Bernardo Lecocq (10 Feb 1734 – 7 Dec 1820) was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

military engineer. He was born in

La Coruña LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

to a

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

father and an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

mother. He went to the

Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata ( es, Virreinato del Río de la Plata or es, Virreinato de las Provincias del Río de la Plata) meaning "River of the Silver", also called "Viceroyalty of the River Plate" in some scholarly writings, in ...

in 1770 settling in the Banda Oriental del Uruguay in 1773. He was married to María del Pilar de Pérez Valdéz, native of Buenos Aires and in 1795 his son Manuel Francisco Bernardo Lecocq was born, who became a politician and a notable Uruguayan businessman. In 1799 he manumitted Maria Basilia Malabesone and her children who previously he had held in slavery. Bernardo Lecocq played an important role in the operations against the British invasion of

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

, including the

Battle of Cardal The Battle of Cardal (also known as Battle of Cordón), on 20 January 1807, was the main conflict between the Spanish defense forces of Montevideo, Uruguay, and British troops during the siege of Montevideo during the second British invasion ...

, on 20 January 1807. He died in Montevideo in 1820.

Career

He joined the infantry in 1753. In 1776 he was responsible for building the fortifications of

, and the forts of San Miguel (1772) and Santa Tecla (1774). He was promoted to

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in 1792 and Brigadier in 1802.Bernardo LECOCQ (abril de 1773)
accessed 10 March 2012 He led the Spanish troops at the

, on 20 January 1807.

References

* ''Los ingenieros militares del período colonial Siglos XVII y XVIII'' Montevideo: Departamento de Estudios Históricos del Estado Mayor del Ejército 1734 births 1820 deaths Spanish military engineers Expatriates in pre-independence Uruguay {{uruguay-hist-stub