Great War

This was the name given to the tremendous conflict that began in Europe in 1914, provoked by Germany, and that for four long years convulsed the whole civilised world, forcing the belligerent countries into efforts and sacrifices that no earlier war had ever demanded. Portugal also entered the struggle, at the request of her old ally, England, and her troops, though few in number, gave excellent service wherever they were called upon to fight. In Europe and in Africa alike, Portuguese soldiers made the name of our country shine in all its brilliance, and the way their services during the campaign were appreciated by the foreign press, especially the French, is highly honourable to our national pride.

The list we publish below gives the names of the sons of our land who died in combat or were taken prisoner by the enemy, together with those who were decorated or commended for good service during the campaign. It does not include the names of all the Madeirans who belonged to the expeditionary forces and were in the war zone, because we found it impossible to obtain complete and reliable information on the matter:

1. Ernesto de França Mendes, major on the Army General Staff. He was awarded the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour by the French Government and the Distinguished Service Order by the British Government.

2. João Nepomuceno de Freitas, infantry major and commander of the 2nd Infantry Battalion. He was taken prisoner in the battle of 9 April 1918.

3. Américo Olavo Correia de Azevedo (see that entry), infantry captain. He was taken prisoner by the Germans in the same battle and was decorated with the War Cross and the Order of the Tower and Sword.

4. Jaime César Nunes de Oliveira, infantry captain and commander of the 4th company of the 35th Infantry Battalion of the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps (C. E. P.). He was decorated with the medal for Distinguished Service in the field and with the campaign medal bearing the legend ‘Crossing of the Scheldt and pursuit of the enemy’; he also received three commendations, two from the General Commanding the C. E. P. and one from the Minister of War.

5. Francisco Silvestre Varela, infantry captain and commander of the 1st company of the 35th Infantry Battalion. Honourable mention.

6. Jaime Pereira Rodrigues Baptista, infantry captain. He was taken prisoner in the battle of 9 April 1918.

7. António Eduardo Gonçalves Henriques, infantry lieutenant. Commended.

8. Carlos José Machado dos Santos, medical lieutenant. Commended.

9. João Paulo da Veiga Pestana, militia second lieutenant of infantry. He was 20 years old and studying engineering in Portugal when he was called up to attend the school for militia officers. Shortly afterwards he left for France, where he met a glorious death in the battle of 9 April 1918. At a session of the Funchal Municipal Council (Câmara Municipal do Funchal) on 10 April 1919, councillor (vereador) Francisco Gomes de Gouveia proposed that Rua das Hortas be renamed Alferes Veiga Pestana, and the proposal was approved unanimously.

10. Gabriel Rocha de Gouveia, militia second lieutenant of infantry. He was a native of Calheta (‘small cove’) and died in France on 13 October 1917, aged about 30.

11. Alfredo de França Dória Nóbrega, militia second lieutenant of infantry. He was decorated with the War Cross and later made a Knight of the Order of Christ, with palms, for having helped the 15th Infantry Battalion, after the battle of 9 April 1918, to resume its place at the front, incorporated as a fighting unit in a British brigade. 12. Henrique Ernesto Teixeira Moniz, militia second lieutenant of infantry. He was first commended and later received the War Cross, 3rd Class, for the courage and composure he showed in the battle of 23 November 1917.

13. Américo Aldónio de Meneses, militia second lieutenant of infantry. He was taken prisoner in the battle of 9 April 1918.

14. Artur de Brito Figueiroa, militia second lieutenant of infantry. He was taken prisoner in the battle of 9 April 1918.

15. Carlos Olavo Correia de Azevedo (see that entry), militia second lieutenant. He was taken prisoner on 9 April 1918.

16. Osvaldo de Andrade, artillery second lieutenant. Commended.

17. Armando Pinto Correia, infantry second lieutenant. He was twice commended for acts of courage and devotion during the campaign. He left for France in August 1918.

18. José Maria da Conceição Macedo, militia second lieutenant. He holds the War Cross, 3rd Class, for distinguished service in the field.

19. João da Silva Júnior, militia second lieutenant. He was decorated with the War Cross, 2nd Class, for distinguished service in the battle of 9 April 1918.

20. Daniel Fernandes de Aguiar, infantry lieutenant. He holds the War Cross, 3rd Class, and the silver military medal for good service, and was commended for the daring and fighting spirit he showed in many battles and for the dangerous missions he carried out during the campaign.

21. António Martins Ferreira Júnior, second lieutenant in the 2nd Infantry Regiment (Infantaria 2). He was commended for the courage with which he led his men and for his efforts to recover the wounded during the raid carried out on the night of 2–3 April 1918, although he himself was also wounded. He holds the War Cross and was taken prisoner by the Germans at the Battle of the Lys on 9 April 1918.

22. Carlos Elói da Mota Freitas. He was killed in the naval action fought by the minesweeper Augusto de Castilho against a German submarine on 15 October 1918. The Government awarded him the War Cross, 1st Class, and the certificate of this decoration was sent by the Secretariat of State for the Navy to the midshipman’s father. At its session of 8 May 1919, the Funchal Municipal Council resolved to give the name of Midshipman Mota e Freitas to the Travessa da Sacristia (Sacristy Lane), in Santa Maria Maior (‘St Mary Major’).

23. João Augusto de Sousa, chaplain with the rank of second lieutenant. Honourable mention.

24. Jaime de Gouveia Barreto, chaplain with the rank of second lieutenant. Commended.

25. Eduardo Rodrigues, 2nd sergeant. He was taken prisoner in the battle of 9 April 1918.

26. Pedro da Silva, a volunteer private in the American army, born in Madeira. He died in France in the battle of 12 April 1918.

27. Luís Baptista, a volunteer private in the American army, born in the parish (freguesia) of São Pedro, in Funchal. He was wounded in action and decorated by the American Government.

28. Henrique José de Sousa, lieutenant of infantry. He was killed in action in East Africa.

29. João de Andrade, corporal and bugle-major, born in Paul do Mar (‘marsh by the sea’). He died on 24 August 1918 in the hospital at Lourenço Marques from wounds received in action. He had been commended in the expedition’s orders of the day of 9 April 1918.

30. Júlio Teodoro Betencourt, lieutenant of infantry. He holds the War Cross, 3rd Class, for distinguished service in West Africa in the campaign against the Germans.

31. Alberto de Sena Mendes, 1st sergeant of the battalion of the 1st machine-gun group. He died in the battle of Naulila, after checking the German advance with the fire of his gun.

32. Álvaro Teles de Azevedo, captain (now major) of infantry. He commanded a machine-gun battery in southern Angola and holds the War Cross and the silver medal for military valour.

33. Manuel da Costa Dias, lieutenant (now major) in the military administration. He served in southern Angola in 1915 and in France from 1917 to 1918. He holds the War Cross and two medals for good service.

34. Bráulio Ludgero de Freitas, lieutenant (now captain) in the military administration. He served in Angola in 1915 and in France from 1917 to 1918. He was commended and holds the silver medal for good service.

35. Dr João Francisco de Sousa. See that entry.

Of the Madeirans killed in action, only Corporal João de Andrade belonged to the 2nd Infantry Regiment (Infantaria n.º 2), and a simple plaque in the barracks of the College (Colégio) preserves his memory. The plaque was inaugurated on 10 June 1920; it was unveiled by the dead man’s father, and the regiment attended the ceremony at full strength.

Besides making itself felt in Madeira through the grievous consequences that struck the whole world, the Great War also echoed ominously and bloodily in the capital of this archipelago, when German submarines bombarded our harbour on 3 December 1916 and 12 December 1917, as we have already related in the article Bombardment of Funchal. Enemy submarines frequently roamed the waters of this archipelago, and the crews of many steamers and sailing vessels sunk by them sought safety on the shores of these islands. We shall mention some of these vessels, as well as others that were torpedoed or attacked on voyages to Madeira. Our list may well contain significant gaps, above all for the period in which the press was obliged to omit accounts of certain wartime events.

The schooner Senhora da Conceição was sunk by a German submarine off the coast of France; she belonged to the Funchal shipping community (praça) and was bringing a cargo of sulphur to this island. She had a crew of seven and an apprentice pilot, a native of Madeira, all of whom landed at the port of Gijón in Spain. The torpedoing took place in April 1916.

In July of the same year the Danish steamer Moskow left Funchal with a cargo of wine bound for several ports in northern Europe. She was captured and sunk by the Germans, and the insurance company Madeiran Alliance (Aliança Madeirense) paid the value of the cargo.

The Italian steamer Etna was torpedoed 150 miles from Porto Santo (‘holy harbour’), and her 44 crew reached that island on 2 April 1917.

On 17 July 1917 the seamen of the Greek steamer Chalkidom, which had been sunk by a submarine 80 miles from Madeira, landed in the parish (freguesia) of Ribeira Brava (‘wild river’). She had a crew of 23 and was bound from New York for Marseilles.

The Portuguese barque Viajante, bringing general cargo to Madeira, was sunk about 150 miles from the island of Porto Santo. After three days of exhausting travel, her crew reached Funchal on 5 October, leaving for Portugal a few days later.

On 22 October of the same year, fifty crew members, officers included, of the Japanese steamer Ikoma Maru landed on the neighbouring island of Porto Santo. The ship had been sailing from Marseilles to Chile to take on a cargo of saltpetre. The Ikoma Maru fought the German submarine without success 170 miles from that island and was sunk there. The men were Japanese, except for two gunners and a wireless operator, who were French, and they reached Funchal on 24 October.

The American yacht Margaret S. Roberts, which had left New York on 6 October of that year with a cargo of wheat for Madeira, was torpedoed on 15 November between the Azores and this island; her six crew reached Funchal on the 19th of the same month. A German submarine, with two captured Norwegian steamers in tow, came upon the French full-rigged ship Tijuca on 22 November 1917, about 240 miles north-east of Madeira, and sank the steamers, the ship and the Portuguese yacht Trombeta, which was sailing in the same waters. The crews of the Norwegian ships and of the Portuguese yacht headed for the Azores, while the Tijuca’s crew, 36 in number, made for Funchal, where they landed on 27 November.

On the 17th of that month and year the Portuguese lugger Açoreano was torpedoed 250 miles from this island. Her crew of 12 landed at Ponta do Sol (‘point of the sun’) on the 19th and went on to Funchal the same day.

On 4 June 1917 the Norwegian steamer Kaggefos anchored in our harbour, carrying the 23-man crew of the Sorland, a steamer of the same nationality that had been sunk by a German submarine off the coast of France while bound from Saint-Nazaire for Baltimore. These seamen landed in Funchal and a few days later left for England.

On 30 January 1918 the small steamer Neptuno (formerly the Maria), belonging to the Funchal shipping community, was torpedoed. She had left Lisbon the day before, bound for this island.

In the first fortnight of February 1918 the crews of a British, a Greek and an Italian ship, torpedoed in the waters of this archipelago, landed in Funchal. An Italian barque was sunk 250 miles from our shores, between the Azores and Madeira, and the twenty men of her crew reached Funchal on 15 March 1918.

On the 30th of the same month and year the Portuguese schooner Beira Alta was sunk 100 miles from Porto Santo; she was bringing 20 tonnes of potatoes (semilhas, the Madeiran word) from Lisbon to Madeira, besides other cargo.

In the first days of April 1918 the crew of a Portuguese sailing vessel, bound from the Azores for Lisbon, which had been torpedoed by a submarine, landed in Funchal.

The decree authorising the seizure of enemy ships lying in Portuguese ports is dated 24 February 1916. At that time the German steamers Colmar, Petropolis, Guahyba and Hochfeld were at anchor in the bay of Funchal. On orders from above, the captain of our port, Sales Henriques, accompanied by the commander of the Revenue Guard (Guarda Fiscal, customs and excise corps), Lieutenant Leovegildo Rodrigues, occupied those vessels on 2 March 1916, and their crews, numbering 100, left their ships without delay. According to statements by some of these crew members, the German government had ordered various parts of the machinery to be destroyed and disabled, so that the ships could not sail. The crews carried out these orders, but after suitable repairs the steamers were in good seagoing condition, and all of them sailed for mainland Portugal. The ships were renamed Madeira, Porto Santo, Machico and Desertas.

German subjects resident in Madeira were interned in the Lazareto de Gonçalo Aires (‘Gonçalo Aires quarantine hospital’), and from there they were sent on to the island of Terceira. The captain of the steamer Colmar escaped from the lazaretto, and various accounts circulated among the public of how this escape was carried out.

On 30 March 1921, shortly after 8 o’clock in the evening, the mortal remains of an unknown soldier were landed at the Cais da Pontinha (‘little point’). He had fallen, giving his life for his country, on the distant shores of East Africa in the struggle against the Germans. The urn containing the remains, which had come on the steamer Briton of the Union Castle Mail, spent the night at the Maritime Disinfection Station (Posto de Desinfecção Marítima). At around 1 p.m. the following day it was taken to the town hall (Paços do Concelho), where it remained until 3 April, when it was embarked on the cruiser Republica, charged with carrying it to Lisbon. Both when the urn was brought to the town hall, where it lay in state, and when it was taken back to the quay for embarkation, splendid and imposing processions were formed. On 1 April these were joined by the civil and military authorities, the consular corps, some British officers, representatives of the various schools and associations, contingents of the military forces of the Funchal garrison, etc. etc. In the article Unknown Soldier we shall endeavour to describe the spectacular demonstrations held in this city from 1 to 3 April 1921 to glorify the humble soldier, whose remains now rest in the majestic Batalha Monastery, built by order of King John I after the heroic battle of Aljubarrota.

For a fuller understanding of what we have said, the article Bombardment of Funchal, on p. 159 of vol. I of this Elucidário, should be read. As further information of considerable interest on this subject, we would add that the Diário da Madeira of 9 January 1919 contains a detailed account of the first bombardment of Funchal, on 3 December 1916, written by Max Valentiner himself, commander of the submarine U 38; an editor of the Seculo made lengthy extracts from it and commented on it judiciously. The Diário do Governo of 14 April 1938 published a list of 62 people resident in Funchal who had suffered losses caused by a German submarine and who were recognised as entitled to certain compensation totalling 46,451.04 escudos (the Portuguese currency from 1911: 1 escudo = 100 centavos = 1,000 réis).