Funchal

Sister cities

• New Bedford
• São Paulo
• Honolulu
• Oakland
• Cape Town
• Praia
• Gibraltar
• Marrickville
• Livingstone
• City of Fremantle
• Parla
• Honolulu County

History

The settlement of Funchal began between 1420 and 1425. The island was divided into two captaincies. The zones that would become the urbanized core of Funchal were founded by João Gonçalves Zarco who settled there with members of his family. Owing to its geographic location, the site became an important maritime port and its productive soils attracted new settlers. Its coastal position, the most productive on the island, quickly permitted Funchal to develop an urban core and surpass the populations of other settlements. In the early 15th century, Álvaro Fernandes became the commander of Funchal. As part of its administrative role, the settlement received its primary lighthouse between 1452 and 1454, when it was elevated to the status of vila and municipal seat. Funchal became an important transfer point for European commercial interests. Many of merchant families established commercial interests on the island, including: João d'Esmenaut from the Picardy region, the Doria, Cattaneo, Usodimare, Lomelino, di Negro and Spinola, from Genoa. the Mondragão from Biscay, the Acciauoli from Florence, the Bettencourts from France, the Lemilhana Berenguer from Valencia and many others. During the second half of the 15th century, the sugar industry expanded significantly along the southern coast, from Machico until Fajã da Ovelha, making Funchal the most important industrial centre of the industry. By the end of the century, fronting the Order of Christ, D. Manuel, Duke of Beja, expanded the support of the local community; he ordered the construction of the administrative Paços do Concelho and the Paços dos Tabeliães (completed in 1491), raised the construction of a church (began in 1493 and later raised to cathedral in 1514), and finally the construction of a hospital and…

Geography

Funchal is located inside a natural amphitheatre-shaped valley, with gentle slopes beginning at the coast which rise to 1200 metres and provide a natural shelter for early settlers In addition to the urbanized area, the municipality includes the Ilhas Selvagens (), a nature reserve located south of the capital. According to the Köppen climate classification, Funchal has a subtropical, hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen: Csa). It is the warmest city in Portugal, with an annual average temperature of . The climate can be divided into two main seasons: a warm dry summer season spanning from May to September with average daily high temperatures ranging from , and a cooler wet winter season from October to April with average daily high temperatures ranging from . The city has warm temperatures all year round, and humidity levels remain constantly high at about 70%. Sea temperatures range from a low of in February–March to in August–October. Since the city rises from the sea level up to altitudes of on its northern slopes, it is quite common to experience cloudiness, fog and rain in the northern suburbs while, at the same time, having clear skies in the south. Temperatures also tend to be slightly lower at the higher altitudes. Early summer, especially June, tends to be quite infamous due to a phenomenon where persistent cloudiness covers the entire bay area of the city, similar to the June Gloom phenomenon, locally nicknamed "Funchal's helmet". The length and severity of the wet and dry seasons varied greatly from year to year. A 2019 paper published in PLOS One estimated that under Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5, a "moderate" scenario of climate change where global warming reaches ~ by 2100, the climate of Funchal in the year 2050 would most…