According to the Chronicle of Gaspar Frutuoso

When I resolved to recount the history of the island of São Miguel, where I now live, I said to Fame:

Now, Lady, you must have more patience to hear me than you have had until now. Speaking of this island — which is presently my dwelling and whose details I know more closely — I must relate many small matters that weary those who write them and even more those who listen to them.

She replied:

It is precisely through such weariness that I find my delight. I ask for these details, I desire them, for they please many. Some will praise what is well said; others will find fault and murmur about what they think poorly done — and such murmuring is often the sweetest fruit of the earth. In this way I fulfil the nature of my name.
You, therefore, follow yours: tell the truth, both great and small, pleasant or unpleasant, even when it touches upon faults or barren matters. Since I desire to know all things, tell me as much as you can and know, for all of it will be pleasant nourishment to me.

To this I answered:

Since you desire these wearisome details, which belong chiefly to the natives of this island, then listen.

There is no village in the world whose inhabitants do not tell grand stories about their first settlement — some true, others invented. I therefore wish to recount the origins of the island of São Miguel as truthfully as possible, according to what I have learned through many inquiries, questions, and careful study. I have accepted no person’s favor in order to avoid speaking the truth as I know it.

If slanderers and murmurers — who have never been lacking in the world and never will be — refuse to believe me, I remain satisfied with myself. Before God I will bear no fault in this matter, though I have many in others. I have neither flattered nor spoken out of hatred, vengeance, fear, or cowardice, which might have blinded me from the truth.

It is common for people everywhere to invent illustrious origins for their lineage. Yet just as I did not fail to recount what I knew with certainty about the noble captains of Madeira and Santa Maria and their settlers, so too I will not fail to say what I have heard from trustworthy elders of São Miguel concerning the origins and deeds of their captains, who descend in the male line from those of Madeira.

Although I was born here, I will speak openly and honestly about the people of this island, rejecting certain ancient inventions that bear little resemblance to truth and approving only what seems most reasonable and credible.

The Mission of Prince Henry

Earlier I described the reasons that moved Prince Henry the Navigator to send explorers to discover the island of Santa Maria. For the same reasons he resolved to discover the island of São Miguel and the other islands of the Azores.

After Santa Maria had been found, the prince ordered that this neighboring island should also be sought. He entrusted the task to Frei Gonçalo Velho, commander of Almourol and captain of Santa Maria, who was then in the Algarve.

Once all the necessary preparations were made, Gonçalo Velho departed with the instructions given to him by the prince.

According to the elders, the ship sailed from Sagres and navigated until it was nearly at the latitude of Santa Maria. By their navigation and later by sight they confirmed that the island lay to the south of them. They sailed back and forth across the open sea between the islands, tacking first in one direction and then another, but they could not see São Miguel nor find any land. In the end they returned to Portugal.

When Gonçalo Velho and the pilot were questioned by the prince about the route they had taken near Santa Maria, they replied that they had passed to the north of it.

The prince answered:

You passed between the islet and the mainland.

By “islet” he meant the island of Santa Maria, which is small and known to him from maps. By “mainland” he meant the larger island of São Miguel.

Many people later misunderstood this statement and believed the ship had passed between the islet of Vila Franca and the coast of São Miguel. In truth, the ship had sailed between the islands of Santa Maria and São Miguel.

The Legend of the Demons

Some tell another story: that the prince sent Gonçalo Velho again and that he first discovered the islet of Vila Franca. Landing there without yet seeing the main island, they celebrated a dry mass, not consecrated, because they believed themselves still at sea as if aboard a ship, the islet being so small.

When the mass ended, they heard terrible cries which they believed to be demons shouting:

“This island is ours! It is ours!”

Nevertheless, they landed and took possession of the island, dispossessing the demons.

Gaspar Frutuoso rejects this tale as fanciful and unlikely. Though ancient authors such as Plutarch recount similar stories of mysterious voices at sea, the chronicler insists that such events did not occur during the discovery of São Miguel.

The Slave Who Saw the Island

The true account, according to older records and oral tradition, unfolded differently.

After Santa Maria had been discovered, Prince Henry sent livestock there so they might multiply. During one voyage bringing animals to the island, violent storms forced the ships to turn back. To save themselves, the sailors threw mares into the sea — an event that gave the name Vale das Éguas (“Valley of the Mares”).

Around that same time, a slave — a Black man from Guinea — fled from his master on Santa Maria and hid in the northern mountains. During the summer, when the air was clear, he sometimes saw a large landmass to the north.

When he was eventually captured and returned, he reported that from the mountains he had seen another great land beyond the sea.

When Prince Henry heard this report, it confirmed what he already suspected. He therefore sent Frei Gonçalo Velho again to search for the neighboring island.

The Discovery of São Miguel

Following the prince’s instructions, Gonçalo Velho set sail once more. He was told to place the island of Santa Maria astern and sail northward.

Nearly twelve years after the discovery of Santa Maria, on 8 May 1444, the island was finally sighted.

The date coincided with the feast of the Apparition of Saint Michael the Archangel, and for that reason the newly discovered island received the name São Miguel.

At that time the Kingdom of Portugal was governed by Prince Pedro, who served as regent during the minority of King Afonso V.

The First Landing

The explorers landed at the place now called Povoação Velha, between two clear streams of fresh water. The land was surrounded by high rocks and covered in dense forest: cedars, laurels, cherry trees, beeches, and many other species.

With great joy they gave thanks to God for the discovery, after many difficult voyages and long days searching the ocean.

It is believed that a priest accompanied them and celebrated the first mass on the island at the place where the chapel of Santa Bárbara now stands, though the details are no longer known.

The explorers moved only a little through the forest because the vegetation was thick and difficult to penetrate. Instead they explored the coastline by boat, observing the rivers that flowed from the mountains to the sea and examining the valleys and hills of the uninhabited island.

The entire land was covered in green woodland, giving great hope that it would prove fertile and profitable for future settlers.

Why the Azores Received Their Name

According to some early settlers, the islands received the name Azores because many goshawks (açores) were seen there and some were even taken back to Portugal.

Others believed this to be a mistake. In reality, the birds commonly seen were milhafres (kites), which resembled goshawks and were mistaken for them. For this reason the explorers gave the archipelago the name Ilhas dos Açores — the Islands of the Hawks.

Whether through misunderstanding or coincidence, the name remained and spread to all the islands that were later discovered in the archipelago.

Returning to Portugal

After spending only a short time on the island, the explorers gathered water, branches, samples of soil, pigeons that could be easily captured by hand, and other natural specimens.

They returned to Prince Henry with proof of the new land.

The prince received the news with great satisfaction and rewarded the explorers for their service. As a special reward he granted Frei Gonçalo Velho the captaincy of the newly discovered island of São Miguel, in addition to the captaincy he already held over Santa Maria.

Thus Gonçalo Velho became captain of both islands, a fitting recognition for his perseverance and service in the discovery of the Azores.