Pedro Caro, 3rd Marquis of la Romana
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Pedro Caro y Sureda, 3rd Marquis of La Romana (2 October 1761 – 23 January 1811) was a Spanish
general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...
of the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
.


Biography

Born at Palma de Mallorca to a family of Balearic
nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...
, Romana was educated in
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and, upon the death of his father, was awarded a commission in the Spanish Royal Navy by
King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...
. He studied at the
University of Salamanca The University of Salamanca ( es, Universidad de Salamanca) is a Spanish higher education institution, located in the city of Salamanca, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It was founded in 1218 by King Alfonso IX. It is t ...
and entered the '' Seminario de Nobles'' in
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
. Like many Spanish officers of the
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, Romana served in the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
in his youth. In 1783, he participated in the reconquest of
Menorca 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 capi ...
from the
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. In the final months of the war, he was assigned to the blockade of
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. Romana retired from the military after the war and began travelling
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. Evidence suggests he was actually dispatched on missions of
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or
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, for which his knowledge of foreign languages would have been a valuable asset. In 1793, Romana entered the army as a cavalry
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 o ...
and fought against
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
in the
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. Initially he served under his uncle, General
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, where he was promoted after distinguishing himself as a competent commander. Although the war ended poorly for Spain under French occupation, he ended the war as a ''teniente-general''. He was made Captain General of Catalonia in 1802 and Chief of the Engineering Corps in 1805. King Charles IV, bullied and pressured by
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
, agreed in 1807 to provide a veteran infantry
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to bolster the
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in
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. Romana was made commander of this " Division of the North" and spent 1807 and 1808 performing garrison duties in
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and later
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under
Marshal Bernadotte sv, Karl Johan Baptist Julius , spouse = , issue = Oscar I of Sweden , house = Bernadotte , father = Henri Bernadotte , mother = Jeanne de Saint-Jean , birth_date = , birth_place = Pau, ...
. When the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
broke out, La Romana made plans with the British to repatriate his men to Spain. The success of the evacuation of the La Romana Division was chiefly credited to his subterfuge and resourcefulness. At least 9,000 men of the 15,000-strong division were immediately able to board British ships on 27 August and escape to Spain. Their defection reduced Bernadotte's "Hanseatic Army" to a string of glorified coastal garrisons, severely sapping Napoleon's left (north) wing in the contest with Austria for mastery over central Europe in 1809. Romana arrived at Santander on the
Cantabria Cantabria (, also , , Cantabrian: ) is an autonomous community in northern Spain with Santander as its capital city. It is called a ''comunidad histórica'', a historic community, in its current Statute of Autonomy. It is bordered on the east ...
n front and received command of the Army of Galicia on 11 November. Fate was crueler to him than he deserved, as this army, under General Blake, was destroyed in
battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
that same day. On 26 November, La Romana assumed effective command of what remained of the army – 6,000 men all told. With this force, he fought some rearguard actions for General Moore's retreat westwards to Corunna. Using his limited means, Romana conducted small scale attacks against the French in 1809. These met with success and his men were able to distract the French and overwhelm isolated garrisons such as Villafranca. Following the French defeat at Puente San Payo on 6 June,
Marshal Soult Marshal General Jean-de-Dieu Soult, 1st Duke of Dalmatia, (; 29 March 1769 – 26 November 1851) was a French general and statesman, named Marshal of the Empire in 1804 and often called Marshal Soult. Soult was one of only six officers in Fren ...
abandoned his attempts to reestablish French rule in Galicia. When Soult moved against the British on the
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frontier, Romana drove the French from
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as well. Romana was appointed to the Central Junta on 29 August and served until 1810. He then returned to military operations under
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but died suddenly on 23 January 1811 while preparing the relief of
Badajoz Badajoz (; formerly written ''Badajos'' in English) is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is situated close to the Portuguese border, on the left bank of the river Guadiana. The populatio ...
. With Castaños, Romana was the Spanish general most trusted and respected by Wellington. At news of his death, Wellington wrote, "his loss is the greatest which the cause could sustain."Longford, p.309 He is credited as being the force behind the construction of the castle at Bendinat.


See also

* Marquis of La Romana


Notes


References

* * Longford, Elizabeth. ''Wellington: The Years of The Sword''. New York: Harper and Row Publishers, 1969.


External links

* :es:Batalla de los Arapiles, whereby a full description is given in this card related to materials for such battle, describing therefore the contents of the following Biography on General Pedro Caro y Sureda: Autor: Martínez Guitian, Luis -Ilustrador: - Editorial: Aldus SA Artes Gráficas. (1944), Santander, 165 pages.
A biography of the Marquis of La Romana by Jose Manuel Rodriguez
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caro y Sureda, Pedro 1761 births 1811 deaths People from Palma de Mallorca Spanish captain generals Spanish generals Spanish commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Marquesses of Romana University of Salamanca alumni Captains General of Catalonia