D. António de Araújo e Azevedo, 1st Count of Barca (14 May 1754 – 21 June 1817) was a Portuguese statesman, author and amateur

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

Biography

The eldest child of António Pereira Pinto de Araújo de Azevedo Fagundes and Marquesa Margarida de Araújo Azevedo, António de Araújo e Azevedo was born on 14 May 1754 in the ''freguesia'' of Santa Maria de Sá,

Ponte de Lima Ponte de Lima () is the oldest ''vila'' (chartered town, head of a municipality) in Portugal, in the district of Viana do Castelo (district), Viana do Castelo. Situated on the southern bank of the Lima River, it takes its name from the medieval br ...

, Portugal.

Career

After cooperating in the establishment of the Academy of Sciences in Lisbon, he represented his government in

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...

, France,

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

, and Russia. He was first minister of

John VI of Portugal '' Dom'' John VI (; 13 May 1767 – 10 March 1826), known as "the Clement" (), was King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves from 1816 to 1825, and after the recognition of Brazil's independence, titular Emperor of Brazil ...

, whom he followed when the Portuguese Court was transferred to the colony of Brazil in 1807. There he was minister of the navy and

foreign minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

, and took great interest in promoting education and industry, having established the manufacture of

porcelain Porcelain (), also called china, is a ceramic material made by heating Industrial mineral, raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to oth ...

in Rio de Janeiro. He was a skeptic of free trade, arguing that opening up the Portuguese empire to free trade would "cause great ruin." During the French revolutionary wars, Azevedo was part of a pro-French faction within the Portuguese cabinet that clashed with a pro-British faction.

Works

He conducted scientific studies and experiments in his own

palace A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

and private

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is ...

, as well as the first trials for the acclimatization and culture of the tea-plant in Brazil. Later in life, he was the founder of Brazil's first school of

fine arts In European academic traditions, fine art (or, fine arts) is made primarily for aesthetics or creativity, creative expression, distinguishing it from popular art, decorative art or applied art, which also either serve some practical function ...

. As an author, his works include two tragedies and a translation of

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

's pastorals.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Barca, Antonio de Araujo e Azevedo, 1st Count of 1754 births 1817 deaths Ambassadors of Portugal to the Netherlands Ambassadors of Portugal to France Ambassadors of Portugal to Russia Portuguese male writers 19th-century Portuguese botanists Government ministers of Portugal People from Ponte de Lima 18th-century Portuguese botanists 19th-century Portuguese writers 19th-century Portuguese male writers Counts of Barca Missão Artística Francesa