Thanks for the information.Greatly appreciated. George Sent from my iPad
On Sep 17, 2015, at 8:33 AM, "luiznoia ." <[email protected]> wrote: > > From the book , Açores: Nove Ilhas, Uma Historia "Nine Islands, one history" > Susana Goulart Costa > ISBN-13: 978-0981933603 > ISBN-10: 0981933602 > This work depicts the insular experience of the Azores since its settlement > until the present day, attentively following a chronological line that begins > in the XV century and ends in 2008. The settlement of the islands, their > incipient political and administrative structures and main economic > activities, the organisation of an insular society and the beliefs and > religious sensibilities are some of the themes that are rigorously explored. > Its principal purpose is to inform readers about the principal aspects of > insular history. This is a concise history easily accessible to the public in > general notwithstanding the author's assurance that it is a scientific work. > > > > "These first settlers had different motivations for embarking on their > adventure, motivations that have been more or less constant throughout human > history. > > Most came from the lower classes and saw in migration as an opportunity to > attain a better life in a new land. They were also attracted by the economic > and fiscal > benefits granted by the Portuguese Crown during the first years. These > settlers usually took their families and ended up transplanting their "home." > Overwhelmingly, > they were persons who had left behind little more than what they would find > in the new land. In the mid-16th century, Gaspar Frutuoso pointed to this > reality > since he observes that, whenever the grain-producing lands of Sao Miguel > become worn out, the "poor farmers are neither able nor willing to abandon > the lands that > they rent, even if they are losing profits, for they have no other > livelihood." > > Far less common were settlers with high social standing. Some had > participated in the discovery of the islands; some had gained the trust of > their leaders and > had been granted royal appointments, while others would be responsible for > the political, administrative and economic organization of the islands, as > was the case > of Gonzalo Velho Cabral and Jacome de Bruges. Still, these were mainly > esquires, the lowest rung in the hierarchy of the nobility. As such, they saw > their move to > the Azores as a way of moving up the social ladder by assuming control of > land and government posts. This was an elite class that used the archipelago > to rise in > society, but their prominence would be felt only in the context of the > islands, and not on the mainland. > > In other cases, dishonor that had befallen the family name prompted some to > look to the islands as a place to take refuge or to regain the social > prestige that had been lost. A very interesting example of this would be the > Canto family. The fIrst member of the clan to reach the Azores was Pedro Anes > do Canto, a native of Guimaraes. > His grandfather was Vasco Afonso do Canto, whose paternal grandparents were > nobles from Galicia, while his maternal grandparents came from England. He > fought on the side of Dom Pedro in the Battle of Alfarrobeira and, with the > defeat, fell "into great disfavor" with King Afonso V. By fighting in the > campaign to conquer Morocco, he regained the confidence of the Crown, which > rewarded him in 1527 with the directorship of the District Office of the > Armadas, based in the island of Terceira. > > Along with this voluntary migration, the historical sources that are > available indicate that individuals who were under a variety of constraints > also came to the islands. The situation of the Jews, expelled from the > Kingdom by order of King Manuel I in 1496,27 is a paradigmatic example of how > the maritime territories served as a dumping ground for so-called > ''undesirable'' groups of individuals, which also included the Moors and > recent converts. Similarly, some prisoners were forced to serve their > sentences on the islands. In 1455, for example, King Afonso V pardoned Joao > de Lisboa, who had been sent to Santa Maria in 1446 to be imprisoned for > homicide. > After having served nine years of his 15-year sentence, this criminal > returned to the mainland. These are situations that illustrate two aspects of > the early settlement of the region. First, since the Crown had difficulty in > recruiting persons, it forced some to migrate. Second, in the mid 15th > century, the settlement was still so sparse that not even the most > underprivileged were attracted. Finally, this process also included the > importation of slaves." > > > > > Eric Edgar > > On Wed, Sep 16, 2015 at 10:00 PM, Cheri Mello <[email protected]> wrote: > Repost for Miguel Deavery, migueldeavery at gmail.com > > I often wonder why some of our ancestors went to the Azores ?Did they go > freely or were they forced ? Beautiful Islands in the middle of nowhere.I > think our ancestors were courageous to leave Portugal than go to the Azores > and than leave again to go throughout the world to give us opportunities > they never had in their own lives.I know the Azores Islands are beautiful but > it must of been isolating for those living there not to long ago. I once > heard a saying but where I don't recall. The saying was ...There is Lisbon > and everything else is scenery. > -- > For options, such as changing to List, Digest, Abridged, or No Mail > (vacation) mode, log into your Google account and visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/Azores. Click in the blue area on the right > that says "Join this group" and it will take you to "Edit my membership." > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Azores Genealogy" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/azores. > > -- > For options, such as changing to List, Digest, Abridged, or No Mail > (vacation) mode, log into your Google account and visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/Azores. Click in the blue area on the right > that says "Join this group" and it will take you to "Edit my membership." > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Azores Genealogy" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/azores. -- For options, such as changing to List, Digest, Abridged, or No Mail (vacation) mode, log into your Google account and visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Azores. Click in the blue area on the right that says "Join this group" and it will take you to "Edit my membership." --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Azores Genealogy" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/azores.
