Wenceslao Benitez Inglott
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Wenceslao Benitez Inglott OAX (30 April 1879 – 22 December 1954) was a distinguished Spanish navy officer, scientist, and engineer.


Biography

He was born in
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Las Palmas (, ; ), officially Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is a Spanish city and capital of Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital (jointly with Santa Cruz de Tenerife), the most populous city in the auton ...
on 30 April 1879, son of the lawyer Eduardo Benítez González and of Maria del Pino Inglott Navarro. Benitez Inglott's early years were spent in the prestigious Colegio de San Agustín in Las Palmas, where he demonstrated an early interest in mathematics and astrophysics. When he was fourteen years of age he passed the entrance exams to enrol in the
Spanish Navy The Spanish Navy or officially, the Armada, is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces and one of the oldest active naval forces in the world. The Spanish Navy was responsible for a number of major historic achievements in navigation, ...
with the highest marks. He was commissioned into several navy ships after training. Between 1922-1925 Benitez Inglott commanded '' Dédalo'', the first Spanish seaplane carrier, in the context of the
Rif War The Rif War () was an armed conflict fought from 1921 to 1926 between Spain (joined by History of France, France in 1924) and the Berbers, Berber tribes of the mountainous Rif region of northern Morocco. Led by Abd el-Krim, the Riffians at ...
. The ship sailed in 1924 towards
Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
to collect twelve ''Supermarine Sea Eagles''
flying boat A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fusela ...
s purchased by the Spanish Navy to provide air support to the hard-pressed Spanish forces on the ground. ''Dédalo'' was to play a fundamental role in supporting the
Alhucemas landing The Alhucemas landing ( es, Desembarco de Alhucemas; also known as Al Hoceima landing) was a landing operation which took place on 8 September 1925 at Alhucemas by the Spanish Army and Navy and, in lesser numbers, an allied French naval and ae ...
in September 1925; the first time in history that an amphibious landing was assisted by naval aviation. On 19 October 1929 a Royal Order appointed Benítez Inglott director of the Spanish Naval Military Academy, position he would retain until immediately after the proclamation of the
Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII, and was di ...
in 1931. As the Academy's director Benítez Inglott was also appointed private tutor to the Infante Juan of Spain, son and heir to
King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
Alfonso XIII of Spain Alfonso XIII (17 May 1886 – 28 February 1941), also known as El Africano or the African, was King of Spain from 17 May 1886 to 14 April 1931, when the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed. He was a monarch from birth as his father, Alf ...
, who was training there. On 14 April, following the Republic's proclamation, Benítez Inglott personally ensured that Crown Prince Juan safely joined the rest of his family in exile. In 1940, upon Benítez Inglott's retirement, the
Minister of the Navy Minister of the Navy may refer to: * Minister of the Navy (France) * Minister of the Navy (Italy) The Italian Minister of the Navy ( it, Ministri della Marina del Regno) was a member in the Council Ministers until 1947, when the ministry merged ...
recommended him to become honorary Counter Admiral of the Spanish Navy for his scientific and military achievements. He was also director (1940–1954) of the
Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada The Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada (Royal Institute and Observatory of the Spanish Navy) is the scientific institute and astronomical observatory of the Spanish Navy (''Armada''), located in San Fernando in the Province of Cádiz, ...
, in San Fernando, where he had previously been deputy director. He taught in the Escuela de Guardias Marinas, de la Aplicación and of the Hydrographic Engineers. In April 1942 he was elected member of the
Spanish Royal Academy of Sciences The Spanish Royal Academy of Sciences ( Spanish: ''Real Academia de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales'') is an academic institution and learned society that was founded in Madrid in 1847. It is dedicated to the study and research of mathem ...
with medal number 5. His opening speech is entitled ''El Universo Sideral.'' Benítez Inglott passed away on 22 December 1955, age 75, in San Fernando (Cádiz).


Awards and honours

Cross (White Decoration, 1st class) of Naval Merit (1911) Cross (Red Decoration, 1st class) of Military Merit (1912) Cross (Red Decoration, 1st class) of Naval Merit (1913) Cross (White Decoration, 1st class) of Naval Merit (1919) Cross (White Decoration, 2nd class) of Naval Merit (1926) Grand Cross (White Decoration) of Naval Merit (1934) Grand Cross of the
Royal and Military Order of Saint Hermenegild The Royal and Military Order of Saint Hermenegild ( es, Real y Militar Orden de San Hermenegildo) is both a general military honor and a legion created by Ferdinand VII of Spain on 28 November 1814. The Royal and Military Order of Saint Hermene ...
(1943) Grand Cross of the
Civil Order of Alfonso X, the Wise The Civil Order of Alfonso X the Wise ( es, Orden Civil de Alfonso X el Sabio) is a Spanish civil order established in 1939, recognising activities in the fields of education, science, culture, higher education and research. The order was create ...
(1955, posthumously) As a token of royal appreciation on 23 January 1931 King Alfonso XIII appointed Benítez Inglott a '' Gentilhombre de Cámara con Ejercicio'' (Gentleman of the Bedchamber), taking oath of loyalty to the King at the
Royal Palace of Madrid The Royal Palace of Madrid ( es, Palacio Real de Madrid) is the official residence of the Spanish royal family at the city of Madrid, although now used only for state ceremonies. The palace has of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms. It is the ...
on 9 April 1931. It has been argued he was the last ''Gentilhombre'' of the
Spanish Monarchy , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...
since this palatial honorary class was suppressed after the Second Spanish Republic was declared, being never re-created following the Restoration of the Spanish Monarchy in 1975. An institute of secondary education in San Fernando is named after him and so are three streets: in his hometown, in San Fernando, and in
Arinaga Arinaga (written: 有永 or 有栄) is both a Japanese surname and a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese handball player *, Japanese samurai {{given name, type=both Japanese-la ...
(
Gran Canaria Gran Canaria (, ; ), also Grand Canary Island, is the third-largest and second-most-populous island of the Canary Islands, an archipelago off the Atlantic coast of Northwest Africa which is part of Spain. the island had a population of that co ...
).


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Benitez Inglott, Wenceslao 1879 births 1954 deaths Hydrographers Spanish engineers Spanish naval officers Spanish Navy Spanish scientists