The islands of Cape Verde were uninhabited when discovered and claimed by Portugal in 1456. A Portuguese colony was established in 1462. The islands were united as a single crown colony in 1587. In 1951, the islands became an overseas province of Portugal. Autonomy was granted in 1974 and independence was granted on 5 July 1975.
List (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office)
Santiago (later northern Santiago)
TenureIncumbentNotes29 January 1462 to 1473Diogo Afonso, Captain1473 to 1505Rodrigo Afonso, Captain
Ribeira Grande (southern Santiago)
TenureIncumbentNotes19 September 1462 to 1496António de Noli, Captain8 April 1497 to ????Branca de Aguiar, Captain♀1508 to 15??Sebastião Álvares de Landim, Captain1515 to 151?Fernão Mendes, Captain1517 to 15??João Alemão, Captain16 August 1536 to 15??João Correia de Souza, Captain1544 to 15??António Correia de Souza, Captain1555 (or ?1559) to 15??Manuel de Andrade, Captain22 December 1562 to ????Constantino de Bragança, Captain
Boa Vista TenureIncumbentNotes29 October 1497 to 3 January 1505Rodrigo Afonso, Captain3 January 1505 to 15??Pêro Correia, Captain15?? to 1542António Correia, Captain1542 to 15??Maria Correia, Captain♀
Alcatrazes Islands TenureIncumbentNotes1484 to ????João de Santarém, Captain1504 to 150?Afonso Ribeiro, Captain1508 to 15??Rodrigi Varela, Captain
Praia TenureIncumbentNotes1526 to 1527André Rodrigues dos Mosquitos, Captain1527 to 15??Gomes Balieiro, Captain21 January 1570 to ????Manuel Correia, Captain
Fogo TenureIncumbentNotes1528 to 1529João de Meneses Vasconcellos, conde de Penela, Captain20 April 1528 to 15??Afonso de Meneses, conde de Penela, Captain
Sal, Santa Luzia and Brava TenureIncumbentNotes22 October 1542 to 15??Luís Pereira, Captain12 January 1553 to 15??Martinho Pereira, Captain
Santo Antão TenureIncumbentNotes13 January 1548 to 15??Gonçalo de Sousa, Captain
The Islands of Cape Verde TenureIncumbentNotesPortuguese suzerainty1462Portuguese settlementCorregedor (Magistrates)1481 to ????Pêro Lourenço, Corregedor???? to 1517Pêro de Guimarães, Corregedor1517 to 1521João Alemão, Corregedor1521 to 1527Leonis Correia, Corregedor28 August 1527 to 1534Gaspar Correia, Corregedor1534 to 1536Estêvão de Lagos, Corregedor1536 to 1541André Feio, Corregedor1539 to 1541Simão Afonso, Corregedor1541 to 1544Pêro Moniz, Corregedor1544 to 1547António Ferreira, Corregedor1547 to 1550Pêro de Araujo, Corregedor1550 to 1556Jorge Pimentel, Corregedor1556 to 1559Manuel de Andrade, Corregedor1559 to 1560Luís Martins de Evangelho, Corregedor1560 to 1562Gregório Martins Caminha, Corregedor1562 to 1571Bernardo de Alpoim, Corregedor1571 to 1577António Velho Tinoco, Corregedor1577 to 1579Cristóvão Soares de Mello, Corregedor1579 to 1584Diogo Dias Magro, Corregedor1584 to 1588Gaspar de Andrade, Corregedor1588 to 1588Amador Gomes Raposo, CorregedorGovernors1588 to 1591Duarte Lobo da Gama, Governor1591 to 1595Brás Soares de Melo, Governor1597 to 1603Fancisco Lobo da Gama, Governor1603 to 1606Fernão de Mesquita de Brito, Governor1606 to 1611Francisco Correia da Silva, Governor1611 to 1614Francisco Martins de Sequeira, Governor1614 to 1618Nicolau de Castilho, Governor1618 to 1622Francisco de Moura, Governor1622 to 1622Francisco de Moura Rolim, Governor1622 to 1624Manuel Afonso de Guerra, acting Governor 1624 to 1628Francisco de Vasconcelos da Cunha, Governor1628 to 1632João Pereira Corte-Real, Governor1632 to 1636Cristóvão de Cabral, Governor1636 to 1639Jorge de Castilho, Governor1639 to 1640Jerónimo de Cavalcanti e Albuquerque, Governor1640 to 1645João Serrão da Cunha, Governor1645 to 1646Lourenço Garro, Governor1646 to 1648Jorge de Araújo, Governor1648 to 1648Roque de Barros do Rêgo, Governor1648 to 1649Council of Government12 June 1649 to 9 October 1650Gonçalo de Gamboa Ayala, Governor1650 to 1651Pedro Semedo Cardoso, Governor1651 to 1653Jorge de Mesquita Castelo Branco, Governor1563 to 1658Pedro Ferreira Barreto, Governor1558 to 1663Francisco de Figueroa, Governor1663 to 1667Antõnio Galvao, Governor1667 to 1671Manuel da Costa Pessoa, Governor1st Term1671 to 1676Manuel Pacheco de Melo, Governor30 April 1676 to 1676João Cardoso Pássaro, Governor1676 to 1678Council of Government15 March 1678 to 1683Manuel da Costa Pessoa, Governor2nd Term1681 to 1687Inácio de Franca Barbosa, Governor1687 to 1688Veríssimo Carvalho da Costa, Governor1688 to 1690Vitoriano da Costa, Governor1690 to 1691Digo Ramires Esquível, Governor1691 to 1692Council of Government1692 to 1696Manuel António Pinheiro da Câmara, Governor1696 to 7 June 1696António Gomes Mena, Governor1696 to 1698Council of Government4 November 1698 to 1702António Salgado, Governor10 February 1702 to 1702Jorge Cotrim de Mello, Governor12 April 1702 to 1707Gonçalo de Lemos Mascarenhas, Governor11 May 1707 to 1710Rodrigo de Oliveira da Fonseca, Governor12 February 1710 to 1715José Pinheiro da Câmara, Governor27 March 1715 to 20 June 1715Manuel Pereira Calheiros e Araújo, Governor16 December 1715 to 1719Serafim Teixeira Sarmento de Sá, Governor9 April 1719 to 1720Balthasar de Sousa Coutinho, Governor11 March 1720 to 4 January 1725António Vieira, Governor24 January 1726 to 1728Francisco Miguel da Nóbrega Vasconcelos, Governor10 July 1728 to 1733Francisco de Oliveira Grans, Governor1733 to 1737Bento Gomes Coelho, Governor1 May 1736 to 7 August 1738José da Fonseca Barbosa, Governor1738 to 1741Chamber Senate10 June 1741 to 1751João Zuzarte de Santa Maria, Governor6 March 1751 to 1751António José d'Eça e Faria, Governor1752 to 1756Luís António da Cunha d'Eça, Governor1756 to 1761Manuel António de Sousa e Meneses, Governor5 March 1761 to 1761Marcelino Pereira de Ávila, Governor1761 to 1764António de Barros Bezerra, Governor1764 to 1766Bartolomeu de Sousa de Brito Tigre, Governor1766 to 1767João Jácome de Brito Barena Henriques, Governor25 November 1768 to 1777Joaquim Salema Saldanha Lobo, Governor1777 to 1781António do Vale de Sousa e Meneses, Governor19 February 1781 to 1782Duarte de Melo da Silva Castro de Almeida, Governor1782 to 1783Francisco de São Simão, acting Governor23 August 1784 to 1789António Machado de Faria e Maia, Governor2 April 1789 to 1793Francisco José Teixeira Carneiro, Governor27 September 1793 to 10 September 1795José da Silva Maldonado d'Eça, Governor3 August 1796 to 29 November 1802Marcelino António Bastos, Governor12 May 1803 to 1818António Coutinho de Lencastre, Governor6 February 1818 to 1822António Pusich, Governor9 May 1822 to 1826João da Matta Chapuzet, Governor7 September 1826 to 1830Caetano Procópio Godinho de Vasconcelos, Governor1830 to 1831Duarte da Costa e Sousa de Macedo, Governor1831 to 1834José Coutinho de Lencastre, Governor1834 to 1835Manuel António Martins, Governor1835 to 1836Joaquim Pereira Marinho, Governor1st Term1836 to 1837Domingos Correia Arouca, Governor1837 to 1839Joaquim Pereira Marinho, Governor2nd Term1839 to 1842João de Fontes Pereira de Melo, Governor1st Term5 April 1842 to 1845Francisco de Paula Bastos, Governor26 June 1845 to 1847José Miguel de Noronha, Governor28 July 1847 to 1851João de Fontes Pereira de Melo, Governor2nd Term25 June 1851 to 1854Fortunato José Barreiros, Governor6 April 1854 to 1857António Maria Barreiros Arrobas, Governor25 November 1857 to 1860Sebastião Lopes de Calheiros Meneses, Governor1860 to 1860Januário Correia de Almeida, Governor6 September 1860 to 1863Carlos Joaquim Franco, Governor1863 to 1869José Guedes de Carvalho e Meneses, Governor29 March 1869 to 26 February 1876Caetano Alexandre de Almeida e Albuquerque, GovernorSome sources stated that he began his term on 11 February 18691877 to 1877G.C. Lopes de Macedo, Governor1878 to 1878 Vasco Guedes de Carvalho e Meneses, Governor1879 to 1881António de Nascimento Pereira de Sampaio, Governor1882 to 1886João Paes de Vasconcellos, Governor1887 to 1889João Cesário de Lacerda, Governor1st Term1890 to 1890Augusto Cesário Carlos de Carvalho, Governor1891 to 1893José Guedes Brandão de Melo, Governor 1st Term1893 to 1894Fernando de Magalhães e Menezes, Governor 1893 to 1896José Guedes Brandão de Melo, Governor 2nd Term1897 to 1897Alexandre Alberto da Rocha de Serpa Pinto, Governor1898 to 1900João Cesário de Lacerda, Governor2nd Term1901 to 1902Arnaldo de Novalis Guedes de Rebelo, Governor1902 to 1903Francisco de Paula Cid, Governor1903 to 1904António Alfredo Barjona de Freitas, Governor1905 to 1907Amâncio Alpoim de Cerqueira Borges Cabral, Governor1907 to 1909Bernardo António da Costa de Macedo, Governor1909 to 1910Martinho Pinto de Queirós Montenegro, Governor1910 to 1911António de Macedo Ramalho Ortigão, Governor1911 to 1911Artur Marinha de Campos, Governor1911 to 1915Joaquím Pedro Vieira Índice Bicker, Governor1915 to 1918Abel Fontoura da Costa, Governor1918 to 1919Teófilo Duarte, Governor1919 to 1921Manuel Firmino de Almeida da Maia Magalhães, Governor1921 to 1922Filipe Carlos Dias de Carvalho, Governor1924 to 1926Júlio Henriques d'Abreu, Governor1927 to 1927João de Almeida, Governor1927 to 1931António Álvares Guedes Vaz, Governor1931 to 1941Amadeu Gomes de Figueiredo, Governor1941 to 1943José Diogo Ferreira Martins, Governor1943 to 1949João de Figueiredo, Governor1950 to 1953Carlos Alberto Garcia Alves Roçadas, Governor1953 to 1957Manuel Marques de Abrantes Amaral, Governor1957 to 1958António Augusto Peixoto Correia, acting Governor1958 to 1962Silvino Silvério Marques, Governor1963 to 1969Leão Maria Tavares Rosado do Sacramento Monteiro, Governor13 March 1969 to 1974António Lopes dos Santos, GovernorMarch 1974 to 25 April 1974Basílio Pina de Oliveira Seguro, GovernorMay 1974 to July 1974Sérgio Fonseca, Governor6 August 1974 to 21 September 1974Henrique da Silva Horta, Governor21 September 1974 to 30 December 1974Vicente Almeida d'Eça, Governor30 December 1974 to 5 July 1975Vicente Almeida d'Eça, High Commissioner5 July 1975Independence as Republic of Cape Verde
For continuation after independence, see: List of presidents of Cape Verde
See also Politics of Cape Verde List of presidents of Cape Verde List of prime ministers of Cape Verde
References
External links World Statesmen – Cabo Verde (Cape Verde)