Serpa Pinto was born at the Quinta das Poldras (Tendais) in Cinfães, a Portuguese village on the river Douro.

Soon after their departure, however, they parted company at Bié, Capello and Ivens turning northward whilst Serpa Pinto continued eastward, gradually shifting his course to the south.

[3] Serpa Pinto was the fourth explorer to cross Africa from west to east, and the first to lay down a reasonably accurate route between Bié (in present-day Angola) and Lealui.

In 1881 the Royal Geographical Society awarded him their Founder's Medal, "for his journey across Africa ... during which he explored five hundred miles of new country".

The Portuguese then attempted to negotiate British acceptance of their territorial claims, but the convening of the Berlin Conference (1884) ended these discussions.

[5] In 1884, Serpa Pinto was appointed as Portuguese consul in Zanzibar, and given the mission of exploring and re-mapping the region between Lake Nyasa and the coast from the Zambezi to the Rovuma River and securing the allegiance of the chiefs in that area.

[12] Following minor clashes with Serpa Pinto's force, Johnston's deputy, John Buchanan, declared a British protectorate over the Shire Highlands, despite contrary instructions, although this was later endorsed by the Foreign Office.

To honour and remember him, streets and squares in many Portuguese towns and cities were named after him, for example the Rua Serpa Pinto in Lisbon, Porto, Tomar, Évora, Braganca, Torres Vedras, Rio Maior and Cinfães, to mention only a few.

In Cinfães the Serpa Pinto Museum was opened on 20 April 2000, housing a small exhibit dedicated to this famous son of the area.

The house where Serpa Pinto's parents lived in Porto Antigo, Cinfães, on the banks of the Rio Bastanéa (Bestança River), where it flows into the Rio Douro (Douro River), has been transformed into the luxurious Estalagem Porto Antigo and the conference hall there is named after Serpa Pinto.

(Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries) and in all countries interested in the historical course, life and work General Alexandre Alberto da Rocha Serpa Pinto but also contribute to the enrichment, protection and conservation of General Alexandre Alberto da Rocha Serpa Pinto's estate, encourage teaching and research in the areas of Natural Sciences, Anthropology, History and Sociology and to promote culture, defense and conservation of the historical, artistic and cultural heritage of Cinfães, Portugal and C.P.L.P..

Furthermore, the Association promote the study the life and work of Serpa Pinto and the era in which he lived in a scientific and inter-disciplinary manner.