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Mouzinho da Silveira

Mouzinho da Silveira

José Xavier Mouzinho da Silveira $nbsp;was born in the parish of S. João Baptista in Castelo de Vide, in July 12th 1780, son of Francisco Xavier de Gomide and Domingas Angélica Subtil, both born in Castelo de Vide.

In 1785 he began his primary school in the town and in 1797 finishes his secondary education in Coimbra and sign up in the first year of Faculty of Law to become Bachelor of Laws at the University of Coimbra. In 1797 (1802) he returned to Castelo de Vide where he worked as lawyer. His first public office was Magistrate in Marvão in 1809. Some years later he was transferred to Setúbal, where he married Teresa Guilhermina.

In 1832 is constituted the Ministério Liberal (TN:in this period $nbsp;liberal means the party of prince Pedro, who was in war with his brother prince Miguel). Mouzinho is entitled Minister for Trade and also for Justice and made laws about the following subjects:

- Guarantees of person and property;

- Extinction of the tithe tax in the Azores;

- Freedom of property (extinction of the law of majorat);

- Reform of the Customs (Azores);

- Rules against Abuse of Power;

- Abolition of Confiscation of Private Property as a punishment;

- Determines the principle of the inviolability of private property;

- Abolition of the heavy transfer tax;

- Determines that debts contracted in the Azores should be paid with the tobacco production of the archipelago;

- Declares the harbor of Praia free;

- Legislation protecting the island Corvo;

- Organization and administration of the Exchequer (Dec. Nº 22);

- Administrative organization. He divided Portugal in provinces, districts and municipalities (Dec. Nº23);

- Administrative organization dividing Portugal in judicial areas, districts, District Courts and parishes (Dec. Nº 24).

In that same year, breaks the Civil War, Mouzinho was member of the liberal committee, he asked for resignation from the Ministry due to the what happened at the Siege of Porto.

In 1833 he geot full powers to to handle as he considered suitable to serve the cause of queen Maria II and the Carta (Constitutional Charter), one year later he was again entitled Director-General of Customs.

1835 ? He was elected deputy.

1836 ? He declined the entitling to Par do Reino (Peer of the Realm). The September Revolution took place and was proclaimed the Constitution Charter of 1822. Mouzinho refused to obey to that constitution. He leaved to France quite deluded and sad with the Portuguese political situation. He came back in 1839 and was chosen to deputy of Alentejo. One year later he stopped definitively with politics.$nbsp;

He died in Lisbon in April 4th 1849. He was buried in the graveyard of Margem, a little village in de municipality of Gavião, Portalegre.

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Garcia d'Orta

Garcia d'Orta

In 1492 - The Jews were forced to abandon the Kingdom of Castile, by order of the Catholic Kings Ferdinand and Isabella. Fernão d'Orta and Leonor Gomes (parents of Garcia d'Orta) were descendants from Jews from Castile and they were also subject to the pressure put on the Jews.

Fernão d'Orta arives to Castelo de Vide, where he establishes himself and survives from trade activities, in 1497 he and his wife converted to Catholicism.

1500 ? In one of the first houses of the Jewish quarter of Castelo de Vide born Garcia d'Orta, en it is in this town that he spended his childhood and began his primary school.

In 1515 he goes to Spain to begin his universitarian studies, he studied at the University of Salamanca and Alcalá, he studied Grammar, Arts, Summulae and Natural Philosophy. During his study he met brilliant scolars as D. Jerónimo Osório, André de Resende, Pedro Nunes, among others.

In 1523 finished his studies and returned to Castelo de Vide.

1526 ? He got a permit to work as doctor. Established himself in Castelo de Vide, where he worked for a while. In 1530, wishing to proceed his studies in Botanic, he went to Lisbon where he stayed for four years, in 1534 he left to India. In 1541 he married Bianca de Solis, a descendant of New Christians (TN: converted Jews) that recently was arrived in Goa coming from Portugal.

1563 ? Published Colóquios dos Simples e Drogas e coisas medicinais da Índia (Colloquium of Simple Drugs and Medidicinal Things of India), the most known work from this famous doctor from Castelo de Vide.

He died in 1568. His remains were buried in a tomb in the cathedral of Goa.

In 1569 the Portuguese inquisition opens a process against Garcia d'Orta and in 1570 his remains $nbsp;were taken from his tomb, brought to the place where the auto de fé was organized, his bots were burned and the ashes thrown into the waters of the Mandory river.

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Salgueiro Maia

Salgueiro Maia

Fernando José Salgueiro Maia born July 1st 1944 at the first floor of nr 15 in Rua de Santo Amaro in Castelo de Vide, son of Francisco da Luz Maia and Francisca Silvéria Salgueiro. He was not yet four years old when his mother died after being hit by a car, during a family visit to the zoo in Lisbon. Two and a half years later his father married a second time with Maria Augusta, who is still living in this town. Due to professional commitments of his father, who was working at CP (Portuguese Railways), Salgueiro Maia lived for short time in Coruche, Tomar and Leiria. He studied at Nun'Alvares college in Tomar and in Liceu Nacional (highschool) in Leiria before enter to the Militairy Academy in 1963/64.

In February 1967 he left the Military Academy and entered to Escola Prática de Cavalaria (Army Cavalry School). In December 1st of that same year he was send to Lourenço Marques (TN: nowadays Maputo, the capital of Mozambique) and from here to Mueda in the district of Cabo Delgado (Mozambique), to integrate the 9th Commando Company Os Fantasmas (the ghosts) that was settled in Montepuez.

A year later he came back to Santarém (Portugal). He got acquainted with his future wife, Natércia,$nbsp;
in 1969 and they married in August 22nd 1970. He was raised to the rank of Captain.

In July 4th 1971 he was shipped to Guinea-Bisssau, with destination Bula, where he remained for 27 months.

1974 ? Salgueiro Maia participated in the Revolution that laid down the dictatorship, because he $nbsp;did not believed anymore in a possible solution to Portugal and the Colonies. At the dawn of April 25th $nbsp;1974 in the parade of the Army Cavalry School he said: " There are diverse kinds of State: the socialist State, the corporate State and the state of our country! Well, in this important night, we are going to make an end to it. Who wishes may come with me to Lisbon to make an end to it. The vonlonteers may leave the parade and go into formation. Who do not wishes to come is not obliged to and will stay here". 240 men heard his firm words en all went with him in formation to go Lisbon, where they marched over the dictatorship.

November 25th $nbsp;1975 he leaft the Army Cavalry School commanding a group of cars at orders of the President of the Republic

1979 ? After being placed in the Azores, he retouned to Santarém, where he commanded the military prison of Santa Margarida, in 1984 he went back to the Army Cavalry School.

1989/ 90 ? A cancer was diagnosed, what became fatal to him. There was a surgical intervention. In 1991 he was again operated. He died in April 3rd 1992.

At the graveyard of Castelo de Vide, four Presidents of the Republic (António de Spínola, Costa Gomes, Ramalho Eanes e Mário Soares) saw a modest coffin low into the earth with the corps of one of the men that most contributed to make possible for them to ascend to the highest dignity of the Nation, in a shallow grave with in the background the emblematic music ?Grandola Vila Morena?.

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Dr. Adolfo Bugalho

Dr. Adolfo Bugalho

Dr. Adolfo João Lahmeyer Bugalho born in Port in March 21st 1907 in the Bonfim parish. Son of Francisco José Bugalho inborn in Castelo de Vide and of Sofia Sarmento Lahmeyer Bugalho, inborn in Port. His brother was the poet Francisco Bugalho. He established, as well as his brother, his residence in Castelo de Vide where he worked as doctor until his retirement. He considered Castelo de Vide as his home town en he was here appreciated and respected by everybody.

He got his degree in Medicine in 1933 in Lisbon. And he made his professional life as doctor in Castelo de Vide until his retirement. He was doctor by the Municipal party, he was subdelegate of Health, doctor at Santo Amaro Hospital of Santa Casa da Misericórdia and he also was doctor at Casa do Povo, at the Portuguese Railways, at insurance companies etc.. In 1951 he published in Revista Médica (Medical magazine) some results of his scientific research Clínica de Higiene e Hidrologia (Clinical, Hygiene and Hydrology), Rickettsioses ? Casos de ornitose ? Alguns casos de doença com reacção de Weill-Felix positiva constatados no concelho de Castelo de Vide. (Rickettsia ? Cases of ornithose ? Some cases of illness with positive Weill-Felix reaction observed in the Municipality of Castelo de Vide.)$nbsp;

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José Frederico Laranjo

José Frederico Laranjo

He was born in Castelo de Vide in November 20th 1846. Originally he was designed to follow a religious carrier, but he graduated as PhD in the Law Faculty of Coimbra. University Professor at that same universitarian institution, he was an active member of the Institute in Coimbra, he also was a corresponding member of the Science Academy of Lisbon. Distinguished politician with national projection, he was member of the Progressive Party, he even became Par do Reino (Peer of the Realm). He was several times elected deputy for Portalegre, where (during a short period) he worked as director of the newspaper O Distrito de Portalegre. Writer, he wrote, specially, about political theory and economics (he was one of the first persons, in Portugal, to read the oeuvre of Karl Max), colonial and constitutional law, but he also wrote some poetry ? Estro Noturno, published in 1866. He died in Lisbon, in the first day of the new year of 1910.
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Ventura Porfírio

Ventura Porfírio

Born in Castelo de Vide in 1908. After some difficulties he returned to the Escola de Belas Artes (Art Academiy) in Lisbon, where he was an attentive and hard working student. He won a scholarship from Grémio de Acção Municipal (TN: a local scholarship for students from Castelo de Vide) that gave him the possibility to go study at Escola de Belas Artes do Porto (Art Academy of Port). He became curator of the National Palace of Queluz.
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