Vila Franca Islet, São Miguel Island, Azores, Portugal Jun 13, 2025

Not far from São Miguel Island in the Azores archipelago of Portugal, you"ll find Vila Franca Islet. This uninhabited green islet sits quietly just south of the town of Vila Franca do Campo. Beneath its serene surface, this gem holds a lively past. First documented in 1537, around the time when settlers from São Miguel began expanding westward, Vila Franca Islet has played many roles throughout its history. It has served as a military fort, a port, a vineyard site and even a lookout for whale-watching.

© ARoxo/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Jun 13, 2024Registan Square, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Mar 22, 2025Cenote Nicte-Ha, Tulum, Mexico
Sep 11, 2024Eltz Castle, Germany
Jan 31, 2026Plains zebras, Etosha National Park, Namibia
Feb 10, 2025Art Installation of umbrellas, London, England
Feb 16, 2026Banff, Alberta, Canada
Oct 20, 2023Pygmy three-toed sloth
May 5, 2025Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada
Apr 14, 2025Atlantic spotted dolphins near Santa Maria Island, Azores, Portugal
Feb 2, 2025Alpine marmot
May 27, 2024Baia del Silenzio in Sestri Levante, Italy
Jun 7, 2025Summit of Pine Mountain, Angeles National Forest, California, United States
Apr 29, 2024Fujian Tulou, China
Dec 14, 2025Tufted titmouse
Dec 10, 2025Castle of Rocca Calascio, Italy
Mar 2, 2025Megalong Valley, Blue Mountains National Park, NSW, Australia
Aug 25, 2025Calcite Springs Overlook and Yellowstone River, Wyoming, United States
Aug 8, 2024Spotted owlet, Bangkok, Thailand
Sep 3, 2025Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
May 12, 2025An iris garden in Tokyo, Japan
Sep 21, 2024Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany
Jan 9, 2025Sossusvlei sand dunes, Namib desert, Namibia
Jul 23, 2024Methoni Castle, Messinia, Greece
Mar 11, 2026Peach trees in Cieza, Murcia, Spain
May 26, 2024Methow Valley, North Cascades, Washington, USA
Sep 24, 2024Skaftafell, Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland
Nov 26, 2025Olive orchard in the Serra de Tramuntana, Mallorca, Balearic Islands, Spain
Oct 3, 2023Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Islands, Australia
Sep 21, 2025Sea otters, Alaska
Jun 29, 2024Beech forest in Nienhagen, Germany
Nov 19, 2025Hungarian Parliament Building, Budapest, Hungary