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✅1615 | The Shipwreck of the Ship Nossa Senhora da Luz in Porto Pim

The union of the kingdoms of Portugal and Spain under the crown of Philip II did not alter the practices of the India Run. Every year, a fleet would depart from Lisbon heading to India, while another would leave from Goa or Cochin towards Portugal. The Anglo-Spanish war ended in 1604 when Philip III of Spain and James I of England signed the Treaty of London. However, although the English privateer war against Iberian navigation had ended, the ships of the India Run continued to endure storms in the Azores seas. This was the case in November 1615.

On February 9, 1615, the ships of the India Run had left Goa on their return voyage, but it was found that they were overloaded and poorly stowed. As a result, the Nossa Senhora da Luz and the São Filipe ships returned to their starting point to unload part of their cargo. Therefore, their departure only took place on February 15. Later, while sailing near the Maldives Islands, they encountered the São Boaventura, which was experiencing severe navigability issues due to water infiltration. In these circumstances, on March 22, the passengers and crew of the São Boaventura, as well as the most valuable part of its cargo, were transferred to the other two ships, and the São Boaventura was abandoned.

After passing the Cape of Good Hope, the two ships headed towards Angola to resupply. Following this, they continued their journey normally until reaching the Azores Sea. On October 31, about 150 leagues southwest of the island of Terceira, during bad weather, the two ships separated. While the São Filipe headed towards the island of Terceira, arriving on the afternoon of November 5, the Nossa Senhora da Luz continued its journey towards the island of Faial, being severely battered by the sea.

Despite this, on November 6, it arrived at the western part of the island of Faial, having already thrown overboard its artillery and part of its cargo, and with a large amount of water in its hold. It then sailed into Porto Pim Bay, where it anchored under the protection of Monte da Guia.

Some boats came to its rescue from the shore, but the commander did not allow anyone to leave the ship, believing that everyone was needed to help pump the water out of the hold.

During the night, the storm intensified, and the ship was dragged onto the rocks bordering Porto Pim Bay, resulting in a tragic shipwreck where many lives were lost.

However, during the night of November 6-7, 1615, the storm that struck the coast of Faial increased in intensity, ultimately dragging the anchor and pulling the ship towards the shore, in front of Carrasca, located on the northern edge of the anchorage area. In the shipwreck, around 150 people, including passengers and crew members, lost their lives, and a significant portion of the cargo was lost.

In the morning, measures were taken to recover the bodies of the shipwrecked people and protect the cargo that began washing ashore, particularly at Porto Pim Beach, to the east of the wreck site. This aid was provided under the direction of Diogo Pereira Lacerda, the captain-major of Faial, with assistance from the island's companies, but most of the cargo was lost, although some was recovered by the local population, who took advantage of the situation.

Nearly four hundred years passed, and despite some previous attempts, it was only in 1999 that the wreckage of the Nossa Senhora da Luz was identified by a team from CNANS (National Center for Nautical and Underwater Archaeology), when fragments of Chinese porcelain and other materials were found off the Portinho do Alcaide.

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