Following the death of his father, by royal decree (25 October 1601), he was made 2nd Count of Vila Franca, assuming at that time the captaincy of the island.
[1] He was married to D. Leonor de Vilhena, daughter of D. Fradique Henriques, King Philip's chief steward.
The new captain lived a great part of his life in the captaincy, and was recognized for the stability and security of his government, something that was lacking in his father and grandfather's administration.
[1] The most prominent occurrence of his regime occurred in 1616, when the neighbouring island of Santa Maria was attacked by Barbary coast pirates, Vila do Porto completely sacked and its inhabitants sold into slavery in Northern Africa.
[1] In Terceira, following the 1614 earthquake, which caused the death of 200 people and destruction of 1600 homes and 24 churches, there were also several initiatives to recuperate and reestablish normalcy.