Manuel António Martins Explained

Manuel António Martins
Birth Date:1772
Death Date:1845
Death Place:Santa Maria, Portuguese Cape Verde
Nationality:Portuguese
Office:Colonial governor of Cape Verde
Term Start:14 February 1834
Term End:1835
Predecessor:D. José Coutinho de Lencastre
Successor:Joaquim Pereira Marinho

Manuel António Martins (1772 in Braga-1845) was a Portuguese businessman and colonial governor of Cape Verde and Portuguese Guinea from 1834 to 1835.[1] Martins was said to be the richest man in the country and nicknamed the Napoleon of the Cape Verde Islands.[2] He arrived in Cape Verde in 1792. He started the exploitation of the salt ponds of Pedra de Lume on the island of Sal in 1796.[3]

In May 1819, Martins co-established a fishing company with the Governor of Cape Verde, António Pusich. Martins's partnership with Pusich soured after Pusich accused Martin of trying to sell São Vicente and Sal to the British.[2] After the accusation, Martins instigated a riot in Praia in May 1821 that led to the overthrow of Pusich.[2] In 1819, Martins was appointed by Samuel Hodges, Jr. as an honorary vice-consul for the United States on the island of Boa Vista.[4] He founded the town of Santa Maria on Sal in 1830.[5]

In December 1833, Martins was appointed colonial governor of Cape Verde and Guinea,[2] assuming office on 14 February 1834. His tenure lasted until March 1835.[1] In 1834 he established the municipality of Santa Catarina with its seat in Picos, replacing the old municipality of Ribeira Grande.[6]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Cape Verde. worldstatesmen.org.
  2. Book: Brooks. George E.. Western Africa and Cabo Verde, 1790s-1830s: symbiosis of slave and legitimate trades. 10 December 2010. 9781452088709. 99–120. 29 October 2016.
  3. https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/6106/ Salines de Pedra de Lume
  4. Brooks. G.E.. Samuel Hodges, Jr., and the Symbiosis of Slave and "Legitimate" Trades, 1810s-1820s. The International Journal of African Historical Studies. 2008. 41. 1. 101–116. 40282458.
  5. Web site: A History of Ilha do Sal. Ray Almeida. https://web.archive.org/web/20160206120818/http://www1.umassd.edu/specialprograms/caboverde/salhist.html . 6 February 2016 . dead.
  6. http://www.portaldoconhecimento.gov.cv/bitstream/10961/2349/1/anazenaida2.pdf Evolução histórica do Concelho de Santa Catarina (1834 – 1912)