Praia da Vitória
| Praia da Vitória | |||
| Municipality (Concelho) | |||
 A partial view of the municipal seat of Praia da Vitória, located along the Fontinhas fault
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| Official name: Concelho da Praia da Vitória | |||
| Name origin: Portuguese compound for beach of the victory | |||
| Country | Portugal | ||
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| Autonomous Region |  Azores |
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| Island | Terceira | ||
| Civil Parishes | Agualva, Biscoitos, Cabo da Praia, Fonte do Bastardo, Fontinhas, Lajes, Porto Martins, Santa Cruz, Quatro Ribeiras, São Brás, Vila Nova | ||
| Center | Praia da Vitória | ||
| - elevation | 27 m (89 ft) | ||
| - coordinates | 38°44′0″N 27°3′59″W / 38.73333°N 27.06639°WCoordinates: 38°44′0″N 27°3′59″W / 38.73333°N 27.06639°W | ||
| Highest point | Pico Alto | ||
| - elevation | 809 m (2,654 ft) | ||
| - coordinates | 38°45′18″N 27°12′40″W / 38.75500°N 27.21111°W | ||
| Lowest point | Sea level | ||
| - location | Atlantic Ocean | ||
| - elevation | 0 m (0 ft) | ||
| Area | 161.27 km2 (62 sq mi) | ||
| - water | .02 km2 (0 sq mi) | ||
| - urban | 14.45 km2 (6 sq mi) | ||
| Population | 21,035 (2011) | ||
| Density | 130/km2 (337/sq mi) | ||
| Settlement | fl. 1400 | ||
| - Municipality | c. 1480 | ||
| LAU | Câmara Municipal | ||
| - location | Praça Francisco Ornelas da Câmara, Santa Cruz | ||
| - elevation | 21 m (69 ft) | ||
| - coordinates | 38°43′52″N 27°3′38″W / 38.73111°N 27.06056°W | ||
| President | Roberto Lúcio Silva Pereira Monteiro (PS) | ||
| Municipal Chair | Francisco Cardoso Pereira de Oliveira (PS) | ||
| Timezone | Azores (UTC-1) | ||
| - summer (DST) | Azores (UTC0) | ||
| Postal Zone | 9760-851 | ||
| Area Code & Prefix | (+351) 292 XXX XXX | ||
| Demonym | Praiense | ||
| Patron Saint | Santa Cruz | ||
| Municipal Holidays | 11 August | ||
 Location of the municipality of Praia da Vitória in the archipelago of the Azores
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| Website: http://www.cmpv.pt | |||
| Statistics from INE (2001); geographic detail from Instituto Geográfico Português (2010) | |||
Praia da Vitória (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpɾajɐ ðɐ viˈtɔɾiɐ]), translated as the Beach of the Victory, is a municipality in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. With a population of 21,035 (in 2011), the second largest administrative authority on the island of Terceira, it covers an area of 161.27 square kilometres (62.27 sq mi), that extends from the northern coast halfway into the interior.
The area of Praia, was one of the first points colonized on the island of Terceira. Praia constituted the seat of the Donatary-Captaincy of Terceira between 1456 and 1474; the island's first Captain, Jácome de Bruges along with his first lieutenant, Diogo de Teive, established their residency at this site. By 1474, the island was divided into two captaincies (Praia and Angra): the Captaincy of Praia reverted to Álvaro Martins Homem, Bruges' successor. The growth of the woad industry and export wheat market concentrated along the fertile Ramo Grande area, allowed Praia to grow rapidly. Consequently, Praia was elevated to the status of vila (comparable to town) in 1480 (then still within the administration of Álvaro Martins Homem).
By the last quarter of the 16th century, Gaspar Frutuoso (the celebrated Azorean historian), wrote of Praia in these terms:
During the Iberian Union, King Phillip II of Spain ordered an armada to Terceira to impose the governorship of Ambrósia de Aguiar Coutinho on his unruly subjects in the Azores and facilitate shipping to the Indies. Under the command of Pedro de Valdez, the fleet arrived in Santa Maria with seven large carracks and 1000 troops, took on provisions and sailed for São Miguel in the spring (where Governor Ambrósio de Aguiar Coutinho and his cousin supplied the group). After an initial assault on Angra, Valdez rushed to assault the island, disembarking troops at the Casa da Salga, in the valley of Porto Judeu (a mile from Vila de São Sebastião), incensed that King Phillip was sending a larger contingent to capture Terceira. The Battle of Salga became an important event in the village of São Sebastião (then a parish of Praia) broke out along the coast in 1582.
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