Luís de Menezes Bragança
Encyclopedia
Luís de Menezes Bragança (Konkani
: लुईझ दॆ मॆनॆज़ॆस ब्रागान्सा; 15 January 1878 – 10 July 1938), alternatively spelled as Luís de Menezes Braganza, was a prominent Indo
-Portuguese
journalist, writer, politician and anti-colonial
activist from Goa
. He was one of the few Goan aristocrats who actively opposed the Portuguese occupation of Goa
. During his lifetime, Menezes Bragança was widely hailed around the Lusosphere (Portuguese
speaking world) as "O Maior de todos" (The Greatest of all Goans) and in the Indian mainland
as "The Tilak
of Goa".
, Salcette
, to a Chardo
family. His mother hailed from the illustrious Bragança clan of the same village. Later on in life, his maternal grandfather Francis Xavier Bragança who had no sons, nominated Luís, his eldest grandson as his heir. Luís then adopted his maternal surname as his own surname and subsequently became Luís de Menezes Bragança. This was contrary to Portuguese custom, whereby the maternal surname is typically followed by the paternal surname. He did his primary education at the Rachol Seminary
and then at the Lyceum in Panjim. Although raised a Roman Catholic, Menezes Bragança later became an agnostic.
. On 22 January 1900, together with another Goan writer Messias Gomes he co-founded O Heraldo
(The Herald), which was the first Portuguese language daily in Goa. His columns in the newspaper were typified by satirical wit, wherein he would attack the Portuguese government and reactionary thinking from Hindu and Catholic intellectuals. Menezes Bragança was a strong believer in secularism
and propounded the ideals of a Secular republic
in his columns, prior to the formation of the Portuguese First Republic
on 5 October 1910.
In 1911, he founded O Debate (The Debate), of which he was the principal editor until 1921. During this period, he also strove to awaken the political consciousness and cultural identity of the Goan people. Menezes Bragança was a regular contributor to Pracasha (Light), a Konkani language
weekly wherein he wrote in great length on subjects such as freedom of thought, freedom of expression and freedom from oppression. His writings provided a great deal of information about the Indian independence movement
to the Goan public, and as such, was avidly read by them for news about the Indian mainland. On 1 December 1919, Menezes Bragança founded another Portuguese language daily Diário de Noite (The Evening News). Like O Debate, this daily also had a wide Goan readership and dealt with the events in the Indian mainland as well as Goan cultural issues.
in Portugal
, he placed himself at the head of the anti-colonialist movement in Goa. After the promulgation of the racist Portuguese Colonial Act
in 1930, he proposed a resolution at the Legislative council in Panjim on 3 July of the same year. The resolution upheld the right of self-determination for Goans from the Portuguese rule, and was duly adopted. Menezes Bragança was the first person to call for an independent Goa and as such, was generally hailed as the "father of Goan unrest". His brother-in-law Tristão de Bragança Cunha was also a prominent Indian nationalist
.
, leader of the elected Opposition in the Government Council and Legislative Assembly, President of the Provincial Congress of Goa (1921) and Portuguese India
's delegate to the Colonial Conference held in Lisbon
in 1924. He was a member of an eminent elite cultural organisation, Instituto Vasco da Gama.
Konkani language
KonkaniKonkani is a name given to a group of several cognate dialects spoken along the narrow strip of land called Konkan, on the west coast of India. This is, however, somewhat an over-generalisation. Geographically, Konkan is defined roughly as the area between the river Damanganga to the north...
: लुईझ दॆ मॆनॆज़ॆस ब्रागान्सा; 15 January 1878 – 10 July 1938), alternatively spelled as Luís de Menezes Braganza, was a prominent Indo
Indian people
Indian people or Indisians constitute the Asian nation and pan-ethnic group native to India, which forms the south of Asia, containing 17.31% of the world's population. The Indian nationality is in essence made up of regional nationalities, reflecting the rich and complex history of India...
-Portuguese
Portuguese people
The Portuguese are a nation and ethnic group native to the country of Portugal, in the west of the Iberian peninsula of south-west Europe. Their language is Portuguese, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion....
journalist, writer, politician and anti-colonial
Anti-imperialism
Anti-imperialism, strictly speaking, is a term that may be applied to a movement opposed to any form of colonialism or imperialism. Anti-imperialism includes opposition to wars of conquest, particularly of non-contiguous territory or people with a different language or culture; it also includes...
activist from 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...
. He was one of the few Goan aristocrats who actively opposed the Portuguese occupation of Goa
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...
. During his lifetime, Menezes Bragança was widely hailed around the Lusosphere (Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
speaking world) as "O Maior de todos" (The Greatest of all Goans) and in the Indian mainland
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
as "The Tilak
Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Lokmanya Tilak –, was an Indian nationalist, teacher, social reformer and independence fighter who was the first popular leader of the Indian Independence Movement. The British colonial authorities derogatorily called the great leader "Father of the Indian unrest"...
of Goa".
Early life
Luís de Menezes Bragança was born as Luís de Menezes on 15 January 1878 in ChandorChandor
Chandor is a village in South Goa district, Goa, India, on the banks of the river Kushavati, 10 km east from Margao.-History:...
, Salcette
Salcette
Salcette , is a taluka of South Goa District in the Indian state of Goa. Its administrative and economic headquarters is Margao. It is largely coterminous with a region called Sashti , which comprised, by local tradition, sixty-six villages, hence the name. However, it also includes the taluka of...
, to a Chardo
Roman Catholic Kshatriya
The Roman Catholic Kshatriya is a caste among the Goan and Mangalorean Catholics, of modern-day descendants of Goan Kshatriya and a few Vaishya converts to Roman Catholicism. They are respectively known as Chardo in the Goan Catholic dialects of Konkani The Roman Catholic Kshatriya is a caste among...
family. His mother hailed from the illustrious Bragança clan of the same village. Later on in life, his maternal grandfather Francis Xavier Bragança who had no sons, nominated Luís, his eldest grandson as his heir. Luís then adopted his maternal surname as his own surname and subsequently became Luís de Menezes Bragança. This was contrary to Portuguese custom, whereby the maternal surname is typically followed by the paternal surname. He did his primary education at the Rachol Seminary
Rachol Seminary
Rachol Seminary, also known today as the Patriarchal Seminary of Rachol , is the diocesan major seminary of the Primatial Catholic Archdiocese of Goa and Daman.-Historical Outline:The edifice that presently houses the seminary, was constructed by the Jesuits with...
and then at the Lyceum in Panjim. Although raised a Roman Catholic, Menezes Bragança later became an agnostic.
Journalistic career
By the age of twenty, Menezes Bragança had gained a reputation as a fine writer in the Portuguese languagePortuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
. On 22 January 1900, together with another Goan writer Messias Gomes he co-founded O Heraldo
O Heraldo
-History:The firm was established as the first Portuguese newspaper on 22 January 1900 by Prof. Messias Gomes and Luís de Menezes Bragança in Goa, the O Heraldo which was critical of Portuguese colonial rule, which was later transformed into an English daily in 1987....
(The Herald), which was the first Portuguese language daily in Goa. His columns in the newspaper were typified by satirical wit, wherein he would attack the Portuguese government and reactionary thinking from Hindu and Catholic intellectuals. Menezes Bragança was a strong believer in secularism
Secularism
Secularism is the principle of separation between government institutions and the persons mandated to represent the State from religious institutions and religious dignitaries...
and propounded the ideals of a Secular republic
Secular state
A secular state is a concept of secularism, whereby a state or country purports to be officially neutral in matters of religion, supporting neither religion nor irreligion. A secular state also claims to treat all its citizens equally regardless of religion, and claims to avoid preferential...
in his columns, prior to the formation of the Portuguese First Republic
Portuguese First Republic
The Portuguese First Republic spans a complex 16 year period in the history of Portugal, between the end of the period of constitutional monarchy marked by the 5 October 1910 revolution and the 28 May coup d'état of 1926...
on 5 October 1910.
In 1911, he founded O Debate (The Debate), of which he was the principal editor until 1921. During this period, he also strove to awaken the political consciousness and cultural identity of the Goan people. Menezes Bragança was a regular contributor to Pracasha (Light), a Konkani language
Konkani language
KonkaniKonkani is a name given to a group of several cognate dialects spoken along the narrow strip of land called Konkan, on the west coast of India. This is, however, somewhat an over-generalisation. Geographically, Konkan is defined roughly as the area between the river Damanganga to the north...
weekly wherein he wrote in great length on subjects such as freedom of thought, freedom of expression and freedom from oppression. His writings provided a great deal of information about the Indian independence movement
Indian independence movement
The term Indian independence movement encompasses a wide area of political organisations, philosophies, and movements which had the common aim of ending first British East India Company rule, and then British imperial authority, in parts of South Asia...
to the Goan public, and as such, was avidly read by them for news about the Indian mainland. On 1 December 1919, Menezes Bragança founded another Portuguese language daily Diário de Noite (The Evening News). Like O Debate, this daily also had a wide Goan readership and dealt with the events in the Indian mainland as well as Goan cultural issues.
Activism
Menezes Bragança was a staunch advocate for the cause of Konkani. In 1914, he began a campaign in defence of the language in O Heraldo, urging its development. In this, he received the wide support of the Goan intelligentsia. He advocated the impartation of primary school education in Konkani, and blamed the Portuguese authorities' preoccupation with denationalisation of the Goan people for its failure to encourage the language. Menezes Bragança championed the cause of the less privileged sections of Goan society. In 1933, with the coming to power of the Estado Novo regime headed by António de Oliveira SalazarAntónio de Oliveira Salazar
António de Oliveira Salazar, GColIH, GCTE, GCSE served as the Prime Minister of Portugal from 1932 to 1968. He also served as acting President of the Republic briefly in 1951. He founded and led the Estado Novo , the authoritarian, right-wing government that presided over and controlled Portugal...
in Portugal
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...
, he placed himself at the head of the anti-colonialist movement in Goa. After the promulgation of the racist Portuguese Colonial Act
Portuguese Colonial Act
In 1930 Dr. António de Oliveira Salazar became a dictator of Portugal. He was the architect of the first highly racist Portuguese Colonial Act, which discriminated against Portuguese India, differentiating them from the metropolitan Portuguese people. Because of this act the Portuguese Indians...
in 1930, he proposed a resolution at the Legislative council in Panjim on 3 July of the same year. The resolution upheld the right of self-determination for Goans from the Portuguese rule, and was duly adopted. Menezes Bragança was the first person to call for an independent Goa and as such, was generally hailed as the "father of Goan unrest". His brother-in-law Tristão de Bragança Cunha was also a prominent Indian nationalist
Indian nationalism
Indian nationalism refers to the many underlying forces that molded the Indian independence movement, and strongly continue to influence the politics of India, as well as being the heart of many contrasting ideologies that have caused ethnic and religious conflict in Indian society...
.
Associations
Menezes Bragança held many high positions in various organisations during his life-time. He was elected President of the Municipality of IlhasTiswadi
Tiswadi is a taluka of North Goa district of the state of Goa, India.The word Tiswadi itself means thirty settlements. It refers to the thirty settlements in which the Goud Saraswat Brahmins settled when they migrated to Goa. It is geographically an Island with the Mandovi river forming its...
, leader of the elected Opposition in the Government Council and Legislative Assembly, President of the Provincial Congress of Goa (1921) and Portuguese 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...
's delegate to the Colonial Conference held 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...
in 1924. He was a member of an eminent elite cultural organisation, Instituto Vasco da Gama.