Do Porto ao Gulag

The last book published by José Milhazes is entitled Do Porto ao Gulag. In this new journey through tsarist Russia, our writer delves into the life of a Portuguese merchant and diplomat who had the vision and the courage to move from the warm Cidade Invicta to the cold lands of the north from Europe and make a brilliant career in the service of Portugal, Russia and from his own pocket.

Grandchildren and great-grandchildren experience the convulsive period of the end of tsarism and the seizure of power by the communists.

In the first chapter we witness the first forays into relations between Portugal and Russia, with special attention to the port of Lisbon, as a host for ships from Russia at a time when this empire was opening a janela para a Europa, that is, a policy opening of Russia with a view to having access to the sea through the Atlantic.

Apart from geopolitical interest, both countries were looking for new markets for their products: linen for the sails, iron for the screws and wood for the masts were procured by the Portuguese; while salt, sugar, coffee, indigo and wine would be cheaper for Russians without intermediaries involved.

(Although it has not been noticed, I have paused in my reading and I have served a porto tawny that I have safely in my small cellar ... Again, sitting on the terrace, I take a sip of this excellent wine and continue with the book.)

Before our José Pedro Celestino Velho — who was our adventurer's name — there was another Portuguese, also from Porto, named Manuel Pinto Paiva Garcês, who in the mid-18th century made a business trip, making sure to bring letters of recommendation from both countries. What Pinto Paiva offered was difficult to refuse, since he proposed the sale of vinho bom, natural e melhor do que o que conheceram, até ao presente e ao mesmo preço than those who were watery.

We are on page 33. It should be noted that the first Portuguese commercial ship sent to Russia was a corvette from the Companhia do Alto Douro in 1779 and that it arrived in Saint Petersburg before the Portuguese ambassador himself. As is still the case today, speculative traders are ahead of speculative politicians.

It is not until the third chapter that we have to wait for Mr Velho to appear. From these moments we witness the rise to glory of the merchant and diplomat (he is appointed consul general of Portugal in Saint Petersburg) and the descent into hell for most of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Later on there is a lament from JPC Velho who, after a trip to his homeland, laments that on his return to Russia he found the Companhia's business num estado bastante lastimoso devido à gestão ruinosa de um dos comissários, Henrique Araújo. In other words, at the same time that our man is appointed banker of the Russian court and ennobled with the title of baron, there is a considerable loss occurring in the aforementioned Companhia Geral do Alto Douro.

(Searching the Internet, I find a research work carried out by F. de Sousa, D. Ferreira and others that point out that between 1782 and 1802 the Companhia had suffered losses in Russia amounting to 704,183.16 rubles.)

Curious is the complaint that Velho makes to the Headquarters of not giving him enough support to increase the sale of wines in Russia. I wonder, could it be that the Company was already aware of the money lost at that time?

From my Borstal

LDR

Do Porto ao Gulag: A Viagem Secular de Uma Familia Portuense no Império Russo/Soviético. José Milhazes e Oficina do Livro, 2019