2022The Romeiros of Sao Miguel - 500 Years Since the Earthquake in Vila Franca Do Campo - Special Folder

On 22 October 1522, Vila Franca do Campo suffered one of the worst days in its, at the time, short existence.
Two more or less concurrent events had occurred in the mid-1470s: the sale of the captaincy of São Miguel to Rui Gonçalves da Câmara, the second son of the captain of the donatário, or lord proprietor, of Madeira; and the settlement’s elevation to the status of vila, or town, the only one on the island of São Miguel at the time.