Miguel Ricardo de Álava y Esquivel (1770-1843)
Command Ratings
Miguel Ricardo de Álava y Esquivel was born at Vitoria-Gasteiz into a noble family with strong naval connections. As a boy he entered military life early, first as a cadet in the Regimiento de Infantería de Sevilla and advancing to subteniente. He then transferred to the Armada, serving on successive postings that placed him in active operations around the western Mediterranean and adjacent theatres. During the long struggle against Revolutionary France he took part in the siege of Toulon, and he also served in Italy in actions not consistently identifiable by name in surviving public summaries. In the same era he also saw service connected with Ceuta. By the mid-1790s he had reached the rank of teniente de fragata.
In 1795 Álava embarked with his uncle, the senior naval officer Ignacio María de Álava, on an expedition intended to range widely overseas. He remained in South America until 1800. On his return voyage towards Spain he was captured at sea by the British and held for a period before being released; he was back in Spain in 1801. In 1802 he was posted to Cádiz, a key naval base for Spain’s Atlantic and Mediterranean fleets, and he rose to teniente de navío. His professional environment in these years placed him in the circle of senior officers and in the administrative and operational routines of the Cádiz station, which would soon be heavily engaged in coalition naval operations.
In 1805 Álava was assigned to the fleet commanded by Admiral Federico Carlos Gravina. He sailed as part of the Franco-Spanish naval effort that included the expedition to the Antilles (Martinique) designed to draw the Royal Navy away from European waters, and he subsequently took part in the combat off Cape Finisterre (the Finisterre action/skirmish) in July. Later that year he fought in the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805, serving with the Spanish fleet. Accounts differ in public summaries as to his exact ship at Trafalgar, associating him either with Gravina’s Príncipe de Asturias or with the Santa Ana, flagship of his uncle Ignacio María de Álava. After the battle he was promoted.
Following Trafalgar, Álava’s career widened beyond purely naval duties. In the political crisis of 1808 he was present at the Assembly of Bayonne and initially accepted the constitutional arrangement under Joseph Bonaparte. After the national uprising and the defeat of General Dupont at Bailén on 19 July 1808, he aligned with the Spanish resistance. He entered into service in connection with Spanish field forces operating alongside Britain, and he became linked to the developing system of liaison between Spanish authorities and the British army in the Peninsula.
Assigned to the Regimiento de Órdenes Militares, Álava served under General Francisco Javier Castaños and the Duque de Alburquerque in campaigns that included combat at Calatayud, the battle of Tudela, and actions at Medellín. These operations placed him in the early, volatile phase of the war in Spain, when Spanish field armies manoeuvred against French corps with uneven success, and when rapid marches, improvised concentrations, and retreat and reorganization were frequent.
At the end of January 1810 Álava was ordered to go to Portugal to communicate with Lieutenant-General Arthur Wellesley, the future Duke of Wellington, conveying Spanish views of the strategic situation. During this mission he established a close working relationship with Wellington and remained attached to British headquarters as a Spanish delegate and liaison officer, subsequently serving as one of Wellington’s aides-de-camp. In this capacity he accompanied the British army through major operational phases and battles, observing and transmitting information between allied commands and participating in staff duties close to the commander-in-chief.
While attached to Wellington’s army, Álava took part in the operations that included the battle of Talavera. He was also present in the 1810 campaign culminating in the battle of Buçaco, an engagement in which Wellington’s army fought Masséna’s forces in Portugal. His service with headquarters and his role in allied liaison contributed to his advancement; Wellington recommended him for promotion, and he rose to brigadier.
As the allied offensives resumed and the strategic balance shifted, Álava was present during the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo in early 1812, a major step in opening the frontier fortresses guarding the approaches between Portugal and Spain. He also took part in the siege of Badajoz and was present during the storming/assault that captured the fortress. These sieges involved sustained engineering and artillery work followed by assaults on breaches under heavy fire, and staff officers and attached liaison personnel at headquarters were continuously engaged in planning, coordination with Portuguese and Spanish elements, and managing communications and intelligence.
In the summer of 1812 Álava was present at the battle of Salamanca, where Wellington’s army won a major field victory that drove French forces from much of central Spain. As the war continued into 1813 he was present at the battle of Vitoria, where the allied victory forced Joseph Bonaparte’s retreat and accelerated the French withdrawal towards the Pyrenees. His proximity to Wellington during these campaigns kept him at the centre of coalition decision-making and in direct observation of the principal engagements that shaped the allied advance.
For his services with the allied armies he received high recognition, including appointment as an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath. In Spanish honors he was associated with the Order of Carlos III and later received a commandery within the Order of Santiago. His standing also rested on continuing official trust in his capacity to represent Spanish interests in allied councils while remaining acceptable to the British commander-in-chief.
After the collapse of French control in Spain and the restoration of Ferdinand VII, Álava’s political position became precarious. He was arrested in Madrid on 8 October 1814 on accusations presented as criminal and political, and remained under confinement until his release on Christmas Eve of the same year. In the midst of these events he was promoted to teniente general shortly before the lifting of his arrest.
In 1815 he entered the diplomatic sphere at a high level. With British support he was appointed as Spanish ambassador to the Netherlands (at The Hague), and he was also named interim ambassador in Paris in April 1815 in circumstances connected with Spanish, British, and allied coordination during the renewed crisis after Napoleon’s return from Elba. His diplomatic status and his relationship with Wellington enabled him to accompany the Allied commander during the campaign in the Low Countries. In June 1815 he was present with Wellington’s staff during the Battle of Waterloo on 18 June 1815, remaining close to headquarters through the day’s fighting. His career thus included participation in both Trafalgar and Waterloo, on opposing sides as Spain’s alliances shifted.
Álava continued after these wars as a soldier-statesman and diplomat, serving as ambassador to the Netherlands for several years and later holding high political office in Spain, including leadership responsibilities in the Cortes and later diplomatic appointments in London and Paris. He died in 1843 at Barèges in France.
Sources
At Trafalger, he served on Wellington's staff @ Salamanca, Orthez (wounded) & Waterloo. (1771 – 1843)
Military Career
- 1787 Teniente
- 1810 Brigadier
- 1814 Teniente general