Jerónimo de Azevedo
Encyclopedia
Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo (1540? - Lisbon
, 1625) was a Portuguese
fidalgo
and Viceroy
of India (Goa
). His full name was Jerónimo de Azevedo de Ataíde Malafaia and he was the 8th son of Dom Manuel de Azevedo, Comendador
of São João de Alpendurada and brother of Blessed Inácio de Azevedo. He served for many years in India
.
Azevedo was nominated 20th viceroy of India in 1611, and left Colombo for Goa
in 1612. In 1615 he backed an audacious expedition to Pegu to loot the Moon imperial treasures in Mrauk-U, an enterprise that ultimately did not succeed. However, the fact that it was supported at such a high official level showed how plunder was considered a legitimate policy objective in 16th century Portuguese-ruled Asia. Also in 1615 Azevedo led a huge fleet that tried to drive English East India Company ships under the command of Nicholas Downton off Surat
, but after a series of engagements he ultimately failed - an incident which demonstrated that Portuguese Goa
had lost the capacity to protect its monopoly of trade on the west coast of India.
A. R. Disney further states that by the time of Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo's mandate as viceroy the influence of colonials in Goa
, as distinct from metropolitan Portuguese, was steadily growing. These colonials had interests and an outlook that did not necessarily coincide with those of the metropolis. In practice, Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo - who had come to Asia as a young man and served for his entire career in the Portuguese "Estado da India" - was a colonial. This influence of colonials coincided with a period of resurgent Portuguese expansionism in South and Southeast Asia, that reached its peak when Azevedo took office in 1612 but was already a spent force when he terminated his mandate as viceroy in 1617.
On his return to Lisbon, Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo was held in custody and put on trial on several accusations, including that of not fighting the Dutch. He died in March 1625. He is buried in São Roque Church, in Lisbon
.
The Fort of São Jerónimo (Saint Jerome
) in Nani Daman was started during his term as viceroy and is named in his honour. Azevedo was also responsible for the rebuilding of the Idalcão or Adilshahi Palace in Panaji (Goa
).
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, 1625) was a Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
fidalgo
Fidalgo
Fidalgo , from Galician and Portuguese filho de algo—sometimes translated into English as "son of somebody" or "son of some "—is a traditional title used in Portugal to refer to a member of the titled or untitled nobility...
and Viceroy
Viceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
of India (Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
). His full name was Jerónimo de Azevedo de Ataíde Malafaia and he was the 8th son of Dom Manuel de Azevedo, Comendador
Comendador
Comendador is the capital of the Elías Piña province of the Dominican Republic. It has a border crossing to the Haitian town Belladère.-Population:The municipality had, in 2002, a total population of 25,475...
of São João de Alpendurada and brother of Blessed Inácio de Azevedo. He served for many years in India
Portuguese India
The Portuguese Viceroyalty of India , later the Portuguese State of India , was the aggregate of Portugal's colonial holdings in India.The government started in 1505, six years after the discovery of a sea route to India by Vasco da Gama, with the nomination of the first Viceroy Francisco de...
.
His Life
Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo was a key figure in the late 16th century Portuguese takeover in Ceylon (present day Sri Lanka).- According to author and historian A. R. Disney, the touchstone of Portuguese ambitions in Sri LankaSri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
by the end of the 16th century was the bequest by King Dharmapala of Kotte in 1580 of his entire realm to the king of Portugal. Dharmapala was a Christian convert and his bequest was unacceptable to most of his Buddhist inhabitants and to the ruler of neighbouring Kandy. The takeover was therefore resisted, and the Portuguese had to subjugate Kotte by force, formally completing the process during Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo's captaincy of Colombo from 1594 to 1612. A Portuguese administrative superstructure headed by a captain-general was then imposed on the kingdom.
Azevedo was nominated 20th viceroy of India in 1611, and left Colombo for Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
in 1612. In 1615 he backed an audacious expedition to Pegu to loot the Moon imperial treasures in Mrauk-U, an enterprise that ultimately did not succeed. However, the fact that it was supported at such a high official level showed how plunder was considered a legitimate policy objective in 16th century Portuguese-ruled Asia. Also in 1615 Azevedo led a huge fleet that tried to drive English East India Company ships under the command of Nicholas Downton off Surat
Surat
Surat , also known as Suryapur, is the commercial capital city of the Indian state of Gujarat. Surat is India's Eighth most populous city and Ninth-most populous urban agglomeration. It is also administrative capital of Surat district and one of the fastest growing cities in India. The city proper...
, but after a series of engagements he ultimately failed - an incident which demonstrated that Portuguese Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
had lost the capacity to protect its monopoly of trade on the west coast of India.
A. R. Disney further states that by the time of Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo's mandate as viceroy the influence of colonials in Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
, as distinct from metropolitan Portuguese, was steadily growing. These colonials had interests and an outlook that did not necessarily coincide with those of the metropolis. In practice, Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo - who had come to Asia as a young man and served for his entire career in the Portuguese "Estado da India" - was a colonial. This influence of colonials coincided with a period of resurgent Portuguese expansionism in South and Southeast Asia, that reached its peak when Azevedo took office in 1612 but was already a spent force when he terminated his mandate as viceroy in 1617.
On his return to Lisbon, Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo was held in custody and put on trial on several accusations, including that of not fighting the Dutch. He died in March 1625. He is buried in São Roque Church, in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
.
The Fort of São Jerónimo (Saint Jerome
Saint Jerome
Saint Jerome is a Christian church father, best known for translating the Bible into Latin.Saint Jerome may also refer to:*Jerome of Pavia , Bishop of Pavia...
) in Nani Daman was started during his term as viceroy and is named in his honour. Azevedo was also responsible for the rebuilding of the Idalcão or Adilshahi Palace in Panaji (Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
).
Sources
- Daman online
- [A. R. Disney, "A History of Portugal and the Portuguese Empire: From Beginnings to 1807 (Volume 2)" Cambridge University Press; 1st edition (April 13, 2009), pages 154, 166-167, 168, 191]
- Amazon.com
- [Frederick Charles Danvers, "The Portuguese in India: Being a History of the Rise and Decline of Their Eastern Empire: Volume 2", 1894 edition by W. H. Allen & Co., London, page 198]
- [John F. Riddick, "The history of British India: a chronology", Preager Publishers, 2006, page 2]
- Flipkart.com
- Geneall.net Portugal
- Geneall.net Portugal forum
- Carreira da India
- ["As relações de Manuel Severim de Faria", page 7, https://bdigital.ufp.pt/dspace/bitstream/10284/601/1/179-196FCHS2006-17.pdf]