Province of the Azores Province of the Azores The Province of the Azores was an administrative unit of Portugal encompassing the archipelago of the Azores between 1832 and 1833. It was created by Decree 28 of 4 June 1832 and signed by Peter IV in the name of his daughter, Queen Maria II of Portugal. The Province of the Azores resulted from the abolishment of the Captaincy-General of the Azores, but retained its capital in the city of Angra do Heroísmo, on the island of Terceira. The administrative territory was divided three comarcas: Angra, administered by a prefect; Ponta Delgada, and Horta, administered by
Captaincies of the Azores economic administration of the archipelago. Therefore, the captaincy system was employed on the islands, which in the beginning were limited to a group of rocky outcrops (the Formigas) and the unspoiled island of Santa Maria, where settlers had made a beachhead in the northern region of Anjos. With progressive discoveries, the number of captaincies expanded, only broken by inter- and intra-island rivalries and death. As "discoverer" and commander of the expedition to the Atlantic, Cabral was the first commander to obtain the title of "Captain of the Donatary" in the Azores. Yet, the title bestowed on Gonçalo Velho is not