Magalhães (Dr José Alfredo Mendes de)
Original title: Magalhães (Dr. José Alfredo Mendes de)
Portuguese politician and professor at the Oporto Medical School who was sent to Madeira as the Republic's high commissioner during the cholera epidemic of 1910–1911. He also restored public order after the establishment of the Republic and was made an honorary citizen of Funchal.
High commissioner in Madeira
This well-known politician, a professor at the Porto Medical School and a former minister and deputy, was sent to Madeira as High Commissioner (alto comissário) of the Republic during the cholera epidemic that raged in this archipelago from October 1910 to February 1911.
Although he was charged specifically with matters of public health, Dr Magalhães extended his action further as the Government's delegate. Through the vigorous measures he put into practice, he succeeded in restoring public order, which had been somewhat disturbed on this island since the establishment of the republican government. His proclamation of 27 December, in which he told the Madeirans of his firm intention to have those who tried to disturb order punished by summary trial and with the utmost rigour, was received with general applause. The arrest of a sergeant identified as one of the main causes of the unrest in Madeira finally reassured those who feared that the new institutions would bring nothing but anarchy to the island.
The sergeant to whom we refer, who came to play an important role in Funchal in the early days of the Republic, was held in solitary confinement in the Fort of São Tiago (St James the Greater), from where he left for Lisbon; there he was dismissed from the army on account of his poor military conduct.
Dr Magalhães gave a public lecture at the Teatro Manuel de Arriaga, which was well received, and took an interest in the creation of a Children's Asylum for Arts and Crafts.
In return for the services rendered by Dr Alfredo de Magalhães, the Administrative Committee (Comissão Administrativa) of the Municipal Council (Câmara Municipal) awarded him the diploma of distinguished citizen of Funchal, which was presented to him in the great hall of the town hall (Paços do Concelho) on 25 February 1911.
In this article
Time
Years mentioned · 02-
A cholera epidemic spread through Madeira from October 1910 to February 1911, the first case occurring near the Paiol on 20 October; Dr Carlos França came to Funchal to direct the fight against it, and the epidemic prompted the idea of an orphan asylum.
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Dr José Alfredo Mendes de Magalhães issued a proclamation promising summary and rigorous punishment of those disturbing public order.
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Dr José Alfredo Mendes de Magalhães received the diploma of distinguished citizen of Funchal at the town hall.
Place
Places mentioned · 06
Abroad
- Fortress of São Tiago
Funchal. Fortress where the arrested sergeant was held in solitary confinement.
A fortress on the Funchal waterfront at the eastern end of the landing shore, dated 1614 during Spanish rule and rebuilt in 1767; it later housed a mountain artillery battery. Prisoners were held there in 1823 and 1828, the Republican flag was raised there on 7 October, and it fired during the 1916 bombardment of Funchal.
- Funchal
City where the sergeant caused unrest and which made Magalhães an honorary citizen.
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.
- Lisbon
Portugal. Where the sergeant was sent and dismissed from the army.
The Portuguese capital, seat of the Relação court and of the Misericórdia whose privileges and statutes were extended to Funchal. Henrique Franco de Sousa studied at its Royal Academy of Fine Arts, and Luiz José Baiardo moved there in 1821.
- Porto
Portugal. Seat of the Medical School where Magalhães taught.
A Portuguese city, where the 1820 liberal revolution began and whose district is the only one denser than Funchal's. Several Madeirans studied at its medical school or Academia Politécnica, and some lived or died there. The editor of O Funchalense Liberal was hanged there, and Marítimo beat FC Porto there in 1922.
- Teatro Manuel de Arriaga
Funchal. Theatre where Magalhães gave a public lecture.
Funchal's municipal theatre, built with a loan by the council on the former convent grounds and the site of the 1823 market. Begun in 1884 and inaugurated in 1888 as Teatro D. Maria Pia, it was renamed after Manuel de Arriaga in 1921. It hosted revues such as A Madeira por dentro, lectures and concerts, including the 1921 orfeão.
People
People mentioned · 01-
Professor at the Oporto Medical School, former minister and deputy, sent to Madeira as the Republic's high commissioner during the 1910–1911 cholera epidemic.