History of Quinta Mãe dos Homens - Madeira

The Quinta is built The lands that the Quinta stands on today form part of the great inheritance of the Leitão family that stretches back to the early part of the 19th century. Manuel Leitão and his brother João José were originally bankers from Ponto de Barca. Around 1840 they arrived in Madeira and set about acquiring land. At one stage the Quinta, properly referred to as the Quinta de Nossa Senhora Mãe dos Homens, was but a small part of a property that stretched from Choupana, up in the hills, right down to the coast. João José Rodrigues Leitão The oldest son of Manuel Leitão was born in 1843. From 1861 he devoted his time to West Africa where, after working in Angola and Zaire he ended up in what is now the Cabinda province of Angola (Cacongo). In 1883 he established Portuguese rule over Cacongo and Massabi, which were definitively succeeded to Portugal after the Treaty of Berlin in 1885. The Visconde de Cacongo Owing to his work in Africa he was appointed the Visconde of Cacongo in 1884, by King D.Luis 1. He registered his coat of arms in 1900 and then returned to Madeira at the turn of the century, where he dedicated the rest of his life to philanthropic work within the community.  He died in 1925. The Second Viscount João José Leitão, the first Visconde, died without an inheritor. His only son died in infancy in Landana in September 1893, and King D.Manuel II, in exile, in October 1927 awarded the title to Carlos Leitão, son of the Brasilian consul, and nephew of the Visconde. He died in 1958 and having no children of his own, is survived by his eldest neice, Cecilia Leitão Branco e Brito Jardim who is the current owner of the property. A Second Life for the Quinta An historic property based on agriculture, had little hope of survival once Portugal joined the CE. Therefore, in 1990, the buildings around the old wine press at the end of the drive were converted into holiday properties. Since then, the success of the Garden Village has grown year by year, as visitors from all corners of the world come to appreciate this opportunity to share in the history of this unique estate.