page_title: João Teixeira Pinto
section_title: Military career
hierarchical_section_title: João Teixeira Pinto / Military career
caption_attribution_description: Postcard: Foto Iris No 09 - Estátua de Teixeira Pinto - Bissau
context_page_description: João Teixeira da Rocha Pinto was a Portuguese military officer who served throughout his career in the administration of Portuguese colonies of Africa. João Pinto bore the nickname The Devils Chief. He gained distinction for his role in administering the military contingents of Portuguese Mozambique during the late years of World War I.
context_section_description: Pinto served as an officer in various Portuguese colonies in Africa. First from 1902 to 1911, in Portuguese Angola, in following his fathers footsteps. In Portuguese Guinea, he played a decisive role in the pacification of the Oio Region between 1912 and 1916. Between 1913 and 1915, Pinto used Askari troops to impose Portuguese rule and to crush resistance to hut tax by destroying villages and seizing cattle, which caused many to flee to Senegal or the forests. The cost of his forces and the return to budget deficits led to his recall in 1915.
  Upon the onset of the Portuguese declaration of war against Germany in 1916, Pinto was transferred for the military administration of Portuguese Mozambique. In Mozambique, Pinto oversaw troop movements and took command of several offensives into German East Africa, in coordination with both the British and Belgian armies. The East African Campaign continued despite the majority of the colony being overrun. The Imperial German chief commander in East Africa, Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck (The Lion of Africa), decided to resist the occupying armies with the first modern use of guerrilla warfare tactics.
caption: Monument to Teixeira Pinto in Bissau
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