Portuguese Gold Coast

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Portuguese Gold Coast

Costa do Ouro
1482–1642
Flag of Portuguese Gold Coast
Flag
{{{coat_alt}}}
Coat of arms
StatusColony
of the Portuguese Empire
CapitalSão Jorge da Mina
Common languagesPortuguese
Religion
Roman Catholicism
Head of state 
• King
   1482–1495 (first)
John II of Portugal
• King
   1640–1642 (last)
John IV of Portugal
Captain-major 
• 1482–1484 (first)
Diogo de Azambuja
• 1634–1642 (last)
António da Rocha Magalhães
History 
• Established
21 January 1482
• Disestablished
9 January 1642
 Succeeded by
Dutch Gold Coast
Gold Coast
Badge of the Gold Coast (1877-1957).svg

The Portuguese Gold Coast was a Portuguese colony on the West African Gold Coast (present-day Ghana) on the Gulf of Guinea.

History[edit]

The Portuguese established the following settlements on the Gold Coast from 21 January 1482:

  • Fort São Jorge da Mina de Ouro, modern Elmina: 21 January 1482 – 28–9 August 1637; this became the capital
  • Fort Santo António de Axim, modern Axim: 1486 – 1642
  • Fort São Francisco Xavier, modern Osu, district of Accra: 1640–1642
  • Fort São Sebastião, modern Shama: 1526–1637.

On 29 August 1637 the Dutch occupied São Jorge da Mina. On 9 January 1642 the whole colony was ceded to the Dutch, who made it part of their Dutch Gold Coast colony.

Captains-major[edit]

The Portuguese governors, going by this modest, military style, were:

  • 1482 – 1485 - Diogo de Azambuja
  • 1485 – 1486 - Álvaro Vaz Pestano
  • 148? – Álvaro Mascarenhas
  • c.1487 – João Fogaça
  • 1495 – 1499 - Lopo Soares de Albergaria
  • 1499? – 1503? - Fernão Lopes Correia
  • 1503? – 1506? - Diogo Lopes de Sequeira
  • 1506? – 1509? - António de Bobadilha
  • c.1510 – Manuel de Góis[1]
  • 1513 – Afonso Caldeira
  • c.1513 – António Fróis[1]
  • 1514 – 1516? - Nuno Vaz de Castelo Branco
  • 1516? – 1519 - Fernão Lopes Correia
  • 1519 – 1522 - Duarte Pacheco Pereira
  • 1522 – 1524 - Afonso de Albuquerque
  • 1524 – 1525 - João de Barros[1]:26
  • 1526 – 1529 - João Vaz de Almada
  • 1529 – 1532 - Estêvão da Gama
  • 1536 – 1537 - Manuel de Albuquerque
  • 1537 – 1540? - ....
  • 1540 – 1543 - António de Miranda de Azevedo
  • 1541 – 1545? - Lopo de Sousa Coutinho
  • 1545 – Diogo Soares de Albergaria (1st time)
  • 1545 – 1548 - António de Brito
  • 1548 – 1550 - Lopo de Sousa Coutinho[1]:30
  • 1550? – Martim de Castro
  • 1550? – 1552? - Diogo Soares de Albergaria (2nd time)
  • 1552? – Filipe Lobo
  • 1552? – 1556? - Rui de Melo
  • 1556 – 155? - Afonso Gonçalves de Botafogo
  • 155? – 1559 - António de Melo
  • 1559 – Manuel da Fonseca
  • 1559 – 1562 - Rui Gomes de Azevedo
  • 1562 – 15.. - Manuel de Mesquita Perestrelo
  • c.1562 – João Vaz de Almada Falcão
  • 156? – Francisco de Barros de Paiva
  • 1564 – 15.. - Fernando Cardoso
  • 15.. – 1570 - ....
  • 1570 – 1573 - António de Sá
  • c.1573 – Martim Afonso
  • c.1574 – c.15.. - Mendio da Mota
  • 15.. – c.1579 - ....
  • 1579 – c.1583 - Vasco Fernandes Pimentel
  • 1583 – 1586 - João Rodrigues Pessanha
  • 1586 – 15.. - Bernardinho Ribeiro Pacheco
  • 15.. – 1586 - ...
  • 1586 – 1594 - João Róis Coutinho
  • c.1595 – c.1596 - Duarte Lôbo da Gama
  • 1596 – 1608 - Cristóvão de Melo
  • 1608 – 1610 - Duarte de Lima
  • 1610 – 1613 - João de Castro
  • 1613 – 1616 - Pedro da Silva
  • 1616/17 – 1624 - Manuel da Cunha de Teive
  • 1624 – c.1625 - Francisco de Souto-Maior
  • 162? – 162? - Luís Tomé de Castro
  • 162? – 1629 - João da Serra de Morais
  • 1629 – c.1632 - ....
  • 1632 – 1634 - Pedro de Mascarenhas
  • 1634 – 1634 - Duarte Borges (acting)
  • 1634 – 1642 - André da Rocha Magalhães (acting)
  • 1642 – 1642 - Francisco de Sotte

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Wilks, Ivor. Wangara, Akan, and Portuguese in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries (1997). Bakewell, Peter (ed.). Mines of Silver and Gold in the Americas. Aldershot: Variorum, Ashgate Publishing Limited. p. 24.CS1 maint: Multiple names: authors list (link)

External links[edit]


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