Antonio Ricardos Carrillo de Albornoz (1727 in
Barbastro
Barbastro (Latin: ''Barbastrum'' or ''Civitas Barbastrensis'', Aragonese: ''Balbastro'') is a city in the Somontano county, province of Huesca, Spain. The city (also known originally as Barbastra or Bergiduna) is at the junction of the rivers Cinc ...
– 13 March 1794) was a Spanish general. He joined the army of the
Kingdom of Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
and fought against
Habsburg Austria, the
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, and the
First French Republic
In the history of France, the First Republic (french: Première République), sometimes referred to in historiography as Revolutionary France, and officially the French Republic (french: République française), was founded on 21 September 1792 ...
during a long military career. By embracing the
Spanish Enlightenment
The ideas of the Age of Enlightenment ( es, Ilustración) came to Spain in the 18th century with the new Bourbon dynasty, following the death of the last Habsburg monarch, Charles II, in 1700. The period of reform and ' enlightened despotism' u ...
, he earned the displeasure of conservative elements of society. He played an active role in reforming the Spanish military. Upon the outbreak of the
War of the Pyrenees
The War of the Pyrenees, also known as War of Roussillon or War of the Convention, was the Pyrenean front of the First Coalition's war against the First French Republic. It pitted Revolutionary France against the kingdoms of Spain and Portug ...
in 1793, the king sent him to command in
Catalonia
Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy.
Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...
. He invaded
Roussillon
Roussillon ( , , ; ca, Rosselló ; oc, Rosselhon ) is a historical province of France that largely corresponded to the County of Roussillon and part of the County of Cerdagne of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is part of the reg ...
where he won several victories over the French. After his death in early 1794, the war went badly for Spain.
Early career
In 1727, Ricardos was born in the same house as the dramatist and poet
Lupercio Leonardo de Argensola in the city of
Barbastro
Barbastro (Latin: ''Barbastrum'' or ''Civitas Barbastrensis'', Aragonese: ''Balbastro'') is a city in the Somontano county, province of Huesca, Spain. The city (also known originally as Barbastra or Bergiduna) is at the junction of the rivers Cinc ...
, part of
Aragon
Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sou ...
. He joined his father's regiment, the Cavalry of Malta, while still in his teens. Being of noble blood, he served as a captain, and at the age of 16 briefly commanded the regiment in place of his father. In the
War of the Austrian Succession
The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's W ...
, he fought in the
Battle of Piacenza
The Battle of Piacenza was fought between a Franco-Spanish army and the Austrian army near Piacenza, in Northern Italy on June 16, 1746. It formed part of later operations in the War of the Austrian Succession. The result was a victory for the ...
on 16 June 1746 and in another action on the Tidone River on 10 August of that year.
[Spanish Wikipedia ''Antonio Ricardos'']
Enlightened reformer
Nearly twenty years later, Ricardos fought in the Spanish–Portuguese conflict known as the
Fantastic War
The Spanish–Portuguese War between 1762 and 1763 was fought as part of the Seven Years' War. Because no major battles were fought, even though there were numerous movements of troops and heavy losses among the Spanish invaders—decisively def ...
(1761–1763), which was part of the
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754†...
. Afterward he seriously studied the military organization of the
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...
. King
Charles III of Spain
it, Carlo Sebastiano di Borbone e Farnese
, house = Bourbon-Anjou
, father = Philip V of Spain
, mother = Elisabeth Farnese
, birth_date = 20 January 1716
, birth_place = Royal Alcazar of Madrid, Spain
, death_d ...
then sent him on a mission to reorganize the military system of
New Spain
New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...
. In 1768 he was a member of the commission to establish the border between Spain and
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and, for this meritorious service, he received an "Encomienda" in the
Orden de Santiago
The Order of Santiago (; es, Orden de Santiago ), is a religious and military order founded in the 12th century. It owes its name to the Patron Saint of Spain, "Santiago" ( St. James the Greater). Its initial objective was to protect the pilgr ...
. Ricardos accepted the
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment or the Enlightenment; german: Aufklärung, "Enlightenment"; it, L'Illuminismo, "Enlightenment"; pl, Oświecenie, "Enlightenment"; pt, Iluminismo, "Enlightenment"; es, La Ilustración, "Enlightenment" was an intel ...
and its reforms. He co-founded the Royal Economic Society of
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
. Promoted to
lieutenant general
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
(LG) and appointed Inspector of Cavalry, he established the
Ocaña Military College where he taught the techniques of modern warfare.
As an enlightened reformer, Ricardos was opposed by the conservative forces of society, epitomised by the
Spanish Inquisition
The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition ( es, Tribunal del Santo Oficio de la Inquisición), commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition ( es, Inquisición española), was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand ...
, which remained in existence until 1834. Thanks to the ''Encomienda de Santiago'', he was able to escape the worst attentions of the Inquisition and its political allies. However, his enemies forced him to leave Ocaña and take up a lesser position in
Guipuzcoa
Gipuzkoa (, , ; es, Guipúzcoa ; french: Guipuscoa) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French depa ...
in the north.
War with France
When King
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was e ...
and Queen
Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette Josèphe Jeanne (; ; née Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last queen of France before the French Revolution. She was born an archduchess of Austria, and was the penultimate child a ...
were executed in the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
, Spain prepared to join the
First Coalition
The War of the First Coalition (french: Guerre de la Première Coalition) was a set of wars that several European powers fought between 1792 and 1797 initially against the constitutional Kingdom of France and then the French Republic that suc ...
. King
Charles IV of Spain
, house = Bourbon-Anjou
, father = Charles III of Spain
, mother =Maria Amalia of Saxony
, birth_date =11 November 1748
, birth_place =Palace of Portici, Portici, Naples
, death_date =
, death_place = ...
promoted Ricardos to
Captain General
Captain general (and its literal equivalent in several languages) is a high military rank of general officer grade, and a gubernatorial title.
History
The term "Captain General" started to appear in the 14th century, with the meaning of Command ...
(CG) and sent him take command of the army in
Catalonia
Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy.
Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...
.
When the
War of the Pyrenees
The War of the Pyrenees, also known as War of Roussillon or War of the Convention, was the Pyrenean front of the First Coalition's war against the First French Republic. It pitted Revolutionary France against the kingdoms of Spain and Portug ...
broke out, Ricardos invaded France on 17 April 1793 with 4,500 soldiers, capturing
Saint-Laurent-de-Cerdans
Saint-Laurent-de-Cerdans (; ca, Sant Llorenç de Cerdans) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.
Geography
Saint-Laurent-de-Cerdans is located in the canton of Le Canigou and in the arrondissement of Céret. ...
. He then routed 1,800 Frenchmen at
Céret
Céret (; ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. It is the capital of the historic Catalan comarca of Vallespir.
Geography
The town lies in the foothills of the Pyrénées mountains, in southern France. ...
on the 20th, thus isolating the imposing
Fort de Bellegarde
The ''Fort de Bellegarde'' (''Fort'' or ''Castell de Bellaguarda / Bellaguà rdia'' in Catalan) is a 17th-century bastion fortification located above the town of ''Le Perthus'', in the Pyrénées-Orientales ''département'' of southern France.
H ...
at the Pass of
Le Perthus
Le Perthus (, ca, El Pertús, ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. Natives of Le Pertus are called ''Perthusiens'' and, in 2016, there were 586 inhabitants.
Le Perthus is also one of French territories on ...
. After beating
Louis-Charles de Flers
Louis-Charles de La Motte-Ango, vicomte de Flers (12 June 1754 – 22 July 1794) joined the French Royal army and rose in rank to become a general officer in the French Revolutionary Wars. After serving in the Austrian Netherlands, he was appo ...
and the French
Army of the Eastern Pyrenees
The Army of the Eastern Pyrenees (''Armée des Pyrénées Orientales'') was one of the French Revolutionary armies. It fought against the Kingdom of Spain in Roussillon, the Cerdanya and Catalonia during the War of the Pyrenees. This army and th ...
at the
Battle of Mas Deu
The Battle of Mas Deu or Battle of Mas d'Eu on 19 May 1793 saw the French Revolutionary Army of the Eastern Pyrenees under Louis-Charles de Flers fighting Bourbon Spain's army of Catalonia led by Antonio Ricardos.
The Spanish drove the outnumbe ...
on 19 May, he turned back to invest Bellegarde. The
Siege of Bellegarde ended on 24 June when the French garrison surrendered. Ricardos faced de Flers again in the
Battle of Perpignan on 17 July. On his occasion, Ricardos was defeated, but only after inflicting 800 killed and wounded on his enemies.
On 28 August, French General
Luc Siméon Auguste Dagobert
Luc Siméon Auguste Dagobert de Fontenille (8 March 1736, La Chapelle-en-Juger, near Saint-Lô, Manche – 18 April 1794, Puigcerdà ) was a French general of the French Revolutionary Wars.
Life
Ancien Régime
Descended from a noble family, Dag ...
defeated
Manuel la Peña, at
PuigcerdÃ
Puigcerdà (; es, Puigcerdá) is the capital of the '' Catalan comarca'' of Cerdanya, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, northern Spain, near the Segre River and on the border with France (it abuts directly onto the French town of Bourg-Ma ...
in the central Pyrenees. In early September, Ricardos tried to isolate and capture
Perpignan
Perpignan (, , ; ca, Perpinyà ; es, Perpiñán ; it, Perpignano ) is the prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the ...
by swinging two divisions around its western side while bombarding it in front. However, his subordinates lacked his tactical skill. On 17 September, French
Eustache Charles d'Aoust
Eustache Charles Joseph d'Aoust (27 February 1763, Douai – 2 July 1794, Paris) was a general officer during the French Revolutionary Wars.
He started his military career in the Old Regime army, served on the staffs of three of the early arm ...
repulsed
Juan de Courten and
Jerónimo Girón-Moctezuma, Marquis de las Amarillas at the
Battle of Peyrestortes
At the Battle of Peyrestortes (17 September 1793) in the War of the Pyrenees, soldiers of the First French Republic defeated a Spanish army that had invaded Roussillon and was attempting to capture Perpignan. The Spanish army of Antonio Ricardos ...
. This costly setback marked the high tide of the Spanish invasion. Ricardos quickly rallied his army and confronted the victorious French. He inflicted a sharp defeat on Dagobert at the
Battle of Truillas on 22 September. In this major action, the Spanish suffered 2,000 casualties out of 17,000 engaged, while French losses numbered 4,500 out of a total of 22,000. After his victory, Ricardos fell back to defend the
Tech River
The Tech (; ca, Tec ) is a river in southern France, very close to the French-Spanish border. It runs through a valley in the Pyrénées-Orientales, in the former Roussillon, and is long. Its source is the Parcigoule Valley, elevation , and it f ...
valley. He repulsed d'Aoust in an action at
Le Boulou
Le Boulou (; ca, El Voló ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.
It is situated 12 km from the Spanish border.
Geography Localisation
The town of Le Boulou is located in the canton of Vallespir-Albà ...
on 3 October, where the 1,200 French casualties were four times greater than Spanish losses. He won another victory over
Louis Marie Turreau at the Battle of the Tech (Pla del Rey) in mid-October.
While leading a mixed force of 3,000 Spanish and 5,000
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
, Ricardos defeated d'Aoust again on 7 December at
Villelongue-dels-Monts
Villelongue-dels-Monts (; ca, Vilallonga dels Monts) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.
The inhabitants are called ''Villelonguais''.
Geography
Villelongue-dels-Monts is located in the south of the depart ...
in the Pyrenees foothills. This was his last victory. Two weeks later his subordinate
Gregorio GarcÃa de la Cuesta
Gregorio GarcÃa de la Cuesta y Fernández de Celis (9 May 1741 – 1811) was a prominent Spanish general of the Peninsular War.
Early career
Born in La Lastra, Cantabria, to a family of petty nobles, Cuesta entered military service in 1758 as ...
routed the French defenders of
Collioure
Collioure (; ca, Cotlliure, ) is a commune in the southern French department of Pyrénées-Orientales.
Geography
The town of Collioure is on the Côte Vermeille (Vermilion Coast), in the canton of La Côte Vermeille and in the arrondissement ...
, capturing that port. Ricardos returned to Madrid to plead for reinforcements and died there of pneumonia on 13 March 1794. His successor,
Alejandro O'Reilly
Alejandro O'Reilly, 1st Count of O'Reilly, KOA (; October 24, 1723 in Baltrasna, Co. Meath, Ireland – March 23, 1794 in Bonete, Spain), English: Alexander, Count of O'Reilly, Irish: ''Alastar Ó Raghallaigh, ''was an Irish-born military refo ...
died on 23 March 1794, leaving
Luis FirmÃn de Carvajal, Conde de la Unión in command of the Spanish army. De la Unión proved unable to stop the French from recovering Bellegarde and Collioure in 1794, and died at the
Battle of the Black Mountain
The Battle of the Black Mountain (also Capmany or Sierra Negra or Del Roure or Montroig) was fought from 17 to 20 November 1794 between the army of the First French Republic and the allied armies of the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of Portu ...
on Spanish soil in November. In early 1795, the
Siege of Roses ended in a French victory.
[Ostermann-Chandler, pp. 409–414] The
Peace of Basel
The Peace of Basel of 1795 consists of three peace treaties involving France during the French Revolution (represented by François de Barthélemy).
*The first was with Prussia (represented by Karl August von Hardenberg) on 5 April;
*The sec ...
ended the war in July 1795. Ricardos' widow became the Countess of Truillas in honor of his victories.
Footnotes
Sources
* Ostermann, Georges. "Pérignon: The Unknown Marshal".
Chandler, David, ed. ''Napoleon's Marshals.'' New York: Macmillan, 1987.
* Smith, Digby. ''The Napoleonic Wars Data Book.'' London: Greenhill, 1998.
External links
''Louis Turreau Sa Defaite au Pla-del-Rey Un Secret Defense'' by Bernard Prats in French''Mort Tragique d'Antonio Ricardos'' by Bernard Prats in French
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ricardos, Antonio
1727 births
1794 deaths
People from Barbastro
Spanish generals
Spanish captain generals
Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars
Spanish commanders of the Napoleonic Wars
Deaths from pneumonia in Spain