On the site where the Convent of As Donas now stands, it is believed that earlier monastic buildings once existed, referred to in medieval sources as San Pelayo de Genrozo. Their origins are not entirely clear, but the cenobium, inhabited by a community of Benedictine monks, probably dates back to the 11th century and was linked to the figure of Lord Froila Bermúdez. However, the religious community soon ceased its activities, and it was not until 1145 that the foundation of a new convent took place, at the initiative of Bermudo Pérez de Traba, a member of one of the most powerful families in Galicia at the time. He restored the former monastery with the intention of leaving it as an inheritance to his daughter, Lady Urraca, whom he appointed abbess. In time, the newly renamed Convent of Our Lady of the Ladies was granted by Lady Urraca herself to the Monastery of Sobrado, thus linking both institutions and giving rise to the Priory of Las Cascas. This situation remained in place until the confiscations carried out in the first half of the 19th century led to the definitive closure of As Donas. A series of processes then began that resulted in alterations to the original structure of the convent and the progressive destruction of its components.