Arbour Day
Original title: Festa da Árvore
The first Arbour Day in Funchal, held on 29 March 1914; the trees planted had died within months.
The first Arbour Day held in Funchal was organised by the Primary Education Inspectorate and took place on 29 March 1914, at 11 a.m. The procession set out from the São Lourenço Palace (‘St Lawrence’) for the Campo da Barca (‘boat field’), or Campo de Miguel Bombarda, where some exotic tree species were ceremonially planted. Several speeches were made on the occasion, in which the speakers urged those present, and the children in particular, to regard trees as sacred objects because of the great benefits they bring us.
The trees solemnly planted on 29 March 1914 had withered a few months later, for nobody gave them another thought once the organisers of the festival and the people who had graced it with their presence had left the Campo da Barca!
In this article
Time
Years mentioned · 01Place
Places mentioned · 03
- Campo da Barca
Funchal. Square where the trees were planted.
Campo da Barca is a public square in Funchal, built under Governor Florencio José Correia de Melo, handed to the municipality in 1818 and named after the Conde da Barca. It was the site of the disinfection post, which was attacked in popular riots, and of the house where the Asilo da Infância operated from 1836. Part of the square was later renamed Praça de Tenerife.
- Funchal
City where the festival took place.
The capital of the archipelago and seat of the principal captaincy, where settlement began; it was made a vila c.1451–52. Its bay, the widest in the archipelago, lies between Ponta do Garajau and Ponta da Cruz and offers sheltered anchorage, though its harbour had never been studied oceanographically. The Elucidário discusses it as a health resort with climate data and records the January 1906 disturbances, the Danish prince's visit in May 1846 and recent volcanic cones in the area.
- São Lourenço Palace
Funchal. Starting point of the procession.
The Palácio de São Lourenço, the governors' palace-fortress in Funchal, was the scene of beija-mão ceremonies, receptions, balls and dinners, and of the 1861 exhibition. The Elucidário records a great fire there in 1699, a natural history museum in 1850, and an attempt by soldiers to enter it in 1829. The Teatro Grande stood opposite it.