Palácio Bettencourt (Biblioteca Pública De Angra) - Sala on:
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The Palace Bettencourt () is a former residence of the
It is likely that the building was constructed sometime between the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th century.
Alterations to the interior and exterior occurred sometime between the 18th and 19th century, at the point when Francisco António de Araújo e Azevedo, then 7th Captain-General of the Azores was in power (the last during the absolutist regime).Francisco António de Araújo e Azevedo was substituted in 1820, by
The building is located in a central place, in the city of Angra do Heroísmo, on a subtle declive, with its lateral wings sitting flush with its neighbours. To the south is a small garden, with rectangular wing, while to the front is the Cathedral of the Santíssimo Salvador; and around it are various residences of notable architectural interest, including the palacete Violante Castro.
The principal doorway is framed and decorated with sculpted stone, and surmounted by a large rectangular cartouche with the coat-of-arms of the Bettencourt family.
The architecture conforms to a 17th-century noble residence, in an irregular L-shaped plan, integrating a rectangular tower with two-story facade, separated by friezes and with pilastered corners. There are many decorative elements constructed in basalt, such as the frames, rectangular windows and ornate door. The main facade is marked by picture windows on the first floor and several friezes and cornices over the coat-of-arms of the family. Its interior includes a central vestibule, open to the front by arched entrance over pilasters, from which was constructed a staircase.
Bettencourt
The Bettencourt family is a French noble family of Norman origin. The head of the family in the 14th century, Jean de Béthencourt, organized an expedition to conquer the Canary Islands, resulting in his being made King of the Canary Islands by ...
family, and current seat of the public library and regional archive, in the civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
, in the municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
of Angra do Heroísmo
Angra do Heroísmo (), or simply Angra, is a city and municipality on Terceira Island, Portugal, and one of the three capital cities of the Azores. Founded in 1478, Angra was historically the most important city in the Azores, as seat of the Roma ...
, in the 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 ...
archipelago of the Azores
The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...
.
History
It is likely that the building was constructed sometime between the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th century.
Alterations to the interior and exterior occurred sometime between the 18th and 19th century, at the point when Francisco António de Araújo e Azevedo, then 7th Captain-General of the Azores was in power (the last during the absolutist regime).Francisco António de Araújo e Azevedo was substituted in 1820, by Francisco de Borja Garção Stockler
Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''.
Meaning of the name Francisco
In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Commu ...
, but remained on the island owing to his family relations. He was killed on 3 April 1821, for leading a Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist.
* An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...
uprising at the Fortress of São João Baptista
Following the fire at the Episcopal Palace, on 31 July 1885, the bishop moved his residence to the Bettencourt palace.
D. Francisco José Ribeiro Vieira de Brito organized a banquet in order to hommage Augusto Castilho, commander of the corvette Duque Terceira on 21 May 1896.
Owing to an epidemic of typhus in the seminary at the Convent of São Francisco resulted in the move of the Lyceum of Angra to the palace. The bishop, who continued to live at the Palace to this period, transferred his residence to ''Rua D. Amélia, 74''. This move lasted until 1913, when the Lyceum was returned to the Convent.
It was sometime in the 20th century, that the facade was remodelled, leading in 1956 to the installation of the public library.
The palace was classified by a resolution-in-council (126/2004) on 9 September 2004, and included within the historical classification of the historic centre of Angra. Three years later, in February, there was a presentation of a public project for a new building for the library and regional archive for Angra.
Architecture
The building is located in a central place, in the city of Angra do Heroísmo, on a subtle declive, with its lateral wings sitting flush with its neighbours. To the south is a small garden, with rectangular wing, while to the front is the Cathedral of the Santíssimo Salvador; and around it are various residences of notable architectural interest, including the palacete Violante Castro.
The principal doorway is framed and decorated with sculpted stone, and surmounted by a large rectangular cartouche with the coat-of-arms of the Bettencourt family.
The architecture conforms to a 17th-century noble residence, in an irregular L-shaped plan, integrating a rectangular tower with two-story facade, separated by friezes and with pilastered corners. There are many decorative elements constructed in basalt, such as the frames, rectangular windows and ornate door. The main facade is marked by picture windows on the first floor and several friezes and cornices over the coat-of-arms of the family. Its interior includes a central vestibule, open to the front by arched entrance over pilasters, from which was constructed a staircase.
References
;Notes ;Sources * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Palacio Bettencourt Bettencourt family Buildings and structures in Angra do Heroísmo Palace Bettencourt