Dear Frederick, In my earlier post I had referenced about the ancestry of my paternal grandmother Malvina Ezilda and her connections to people and events.
Malvina Ezilda Robertina Natividade da Fonseca was in 1875 in Badem, Salvador do Mundo. She was the daughter of Benedito Caetano Francisco Crisogono da Fonseca and Maria Ernestina Angelica Cristalina Peres da Silva. She in turn was the granddaughter of Manoel Gabriel Benedito da Fonseca and Maria Avelina Ana Quiteria Toscano (paternal) and Dr Luís António Peres da Silva and Luciana Petornila de Melo (maternal). The name Toscano in my ancestry came as a surprise to me as I had never been exposed to the surname during my many visits to Goa. The name intrigued me. In the latter half of 2009, I carried out a random search via Google search and for an inexplicable reason associated the name Toscano with Aldona. Lo and behold, I was introduced to the world of Antonio Eugénio Toscano and his brother Lt Col Ignacio Caetano Toscano and their respective roles in the infamous Conjuração dos Pintos or the Conspiracy of the Pintos. There are several books and publications on this important event so will not go into the nitty gritty issues. The only thing that I needed to establish was whether I was connected to either of them. This would have been a difficult exercise in most cases. However, I was not willing to let this go. During my holiday in the winter of 2009, I spent many a happy moment reviewing a book ‘Monimenta Goana Eclesiastica’ which I found in my father in law’s book collection and looked out for all Toscano Priests hailing from Aldona. I noted down all their parents and dates when they were ordained. My next visit was to Goa Archives where I requested for Aldona records. Sadly files prior to 1800 are not available but nevertheless through the records available; I managed to trace several Toscano baptisms which enable me to sketch the family tree using the information already maintained. In the process I also discovered the birth record of Benedito Crisogono’s sister (previously unknown). The final confirmation traced through the Priestly ordination records of Padre Gabriel da Fonseca (brother of Malvina Ezilda) confirmed to me that António Eugenio Toscano was indeed my fourth Great Grandfather. Later discoveries have shown that the Rangel (Tipografia Rangel), Souza Ticlos (Assagao) and Graça Lobo families descend from this individual. The Toscano property is still located in Aldona but is believed to be cursed. The events from 1787 must surely have played a part in this. One begins to wonder what could have been in Antonio’s mind when he went and blabbed about the events which resulted in his brother being put to death for treason as well a punitive punishments to so many. Was there a family feud? One will never know! What became of his brother’s family? Now comes the irony, António Eugenio’s grand-daughter Maria Avelina married Manoel Gabriel Benedito da Fonseca, who in turn was the nephew of Padre Gabriel Benedito Pascoal da Fonseca – then Curate at the Church in Graça, Chorão in 1787. He was said to have provided a safe haven for the main protagonist of this important event - Padre José António Gonçalves. It might be worth mentioning here that António Eugenio’s mother was Quiteria Gonçalves – possibly a relative of Padre Gonçalves? I think that this would require further investigation. And yet the irony continues with the later marriage of Jaime Armando Benedito da Fonseca (Malvina Ezilda’s brother) to Clorinda Pinto who hailed from the same family as the Pintos from Candolim. On the maternal side you would have seen the name of Dr Luís António Peres da Silva. He was customarily given the same name of his grandfather Lúis António Peres da Silva who was the half brother of Dr Bernardo Peres da Silva – the only native Goan to hold the position of Governor of Goa. The Peres da Silva’s are said to hail from Neura but were settled in Mapusa. There are countless articles written on the short reign of Dr Bernardo Peres da Silva – whose appointment angered the local White Portuguese and Mestiço communities. He was greatly supported by many prominent individuals in Goa – many of whom who lost their lives in the process. His greatest supporter was Sir Rogerio da Faria – a ship-owner and who at the time one of the richest men in Bombay. Sir Rogerio staked his entire fortune to reinstate Bernardo and lost all his wealth. What was the purpose of this support? I feel that somewhere along the lines there was a family connection. Sir Rogerio da Faria has in the past been associated with Chorão but in many instances with Sangolda. This is where I feel that we can find the family connection (if any). A few years ago, I received a message from a lady in Australia (descended from a Pais family from Sangolda). She recounted to me a story that during the events in 1835, Bernardo sought refuge in the home of the Pais family from Sangolda (with whom he had a family connection). The house was fired at and the bullet holes are said to still remain. The Pais family are now settled all over the world and a descendant formerly living in Karachi also mentioned to me that they were also related to Bernardo. The mother of Dr Luís António Peres da Silva was Angelina Maria Manuel Álvares hailing from the well known Álvares family from Margao. Her grandfather was Dr Pedro António Álvares (Fidalgo de Cotas de Armas). He is turn is the common ancestor to all the families located in the environs of the Holy Spirit Church in Margao – details of which appear in the book ‘Soaring Spirit’ by Valmiki Faleiro. Pedro António Álvares died in Barcelos, Portugal in 1805 (a city made famous by the Galo de Barcelos). There is mystery surrounding this Álvares family who are originally said to hail from Chorão but who also maintain strong ties to North East Portugal – specifically to the City of Chaves in Tras os Montes, Portugal. This are many old wives tales (all unproven of course) but the strongest hint came from the writings of Monsignor Francisco Xavier Gomes Catão in his book ‘Subsidios para a história de Chorão’. Monsignor Gomes Catão was a noted researcher and writer of his time. He had access to documents which possibly have now been lost through the vagaries of time. He strongly implied that the family had Portuguese roots linked to the aristocracy of Portugal and Europe. God willing this merits a thorough research through visits to the areas of Barcelos and Chaves both interestingly enough, located rather close to each other. Pedro António Álvares, incidentally is also an ancestor of Dr António Luís Santos da Costa – the 119th Prime Minister of Portugal, whose recent visit to Goa attracted so much attention. Regards Fausto
