João Soares de Albergaria

João Soares de Albergaria
João Soares
1st Donatary-Captain of Santa Maria
In office
1474–1499
Monarch
Preceded by Gonçalo Velho Cabral
Succeeded by João Soares de Sousa
Constituency Santa Maria
Personal details
Born João Soares
1415
Died 1499
Citizenship Kingdom of Portugal
Nationality Portuguese
Spouse(s)
  • Brites Godins
  • Branca de Sousa Falcão
Relations

Parents

  • Fernão Soares de Albergaria
  • Teresa Velho Cabral
Children
Residence Vila do Porto
Religion Roman Catholic
Nickname(s) João Soares Velho

João Soares de Albergaria (c. 1415 - 1499), also referred to as João Soares (or João Soares Velho),[1] was the second Portuguese Dontary-Captain of the islands of Santa Maria and São Miguel, succeeding his maternal uncle Gonçalo Velho Cabral in the title. After selling his rights to the Captaincy of the island of São Miguel, to Rui Gonçalves da Câmara, he continued as Donatary-Captain of Santa Maria.

Biography

Early life

He was the son of Fernão Soares de Albergaria and Teresa Velho Cabral, one of the sisters of Gonçalo Velho Cabral.

He married Brites Godins, yet had no heirs. In 1474, due to his wife's illness, Albergaria moved to the island of Madeira, in order to "find remedies and medics" to treat his wife's condition, as well as a milder climate for her to convalesce. They lodged with the family of the Captain of Funchal, João Gonçalves Zarco and his brother, Rui Gonçalves da Câmara. As Father Gaspar Frutuoso would later relate, due to the unproductivity of the island, the many costs he developed during his move and treatments for his wife, Soares de Albergaria would decide to sell the Captaincy of São Miguel for 2,000 cruzados and 60,000 kilograms of sugar to Rui Gonçalves for his hospitality;[1][2] this contract was approved by Beatrice of Burgundy, Diogo, Duke of Viseu and, ultimately, ratified by the King Afonso V on 10 March 1474.[2]

Captaincy

João Soares de Albergaria settled the island, and restructured the population, founding the principal village, Vila do Porto, and becoming the base for future Captains-Generals in the islands of the Azores. His maternal uncle was the "Commander of Santa Maria and Captain of the Azores", within a structural framework that was not properly defined. His position as Captain of Santa Maria was confirmed in a similar edict from King Afonso V of Portugal, months later:

We are to know that João Soares, knight of the House of the Duke of Viseu, my greatly loved cousin, and my esteemed nephew, that We were shown a title signed by Infanta Beatrice, my much-loved and esteemed sister, that mad me know that the above son...was given the charge to João Soares the island of Santa Maria, that he be Captain of it.[3]

During his Captaincy, Albergaria was responsible for promoting the settlement of the island, a charge that he was successful in initiating, attracting settlers from both Portugal (mainly the Algarve and continental Europe). He was also responsible for the defense of the island; yet, during one such attack, a Castilian corsair attacked Vila do Porto in 1480, during the War of the Castilian Succession, and sacked the town. Albergaria did not escape the battle and was captured, and taken prisoner to Castile, where he was ransomed.[4][5] He paid his own ransom eight days before peace were declared by Afonso V of Portugal and Ferdinand of Castile (at the end of 1480).

Later life

Albergaria was later to marry Branca de Sousa Falcão (daughter of João de Sousa Falcão, 1st Lord de Figueiredo and 1st Lord of the Manor de Fataúnços, and D. Maria de Almada) by order of the King João II on 20 June 1492, with whom they had many descendants:

He would finally return to island to Santa Maria late in life, and died in 1499 at the age of 80 years. The captaincy of Santa Maria would be passed on to his descendants until its extinction in 1667 (following the death Brás Soares de Sousa in 1664).[6]

References

Notes
  1. 1 2 Gaspar Frutuoso, Saudades da Terra, (1873) Book III
  2. 1 2 Carlos Melo Bento (2008), p.22-23
  3. ↑ Decree of confirmation, July 13, 1474. apud: Monterey, 1981, p.49-50
  4. ↑ Figueiredo (1990), p.67/74
  5. ↑ Carlos Melo Bento (2008), p.20
  6. ↑ A royal decree, dated 23 May 1667 would integrate the Captaincy of Santa Maria into the House of Castelo Melhor, and would be completely abolished in 1766 in the context of reforms instituted by the Marquis de Pombal (Arquivo dos Açores, 1981, IV: 205)
Sources
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