On 18 May, to mark the birthday of Commander Carvalho Araújo, the Maritime Museum and theCommander Carvalho Araújo Association presented a temporary exhibition, which will remain open until 11 November and intends to portray the life, work and military career of one of the main figures of the Portuguese Navy during the First World War.
One hundred years ago, on 14 October 1918, his action in command of the minesweeper 'Augusto de Castilho' was decisive during the combat with the german submarine U-139. Having fulfilled his mission, protecting the passenger liner 'San Miguel' and all those on board, travelling between Madeira and the Azores, he died in combat.
His life was also marked by an active intervention in the country's daily political life. Being a staunch Republican, close to Admiral Cândido dos Reis, he participated in some of the key moments that led to the establishment of the Republic. Proclaimed in 1911 as a deputy to the National Constituent Assembly, he was also later elected deputy to the Congress of the Portuguese Republic.
But it was his last fight that would forever associate him with the Portuguese Memory. Struggling for nearly two hours against a considerably stronger opponent, Commander Carvalho Araújo ended up losing his life, hit by shrapnel from an enemy projectile, but not before uttering his last words, 'I die as a Portuguese'.