João Vaz Corte-Real (; c. 1420 – 1496) was a

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

sailor, claimed by some accounts to have been an

explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...

of a land called ''Terra Nova do Bacalhau'' (''New Land of the Codfish''), speculated to possibly have been a part of North America. For his efforts, Corte-Real was offered the

Donatário A ' (Portuguese for "donated" or "endowed ne), sometimes anglicized as donatary, was a private person — often a noble — who was granted a considerable piece of land (a ') by the Kingdom of Portugal. The king exempted these titleholders from ...

- Captaincies of São Jorge and Angra, respectively.

Biography

A member of the

Corte-Real family The Corte-Real (also Côrte-Real and Corte Real) are a Portuguese family of noble origins in the 14th century, originating in Tavira. The family is famous for its involvement in the Portuguese discoveries during the Age of Exploration, in the ...

, João Vaz was the father of Miguel and

Gaspar Corte-Real Gaspar Corte-Real (1450–1501) was a Portuguese explorer who, alongside his father João Vaz Corte-Real and brother Miguel, participated in various exploratory voyages sponsored by the Portuguese Crown. These voyages are said to have been some o ...

, who some claim accompanied him on his voyage. Fragmentary evidence suggests the expedition in 1473 was a joint venture between the kings of Portugal and

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

, and that Corte-Real accompanied the German sailors

Didrik Pining Didrik Pining ( 1430 – 1491) was a German privateer, nobleman and governor of Iceland and Vardøhus. In 1925, researcher Sofus Larson proposed that Pining may have landed in North America in the 1470s, almost twenty years before Columbus' vo ...

and Hans Pothorst, as well as (the possibly mythical) John Scolvus. The claim that he discovered ''

Terra Nova do Bacalhau Bacalao, Bacallao, or Terra do Bacalhau was a phantom island depicted on several early 16th century Portuguese maps and nautical charts. The name first appears on a chart in 1508, but there are earlier accounts of Bacalao. The name is a variation ...

'' (literally, ''New Land of the Codfish'') originated from

Gaspar Frutuoso Gaspar Frutuoso (c.1522 in Ponta Delgada – 1591 in Ribeira Grande) was a Portuguese priest, historian and humanist from the island of São Miguel, in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. His major contribution to Portuguese history was hi ...

's book ''Saudades de terra'' from around 1570-80. There is speculation that this otherwise unidentified isle was Newfoundland. Frutuoso further suggested that Corte-Real was granted part of

Terceira Terceira () is a volcanic island in the Azores archipelago, in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. It is one of the larger islands of the archipelago, with a population of 53,311 inhabitants in an area of approximately . It is the location ...

because of this discovery. This is contrasted by his contemporary grant which says nothing about any discovery, but explains his grant with the "expenses he had incurred" and "services rendered". Because of the lack of corroborating evidence, the claims of discovery remain entirely speculative.

Donatário

It is known that Corte-Real was originally granted the island of São Jorge in the archipelago of the

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

in 1472, which he held until 1474.Carlos Melo Bento (2008), p.27 From this point onward he was granted the captaincy of Angra on

by the Infanta

Beatrice, Duchess of Viseu Infanta Beatriz of Portugal (13 June 1430 – 30 September 1506) was a Portuguese infanta, daughter of John, Constable of Portugal (fourth son of King John I of Portugal and his wife Philippa of Lancaster) and Isabella of Barcelos a daughter of ...

, and approved by the King, following the disappearance of

Jacome de Bruges Jacome or Jácome is a Portuguese and Spanish surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Jácome de Bruges (born 1418), Flemish businessman *Jacome Gonsalves (1676–1742), Sri Lankan priest and missionary * Jácome Ratton (173 ...

.Diffie et al. (1977), p.446-447 Bruges was the original Captain-

, but following his disappearance, the King had divided the island between Angra and Praia, granting Praia to Álvaro Martins Homem, while Corte-Real obtained Angra. He took-up residence in the burgh and set about promoting its settlement, but the division of the island into two Captaincies did not assist the island's growth.

Later life

He and his wife, D. Maria de Abarca, were buried in the presbytery of the church of the Convent of São Francisco.Carlos Melo Bento (2008), p.28 His descendants did not live in the Capitania of Angra, instead sending ''ouvidores'', magistrates, to the territory to administer the possessions.

References

;Notes ;Sources * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Corte-Real, Joao Corte-Real Joao Vaz 1420 births 1496 deaths Portuguese explorers Portuguese explorers of North America 15th-century explorers 15th-century Portuguese people Maritime history of Portugal Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact