Martim Afonso de Sousa - Lisboa, Portugal
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manchanegra
N 38° 41.766 W 009° 12.360
29S E 482086 N 4283073
Martim Afonso de Sousa was a Portuguese nobleman and military, Governor of Brazil and Vice Roy of the State of India.
Waymark Code: WMDXT9
Location: Lisboa, Portugal
Date Posted: 03/08/2012
Views: 10
Martim Afonso de Sousa´s coat of arms is divided in four and is composed by a Lyon (on the 1st and 4th) and the Portuguese cross made with the five portuguese shields (Quinas) on the 2nd and 3rd parts.
The coat of arms is placed in a magestic fountain in Belem (Fonte Luminosa)in front of Jerónimos Monastery together with 49 other coat of arms of important personalities from the time of Portuguese Discoveries. The fountain was designed by Cottinelli Telmo and built in 1940 for the Portuguese World Exhibition. There´s very little information about the fountain and the Coat of Arms and most available information refers to a total of 32 Coat of arms of Portuguese inland and Overseas provinces wich is wrong. These coat of arms can be seen in the gardens around the fountain designed with flowers and bushes.
Martim Afonso de Sousa (Vila Viçosa, c.1490/1500 - Lisbon, 21 July 1571) was a Portuguese nobleman and military.
He was a descendant of King Alfonso III of Portugal (from a bastard line).
Lord of Prado and Alcoentre and a relative of the Count of Castanheira, D. Antonio de Athayde,very inluent on the court of King João III of Portugal, Sousa was Lord of Prado, and Captain-General of the Bragança and later Governor of the State of India and Brazil.
He began his career as a man of war on sea on the fleet that the king send to Brazil in 1531.
His expedition is seen as the first colonizing expedition of Brasil, the main purpose of his mission was to put Portuguese ownership markers (Padrões) across the basin of the Rio da la Plata, which he did not achieved due to have sunk in the region.
He founded on January 22, 1532 the first village in Brazil, baptizing them in the village of San Vicente, a tribute to St. Vincent Martyr.
He fought French privateers on the coast and was awarded by the Portuguese crown with land in Brasil.
He was appointed Captain-General of the Indian Ocean in 1533, with the task to protect the possessions of Portugal in the East. He defended the factory at Diu against the Moors and Indians, defeated the Rajah of Calicut and fought the pirates who plundered the Portuguese vessels in the region. Victorious, he was appointed by King John III in 1542 viceroy of the Indies.
There is controversy about the end of his career. Some historians claim that he returned to Portugal in 1545 and 1546, becoming a member of the Council of State. Others maintain that it was called back on a charge of embezzling money from the Crown, and was secluded
from public life until his death.
(From Wikipedia)
Bearer of Coat of Arms: Noble (aristocratic) family
Full name of the bearer: Martim Afonso de Sousa
Where is Coat of Arms installed (short description) ?:
Fonte Luminosa @ Praça do Império (Fountain )
Material / Design: Stone
Blazon (heraldic description):
See above.
Address:
Praça do Império
Web page about the structure where is Coat of Arms installed (if exists): [Web Link]
Web page about the bearer of Coat of Arms (if exists): [Web Link]
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Visit Instructions:
Logging requirements: Please upload your own personal photo of the coat of arms. You or your GPS can be in the picture, but it’s not a requirement.