Diogo Rodrigues

Dom Diego (Roiz) Rodrigues; Diogo (In English); (21 April 1577, Goa) was a Portuguese explorer of the Indian Ocean, after whom the island of Rodrigues is named. In 1528 he explored the islands of Réunion, Mauritius, and Rodrigues, naming it the Mascarene or Mascarenhas Islands, after his countryman Pedro Mascarenhas, who had been there before.

(Roiz) Rodrigues Family Monument in Colva - Goa

According to José Nicolau da Fonseca [1], Rodrigues was buried in Goa with his grave's inscription reading: Acqui jaz Diego Rodrigues o do Forte, Capitão desta Fortaleza, o qual derrubou os pagodes destas terras. Falleceu á 21 de Abril de 1577 annos. In English translation this reads: "Here lies Diogo Rodrigues, (called) 'the one of the Fort', Captain of this Fortress, who destroyed the pagodas of these territories. He died on April 21, 1577 in Goa." All the Hindu temples of Salcette, Goa, now a part of India were destroyed by Diogo Rodrigues who personally oversaw this destruction. This led to the mass exodus of Hindus from the Portuguese held territories and the Hindus taking the idols of their deities across the Zuari river to the territories of the Hindu Sonde kings. Amongst the temples destroyed are the Temples of Shri Ramnathi and Shree Shantadurga and Shree Mangeshi.

According to Alfred North- Coombes [2], the maps dated back to 1540 of the island carried the following inscriptions "i que achou Diego Roiz. As per Alfred, Diego's surname was also ref to as Roiz as it was a royal (who was knighted and received the royal confirmation[2][3]) diminutive of Rodrigues. It is also concluded [2] that the exact date of discovery by Diego (Roiz) Rodrigues was between the 4th and 9th of February 1528.

Inscription readings

The standing monument in Colva - Goa is the clear evidence of the Roiz family. This monument was rebuilt to a bigger structure in 1855 and still stands intact from 1855 as one of the sons suddenly died at a young age of 38 years, namely Sebastião Francisco Roiz. This is the only Family in Goa with Roiz ancestry and they live in the ancestral house that was built by Diego in Colva - Goa.

The monument inscription reads: "Eis os restos de Seb F Roiz fala 18-8-1855 de 38 annos colla 2-5-57 ese pede aos viand pater no p'sua alma"

On 18th February 2012, one of the great grandsons of Diego; Shaun José (Roiz) Rodrigues visited Rodrigues island and handed over pics of the (Roiz) Rodrigues family monument as well as the genealogy to Joseph Louis Rosaire Perrine from the Rodrigues Regional Assembly and had the opportunity to visit the archives managed by Aurelo Auquetil Andre from the Francois Leguat reserve in Rodrigues.

References

[1] José Nicolau da Fonseca, Historical and Archaeological Sketch of the City of Goa, Bombay : Thacker, 1878, pp. 47-48. Reprinted 1986, Asian Educational Services, ISBN 8120602072.

[2] Alfred North-Coombes, The Island of Rodrigues, Mauritius : BPS, 1971, pp. 47-48. Reprinted 2002, ISBN 99903-79-02-5.

[3] Boxer, C.R., The tragic history of the sea,1589-1622. Cambridge, 1959, 54 (quoting from Sousa Viterbo, Trabalhos Nauticos dos Portuguezes nos seculos XVI e XVII, Lisboa, 1898, 1, 270).