São Miguel Island
Later, when Madeira and Azores were discovered, Order of Christ had an important role in the settlement of the islands. Gonçalo Velho Cabral (?-before 1500) was a knight of this military order, he was from Beira Baixa Province (Castelo Branco District) and had the lordship of several lands in Beira Baixa. He was appointed hereditary landowner responsible for administering Crown lands of São Miguel and Santa Maria islands and commissioned by Henry, the Navigator (1394-1460) (then Governor of the Order of Christ) to settle with people the then unpopulated islands. Many people that went to São Miguel Island came from the lands where he was lord and spoke the ancestor of the dialect of São Miguel island.