Pinto Coelho (Luís de Ornelas)

Luís de Ornelas Pinto Coelho was born in the parish (freguesia) of São Pedro (‘St Peter’) in this city on 21 February 1843, the son of Joaquim Pinto Coelho and Dona Maria Carlota de Ornelas Pinto Coelho. We believe he held no academic qualification at all, not even a primary-school certificate, but he made up for that deficiency through a persevering love of reading and study, and came to hold a true pre-eminence among us in the literary and journalistic field. He contributed extensively to many Madeiran newspapers, notably the Diario de Noticias. It may be said that in this paper, as its editor over a period of several decades, he published many hundreds of articles, which would fill a dozen thick volumes. He rarely sent the paper anything other than the leading article or a polemical piece, and his prose had an elegant and correct form that gave particular pleasure. He fought hard battles in the press, in which, as always happened here at that time, excesses of language were not rare on either side.

Luís Pinto Coelho held first place in poetry among us. Although his lyricism was somewhat old-fashioned and perhaps out of step with his time, it is certain that no one surpassed him in the harmonious cadence of his verse and the impeccable beauty of its form. He was beyond dispute an inspired and distinguished poet. He collected some of his poems, publishing the volumes Harpa Madeirense, 1896, and Folhas Dispersas, 1899, and the verse pamphlet a Reacção e o Progresso.

He was in Brazil at the time of the Paraguayan War and published various poems in the Diário do Grão Pará; in Funchal he held for many years the post of head of the Civil Police force. Before receiving its present name, Rua João Joaquim de Freitas was called after Luís de Ornelas Pinto Coelho. He died in this city on 17 March 1920.