Meneses (Carlos Azevedo de)

Few names of people born in the so-called ‘Pearl of the Ocean’ appear in the glorious annals of science. While the Azorean islands count a considerable number of their sons who achieved notable distinction in every branch of human knowledge, Madeira has not always been able to keep pace with its island brethren in cultivating the loftiest manifestations of the mind.

These words are not meant to assert that our land has not been the homeland of some distinguished practitioners of the sciences, letters and arts, who deservedly ought to be remembered and with whom we have so often concerned ourselves with the greatest admiration and esteem.

That is what we now come to do once again, as the most fitting tribute of justice and the most heartfelt and grateful acknowledgement, concerning the man who was our distinguished and devoted companion in the preparation of the thousand-odd pages of this Elucidário Madeirense. Since almost the entire contribution to the scientific part of this work came from the pen of Carlos Azevedo de Meneses, it falls to us to emphasise that he is the author of the most valuable and meritorious articles found throughout these pages.

Carlos de Meneses came from old and distinguished Madeiran families and was born in Funchal on 26 August 1863. He was the son of the eminent physician Dr Antero Drumond de Meneses and of Dona Elisa Azevedo de Meneses; his paternal grandfather was the illustrious Madeiran Servulo Drumund de Meneses (1-381), and his maternal grandfather the general and engineer António Pedro de Azevedo (1-113). He was also the nephew of the distinguished writer and playwright Maximiliano de Azevedo (1-113).

Through his close friendship with the late botanist João Maria Moniz, and by a natural bent of mind, Carlos Azevedo de Meneses developed an ardent passion for the study of botany, and especially of the Madeiran flora, which only death could extinguish. He never interrupted his scientific work, and as late as 1928 he published an interesting study in the respected journal Broteria, to which he was a distinguished and regular contributor. On the strength of his numerous works and his thorough studies, Carlos de Meneses was regarded as an authoritative botanist and counted among the most illustrious Portuguese naturalists. His work, which is vast, profound and utterly conscientious, and therefore free of all scientific charlatanism, was always highly valued and praised by the foremost authorities in that branch of the natural sciences. For this reason he was received into many scientific societies and invited to contribute to the most respected national and foreign journals, which accepted only valuable botanical work.

Among these journals we may mention Broteria, Anais das Sciencias Naturais, Jornal das Sciencias Matematicas, Fisicas e Naturais, Boletim da Sociedade de Geografia de Lisboa, Academie de Geographie Botanique, Bulletin de Géographie Botanique, etc., etc. He was a laureate member of the International Academy of Botanical Geography of Le Mans, a full member of the Portuguese Society of Natural Sciences of Lisbon, a provincial associate of the Academy of Sciences of the same city, a member of the Brotero Society of Coimbra, and of others still, about which we have been unable to gather more reliable information.

Among the scientific works of Carlos Azevedo de Meneses we shall mention the Flora do Arquipélago da Madeira, a work of 282 pages; Fanerogamicas da Madeira e Porto Santo; Arvores e Arbustos Madeirenses; As Gramineas do Arquipelago da Madeira; Madeira Ferens, translated into English by Herbert Gilbert; Contribuição para o estudo da Flora do Arquipelago da Madeira; Contribuição para o estudo das Algas da Madeira; As Zonas botanicas da Madeira e Porto Santo; As Labiadas do Arquipélago da Madeira; A Flora dos mais altos picos da Madeira; and many other booklets written in French, among them the Notice sur les Phanérogames de Madère et Pôrto Santo. There are also countless pamphlets and offprints of studies published in specialist journals, not counting the great number of articles scattered through various scientific publications.

Carlos de Meneses did not confine his scientific and literary activity to his distinctly botanical writings. He also dealt quite extensively with other subjects in the natural sciences, and in particular with historical matters, as many articles in the Elucidário Madeirense and in various Funchal newspapers bear witness.

After completing his secondary education, he attended the Lisbon Commercial Institute (Instituto Comercial de Lisboa) for some years, but did not finish the course. He served as a copying clerk in the secretariat of the Funchal Council and was later appointed director of the Municipal Library, a post he held until his death on 1 May 1928.