Very destructive") on the European macroseismic scale, triggering landslides and lahars that moved 6,750,000 cubic metres (238,000,000 cu ft) of material down the surrounding slopes, destroying buildings.

In addition to the destruction of Vila Franca, the earthquake affected the neighboring settlements of Ponta Garça, Maia and Porto Formoso where thousands died as well.

Gaspar Frutuoso, writing 70 years following the destruction, provided a complete record of these events, called "Romance de Vila Franca."

Between the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th century, the settlement of Vila Franca do Campo was the provincial capital of the island of São Miguel.

The presence of the main customshouse and relative shelter of the villages' islet made Vila Franca the primary port of entry to the island.

The elevated hardness of the basalt stone made working the material difficult, creating rounded surfaces that were fragile to masonry.

The island's volcanic terrain, consisting of low-density pyroclastic materials (such as the pumice stones that comprised the flanks of the Água do Pau Massif), was susceptible to landslides, and eventually resulted in the creation of lahars.