Albert Borgard (Danish: ''Albrecht Borgaard'' or ''Borregaard''; 10 November 1659 – 7 February 1751) was a Danish
artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
and
engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...
officer.
Early career
Albert Borgard was born in
Holbæk,
Jutland
Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...
, on 10 November 1659 of unknown parents. He is generally referred to as Albert Borgard in English and Albrecht Borgaard or Borregaard in Danish.
He joined the
Danish army
The Royal Danish Army ( da, Hæren, fo, Herurin, kl, Sakkutuut) is the land-based branch of the Danish Defence, together with the Danish Home Guard. For the last decade, the Royal Danish Army has undergone a massive transformation of structur ...
in 1675, during
the war between Sweden and Denmark, and was made a
gunner in 1676. He served throughout the war, and at its close, in 1679, held the rank of
fireworker, and was ordered to make a survey of the island of
Zealand
Zealand ( da, Sjælland ) at 7,031 km2 is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020.
It is the 1 ...
. "In 1680," he wrote, "I, with another fireworker, was ordered to Berlin, in exchange of two
Brandenburg
Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...
her fireworkers, sent to Denmark to learn the difference of each nation's works, relating to all sorts of warlike and pleasant fireworks". He served at the
relief of Vienna, at the battle of Gran, Hungary (1685), and the
siege of Buda. In 1688 he left the Danish service, on account of "some injustice done him in his promotion", and went to
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
as a volunteer; but he was offered a commission in the
Prussian Guards, which he accepted. In the
Prussian army he served upon the Rhine, and at the
siege of Bonn. In 1692 he left the Prussian army, with a commission to raise a regiment for
the emperor; but failing in this design, he went in April to the camp of
Louis XIV
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of Ver ...
before Namur. He distinguished himself in
the attack on the fortress; and the French king ordered him 1,000 crowns, and offered him a
captain's commission. But Borgard, a sturdy Protestant, refused the tempting offer, and joined Colonel Gore, whose acquaintance he had made at Bonn, as a volunteer.
Family
Borgard first married in 1703 Barbara Bradshaw (d. 1714); they had several children including George (baptised 1704) and Albert (baptised 30 May 1706 at
St Dunstan, Stepney).
His second wife was Catherine
athrine/Catharine) daughter of Georg Mikkelsen (d. 1665), merchant and head of the Danish church in London. Their children included Thomas Michael (bap. 1717), Catharine (bap. 17 September 1717), Mary (bap. 1724), Katharine Ambrosia (bap. 30 December 1727), Frederick (bap. 1728) and Elizabeth (bap. 1730).
Mary Borgard married
James Pattison, Royal Artillery officer. They had one son, Nathaniel, who died as an infant.
Albert Borgard died at Woolwich, where he was living, on 7 February 1751 and was buried in the Danish church in Marine
ellcloseSquare, near the Tower of London.
British service
Though but thirty-three years of age when he joined the
English army, he had been present at eleven battles and twelve sieges, and was one of the most experienced artillery and engineer officers in the world. Gore introduced him to
William III, who saw his ability, and made him a
firemaster in the English service in 1693, and captain and adjutant of the artillery in Flanders in 1695. He was present at the battles of
Steenkirk and
Landen
Landen () is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the city of Landen proper and the villages of Attenhoven, Eliksem, Ezemaal, Laar, Neerlanden, Neerwinden, Overwinden, Rumsdorp, Wa ...
and the sieges of
Huy
Huy ( or ; nl, Hoei, ; wa, Hu) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. Huy lies along the river Meuse, at the mouth of the small river Hoyoux. It is in the ''sillon industriel'', the former industrial ...
and
Namur. When at the
peace of 1697 all the foreign artillerymen in English pay were dismissed, he, with only one other officer named Schlunt, was taken to England, and in 1698 made an engineer by William III's special command. In 1702 he helped to take
Forts Ste.-Catherine, Matagorda, and Durand. On his return to England he married Barbara Bradshaw, by whom he had several children. After serving in Flanders he was gazetted
lieutenant-colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...
of artillery, and sent to command the artillery in Spain and Portugal in the army of
Lord Galway. He took
Valencia de Alcántara
Valencia de Alcántara (Population: 6178) is a municipality located in the province of Cáceres, in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is near the Portuguese border ( District of Portalegre), separated from it by the Sever.
His ...
,
Ciudad Rodrigo
Ciudad Rodrigo () is a small cathedral city in the province of Salamanca, in western Spain, with a population in 2016 of 12,896. It is also the seat of a judicial district.
The site of Ciudad Rodrigo, perched atop a rocky rise on the right ban ...
, and
Alcántara, and made Galway's advance into Spain justifiable from a purely military point of view. In 1708 he superintended the reduction of the castle of San Felipe in
Minorca
Menorca or Minorca (from la, Insula Minor, , smaller island, later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca. Its capita ...
. He was present with
Stanhope at the battles of
Almanza
Almanza () is a municipality located in the province of León, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2009 census (INE), the municipality has a population of 609 inhabitants.
Villages
*Almanza
* Cabrera de Almanza
* Calaveras de Abajo
* C ...
,
Almanara,
Saragossa
Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributar ...
, where he was wounded in four places, and at
Villa Viciosa, where he was wounded, left for dead, and taken prisoner. On being exchanged he returned to England, and was appointed
chief firemaster on 9 August 1712. In 1713 he made use of some of his old Berlin lessons in "pleasant fireworks", and, to quote his own words, "made pleasure fireworks which were burnt on the River Thames in the month of August over against Whitehall on the Thanksgiving-day for the peace made at Utrecht". In
1715
Events
For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire i ...
he commanded the train of artillery sent to
the Duke of Argyll in Scotland, in 1718 he was made assistant-
surveyor of ordnance, and in 1719 commanded the artillery in
the expedition to Vigo. This was Colonel Borgard's last piece of active service; but his greatest service of all was the formation of the
Regiment of Royal Artillery.
Royal Artillery
In his own account of his services Borgard says: "In 1722 his late Majesty was graciously pleased to renew my old commission as colonel, and to give me the command of the regiment of artillery, established for his service, consisting of four companies." His honourable behaviour as
colonel-commandant is noted in a letter of his nephew,
Major-General Albert Borgard Michelsen: "He was strictly honest, and declared often, and shortly before he died, that he could safely affirm it upon oath that he had never made 6 pence out of his regiment above what the king allowed, and gave up the cloathing of the regiment to the
Board of Ordnance, that he might not be suspected to have any profit of it... He was in great favour with
Prince George of Denmark, and with King
George the 1st and
2nd
A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI).
Second, Seconds or 2nd may also refer to:
Mathematics
* 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'')
* Second of arc, an angular measurement unit, ...
" (Olsen). Borgard was promoted
major-general
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
in 1735, and
lieutenant-general in 1739. When he died at
Woolwich
Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...
, on 7 February 1751, at the great age of ninety-two, he left to his successor,
General Belford, one of the finest corps of artillery in the world.
Notes
References
, which cites:
* O. N. von Olsen, ''Generallieutenant Albert Borgaards Levnet og Bedrifter'' (Copenhagen, 1839)
* H. W. L. Hine, "An account of the battels, sieges, &c wherein Lieut-General Albert Borgard hath served. With remarks", ''Minutes of the Proceedings of the Royal Artillery Institution'', 13 (1885), 129–58
* ''
Gentleman's Magazine
''The Gentleman's Magazine'' was a monthly magazine founded in London, England, by Edward Cave in January 1731. It ran uninterrupted for almost 200 years, until 1922. It was the first to use the term '' magazine'' (from the French ''magazine' ...
'', 1st ser., 19 (1749), 202
External links
* Elizabeth Baigent, "Borgard, Albert (1659–1751)" in the ''
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
''.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Borgard, Albert
1659 births
1751 deaths
Danish military engineers
18th-century Danish military personnel
Prussian Army personnel
British Army lieutenant generals
Danish generals
People of the Great Turkish War
German military personnel of the Nine Years' War
British military personnel of the Nine Years' War
British Army personnel of the War of the Spanish Succession
People of the Jacobite rising of 1715
Royal Artillery officers
People from Holbæk Municipality
British military personnel of the War of the Quadruple Alliance
Danish emigrants to England