João Soares de Albergaria de Sousa

João Soares de Albergaria de Sousa (Velas, São Jorge, January 16, 1776 – Velas, São Jorge, February 1, 1875), frequently referred to as João Soares de Albergaria, was a liberal politician, rural property-owner, and author of the histo-cultural manifesto Corografia Açórica, which was published in 1822, the first Azorean thesis on regional sovereignty.

Biography

He was the oldest son of militia Colonel Inácio Soares de Albergaria e Sousa and Isabel Delfina da Silveira Pereira de Lemos, members of the rural aristocracy and rich property owners on the island of São Jorge. He was schooled in Velas, and joined the local militia attaining the rank of ensign in 1814. In 1818, at the age of 22, he traveled to the Royal Court in Rio de Janeiro,[1] in attempt to obtain royal confirmation of the privileges and titles for his family.

Liberal politician

He remained at Court until the beginning of 1820, when traveled to Lisbon, arriving in Portugal at the beginning of the Liberal Revolution in Porto, encountering the formation of the Cortes Gerais Extraordinárias e Constituintes da Nação Portuguesa ("the Extraordinary General Courts and Constituent Assemblies of the Portuguese Nation") debating the new form of government in the post-Napoleonic Era. Albergaria de Sousa became involved in the politics of Lisbon, becoming a member of the Sociedade Patriótica Filantropia ("Patriotic Philanthropic Society") and congregating with a like-minded group of Azoreans who were sent to participate in the constituent courts. It was in this environment that he assumed the group's leadership and participate in that establishment of the Portuguese Constitution of 1822, in the hope of introducing into the Azores a new democratic government that would abandon the older colonial administration and the system imposed by the Capitania-Geral dos Açores. During this period, he collaborated in the political debate with three other elected deputies and intellectuals on what would become the Corografia Açórica, ou Descripção Phísica, Política e Histórica dos Açores, por um cidadão açorense, M. da Sociedade Patriótica Phylantropya n'os Açores (Lisboa, Imp. de João Nunes Esteves, 1822). It was a document that flowed from his political conversations, and constituted a clear manifesto of the political orientation of the Azorean members of the Constitutional Courts. Although the autonomous position was not described in terms that were vindictive or confrontational, many of the conversations usually fragmented into internal disputes between members of each island (especially those from São Miguel, Faial and Terceira). Reconciliation was always elusive and Albergaria de Sousa remained in Lisbon until 1827, acquiring political experience, before returning to the island of São Jorge where he assumed his place in his family's business.

Liberal traitor

The situation changed in 1828, when the Liberal cause was under attack. On 16 May 1828 Miguel I was acclaimed as absolute king by the counter-revolutionaries in opposition to the Liberal constitution in Angra do Heroísmo, and João Soares was on the losing side of the crown.[2]

The Captain-General of Angra, Manuel Vieira de Albuquerque Touvar, gave orders that all residents of the islands of the Azores should pay homage and fidelity to the new monarch.[2] When the ship carrying the orders arrived in Velas, on 11 June 1828 (as part of its declaration in the "lower islands"), the authorities encountered residents who were hesitant to accept the orders, and the military governor José Maurício Rodrigues, was pressured by Soares de Albergaria to delay the meeting.[2] Finally, on 15 June, an improvised meeting was called but Soares de Albergaria (at the head of several local Liberals) argued the orders should come from the Royal Decree, and not simply from Captain-General. Through his eloquent style and influence, Soares de Albergaria was able to impede the declaration. A few days later, on 22 June, a revolt in Angra, by the 5th Battalion, would proclaim the fidelity of the island to D. Maria da Glória and her illustrious father Sir D. Pedro, but it was not a complete victory, since pockets of resistance on Terceira and concentration of forces on the island of São Miguel still remained loyal to Miguel I. The government in São Miguel finally received a formal Royal Decree ordering the acclamation of D. Miguel, and liberals on São Jorge accepted the call on 28 October 1828. Soares de Albergaria participated in this acclamation meeting and swore loyalty to the crown, which was done under military duress, as the military governor had sent troops to the island to guarantee their loyalty (the end of an episode which his political adversaries would accuse João Soares of cowardice).

Owing to his power and local influence, Soares de Albergaria escaped an immediate sanction of treason. But, the decree of March 4, 1829, which arrived in the hands of the magistrate Francisco José Pacheco, demanded the punishment of those responsible for fermenting resistance to the new King (including members of freemasonry), forcing the systematic arrest of many liberals on 6 November 1829. As author of the Corografia Açórica manifesto and member of the constituent courts of 1822, Soares de Albergaria could not publicly defend himself, was detained on 14 November, and sent to Ponta Delgada where a special tribunal was convoked to punish seditious liberals. Summarily judged he was sentenced to five-years in Angola; in course, his conviction was commuted to on May 25 to five-years in the prison of Elvas, and transported there on 25 June 1830. Between 1830 and 1834 he remained in prison in Elvas, and later Almeida, suffering harsh conditions while his properties were confiscated and sold-off at bargain rates.

Later life

His liberation arrived in 1834, when troops under the Duke of Terceira captured the prisons and released its prisoners. He returned to São Jorge in 1835, encountering his possessions in disorder; his properties were returned in terrible conditions. Ironically, he returned to a municipality where many of his enemies were installed in power in the municipal offices, as respectable "liberals"; Soares de Albergaria would begin a political career on the left of these "liberals" in the Septemberist Revolution (1836–1842) and the Partido Historico[3] He became a legislative representative in 1827 and 1838, in support of the September Revolution and new constitution. He held many posts in municipal government, and supported the works of the local Santa Casa da Misericórdia das Velas.

After a prolonged sickness he died in 1875, short of his one hundredth birthday.

Published work

Corografia Açórica, ou Descripção Phísica, Política e Histórica dos Açores, por um cidadão açorense, M. da Sociedade Patriótica Phylantropya n'os Açores (Lisbon, Impressão de João Nunes Esteves, 133 pp., 1822), was Albergaria de Sousa's most important contribution to the history of the Azores. It was reeditted in 1975, by the quasi-fascist separatist faction FLA (Frente de Libertação dos Açores), with updated graphics and prefaced by José Guilherme Reis Leite, by the editor Jornal de Cultura, and republished in 1995 (ISBN 9727550134).

Notes

  1. ↑ The prince-regent Infante John VI of Portugal had transferred the monarchy to Brazil in his mothers (Queen Maria I of Portugal) name during the era of the Napoleonic Wars.
  2. 1 2 3 João Soares de Albergaria de Sousa (PDF) (in Portuguese) 1 (8), St-Laurent, Montréal, Quebec: O Açoriano, 31 May 2006, p. 3, retrieved 22 November 2012
  3. ↑ The "Historic Party" was formed by Nuno José Severo de Mendonça Rolim de Moura Barreto, as a counterpoint to the Portuguese Partido Regenerador (Regenerator Party), that absorbed the Partido Progressista Histórico ("Historic Progressive Party").

References

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