Martim Afonso de Sousa
Martim Afonso de Sousa | |
---|---|
Sebastian of Portugal | |
Preceded by | Office created |
Succeeded by | Pero Lopes de Sousa |
Personal details | |
Born | c. 1500 Ottoman–Portuguese conflicts (1538–1557) |
Martim Afonso de Sousa (c. 1500 – 21 July 1564) was a Portuguese fidalgo, explorer and colonial administrator.[1][2]
Life
Martim Afonso de Sousa was born in
After the death of
In Spain, where he lived for four years, he fought in the service of
Expedition to Brazil
Around 1530, King John III determined to send to an official Portuguese expedition to
Threatened by the presence of French ships along the coast of Brazil, the Portuguese crown in December 1530 sent a fleet with 400 people led by Martim Afonso de Sousa to establish control and explore. His mission was to place Portuguese markers as far south as the River Plate estuary, but he was shipwrecked there.[4]
Upon return to São Vicente and Santos, in 1532 he led troops guided by the native inhabitants and by earlier Portuguese settlers such as João Ramalho up the Serra do Mar mountains to the area near the future village of São Paulo. On the high plateau, he founded the town of Santo André. He also established a sugar mill near the coast at São Vicente, with sugarcane brought from the Portuguese Cape Verde islands. In both activities, Afonso de Sousa established a pattern followed by Portuguese colonizers and Brazilians for long afterward: the "entradas" and "bandeiras" – or explorations and raids into the interior – and the production of sugar along the coast for export.
He fought French privateers on the coast and was honored by the Portuguese crown, under the reign of King John III, as Donatary captain of two tracts of land in Brazil: the two tracts of the Captaincy of São Vicente. Since the depart, he had received communication from the king that the immense territory would be divided into extensive strips of land: hereditary captaincies. On that occasion, he was given one hundred leagues on the coast and he was authorized to return to Lisbon.[3] He was authorized to choose another eighty leagues for his younger brother Pero Lopes de Sousa.
Back to the Kingdom
In 1533 he was already in Portugal. Then on December 19, 1533, four months after he had returned from his tiring journey, King John III sent him to serve in India with the post of Captain-Major of the Indian Sea. To this end, he was entrusted with the leadership of five ships. According to chronicler Gaspar Correia, in Legends of India, "Martim Afonso was very disgusted by the decision, because he felt that it was coming from D. António".[2]
Governor of Portuguese India
He was tasked with protecting Portugal's possessions in the East. He defended the trading post of
Later life
There is controversy regarding the end of his career. Some historians claim that he returned to Portugal in 1545 or 1546, becoming one of the members of the Council of State.[2] Others maintain that he was recalled on charges of embezzlement of Crown money and illicit enrichment, remaining away from public life until his death.
He was Lord of Alcoentre, which he bought from the Marquis of Vila Real and Mayor of Rio Maior. He established a morgue, was a donatary captain of the captaincies of São Vicente and Rio de Janeiro, Commendator of Mascarenhas in the Order of Christ and Nobleman of the Council of King John III. At the end of his life, he regained the landlordship of the town of Prado that he had sold as a young man.[2]
He died on July 21, 1561 and lies in the Convent of São Francisco da Cidade, in Lisbon.
References
- ^ a b "Martim Afonso de Sousa | Portuguese admiral". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
- ^ ISBN 9788556080066.
- ^ Federal Senate of Brazil.
- )