Carvalhal (António do)

The old Madeiran chronicles deal at length with the deeds of bravery and muscular strength of António do Carvalhal, and Gaspar Frutuoso recounts in detail many of his acts of valour, which long survived in local tradition. ‘António de Carvalhal, say the Saudades, a man as knightly as he was personally valiant, noble, and magnificent in his nature and great virtue, through which, by his magnificence, he has acquired such fame and won such a name in the hearts of men that they obey him for it: and should it be necessary to raise a cry, he will gather five hundred men of the North side into his service, for any deed of war, as has already happened to him, or for any other; and not without reason, for his house is a hospital and shelter for every poor person, a lodging for travellers, and, in short, a refuge for the needy. Thus he spends his whole estate (of which he possesses much on this side) on these works, so that every year thirty moios of wheat are consumed in his house, besides many others that he lends, and with it he succours whoever is in need, all of which he gathers from his own farming.

He lived in the parish (freguesia) of Ponta Delgada (‘slender point’) and was the son of Pedro Ribeiro and Dona Ana Esmeraldo, both of noble descent.