Gaspar Frutuoso (Ponta Delgada, c. 1522 - Ribeira Grande, August 24, 1591), was an Azorean historian, priest and humanist. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Arts and Theology from the University of Salamanca and a doctorate in Theology. He stood out for his work Saudades da Terra, a detailed historical and geographical description of the archipelagos of the Azores, Madeira and the Canaries, as well as multiple references to Cape Verde and other Atlantic regions. This scope makes Gaspar Frutuoso a true chronicler of the island, since his work is of interest to the knowledge of all of Macaronesia. He was born in the city, then town, of Ponta Delgada, in 1522, the son of Frutuoso Dias, a merchant and landowner, and his wife Isabel Fernandes. The inexistence of known coeval records does not allow us to determine the exact date of his birth. He took an early interest in reading and meditation, revealing a vocation for study, manifested in the primary Latin grammar class, but beyond that, little is known about his youth beyond some uncertain references to having administered his parents' lands. It is common to attribute to Book V of his work, Saudades da Terra, forums of autobiography, assuming, in the story of the two friends, a reference to the adventures and misfortunes of Frutuoso and Gaspar Gonçalves in their youth.
The first documentary records certify his enrolment in the University of Salamanca in 1548, to study Arts and Theology. The records of the same University show that Frutuoso, along with other students of Azorean origin, [1] attended, although apparently with interruptions, his studies until 1558, the year in which he obtained a Bachelor's degree in Arts and Theology, according to the minutes dated February 9th of that year.
He would have been ordained priest from around 1554, apparently on a visit to St. Michael, since his record in Salamanca for the academic year 1554-1555 gives him, for the first time, as "presbitero bachiller".
In Salamanca he studied under the famous theologian Domingo de Soto, confessor to the Emperor Charles V, who was sent to the Council of Trent.
On his return to São Miguel, he was parish priest of the town of Lagoa, in the parish of Santa Cruz, where there are records he kept from 1558 to 1560.
In 1560 he returned to Salamanca, perhaps to take a doctorate. In that same year he moved to Bragança, becoming a close collaborator of Bishop D. Julião de Alva, where he remained until 1563.
The record of his obtaining a doctorate is not known, although he uses it from 1565. It may have been obtained at the University of Évora, then an institution of the Society of Jesus, which would explain his subsequent deep connection to that organisation.
By a letter of confirmation dated May 20, 1565, he was appointed vicar and preacher of the Nossa Senhora da Estrela Parish in the then town of Ribeira Grande, a post he held for 26 years until his death. During this period he dedicated himself to parish life and the practice of charity, both inside and outside the island.
In 1566, during the French assault on Funchal, he made a collection for the Madeirans, sending wheat and money.
He was buried in the main chapel of his church, above the first steps, almost opposite the main altar. On September 3, 1866, his remains were transferred to the cemetery of Ribeira Grande, marked by a small mausoleum, where it is written:
"Here lie the ashes of Revd.º Gaspar Fructuoso, historian of the Azores islands and doctor graduated in philosophia and theologia by the University of Salamanca, who was born in the city of Ponta Delgada in 1522 and died in this Villa on August 24, 1591. Having refused the bishopric of Angra which the former bishop D. Manoel de Almada wanted to resign in his favour, he preferred to the mitre the vicariate of Matriz of this Villa, which he served for 40 years. The Municipal Council of this municipality at the expense of the municipality and assisted by the donations of some Michaelenses, ordered the erection of this monument to the memory of such an outstanding man in letters and virtues, 1867". In front of his church stands, in his honour, a statue by the Azorean sculptor Numídico Bessone.
