José Maria da Ponte e Horta was born to a Portuguese noble family in 1824.
Ponte e Horta joined the Portuguese military and later went on to serve as a professor at the Escola Politécnica de Lisboa and was named Par do Reino, one of the highest honors of Portuguese society.
On 26 October 1866, Ponte e Horta became the Portuguese governor of Macau, a position which he held for two years until 3 August 1868.
In 1870, he again held a top colonial office, being named the governor of Angola, which was at the time a Portuguese colony. He remained governor of Portuguese Angola until 1873.
Many sources state that Ponte e Horta also held the post of governor of Cabo Verde; however, he does not appear in other records as having held that position.[2]
Death and legacy
José Maria da Ponte e Horta died on 9 March 1892.[1] There are several streets and buildings named after him in Macau.[3][4][5][unreliable source?]