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Federico Gravina
Federico Gravina | |
|---|---|
 Anonymous portrait of Federico Gravina (Naval Museum of Madrid). | |
| Born | August 12, 1756 |
| Died | May 9, 1806 (aged 49) |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance | Spain |
Branch | Royal Spanish Navy |
Rank | Captain General of the Royal Spanish Navy |
| Commands | San Hermenegildo Argonauta Príncipe de Asturias |
Conflicts | Battle of Trafalgar |
Federico Carlos Gravina y Nápoli (Palermo, August 12, 1756 – Cádiz, May 9, 1806) was a Sicilian seaman and military officer and the 12th Captain General of the Royal Spanish Navy. His brother, Pietro Gravina, was Apostolic nuncio in Spain between 1803 and 1816.
Famous for his participation in the Battle of Trafalgar, he was one of Spain's most distinguished seamen, always effective in both his military and his diplomatic posts:
Gravina is all genius and decisiveness in combat. Had Villeneuve possessed those qualities, the battle of Finisterre would have been a complete victory.
— Napoleon Bonaparte, August 11, 1805.
Family
The Gravinas belonged to the Sicilian nobility as descendants of the Normans who conquered the island.[1] Federico's ancestors had thus proven their Norman origin on various occasions.[2] Federico was born in Palermo, the son of Juan Gravina y Moncada, Prince of Montevago, Duke of San Miguel, Grandee of Spain of the first class, and Doña Leonor Nápoli y Monteaperto, daughter of the Prince of Resuttano, likewise a Grandee of Spain.
Biography
An uncle of Federico, at the time Ambassador of Naples in Madrid, requested and obtained for his nephew entry into the Royal Spanish Navy. On December 18, 1775, he enlisted as a midshipman after a rigorous examination from which he emerged with great honor, the fruit of the outstanding education he had received at the Collegio Clementino in Rome. He embarked for the first time on the ship of the line San José.
Within a few months he was promoted to frigate ensign and was in Brazil aboard the frigate Santa Clara. In the course of this campaign, he flawlessly carried out his first independent mission by securing the surrender of the Castle of Ascensión, located on an islet near Santa Catalina.
In 1777, he miraculously survived when his ship ran aground in the estuary of the Río de la Plata, an accident in which most of the crew died.
In 1778, back in Spain, he was promoted to ship-of-the-line ensign and embarked on xebecs hunting Algerian pirates. Promoted again to frigate lieutenant, he obtained his first command of a ship: the xebec San Luis, with which he took part in the blockade of Gibraltar. His merits soon earned him the stripes of ship-of-the-line lieutenant and command of the naval station of the Bay of Algeciras. On April 4, 1781, in company with the xebec San Antonio, he captured the British war corvette HMS St Fermin.[3]
He took part in the expedition against Menorca (under English control), distinguishing himself in the siege of Fort San Felipe. After this and further actions in the siege of Gibraltar, his dazzling career of promotions continued until he finally attained the rank of ship-of-the-line captain.
In 1785 he obtained command of the fleet that fought off the Algerian coast against that country's fleet. He distinguished himself by his tireless activity, succeeding in repelling the Algerian forces.
In 1788 he carried the Ambassador Jussuf Efendi to Constantinople. There he began astronomical observations and wrote a report, beginning his path as a scholar. After this he earned promotion to brigadier. Around this time the death of the Monarch Charles III of Spain took place, and Gravina's frigate Paz was the first to carry the news to the overseas dominions, making the voyage Cádiz–Cartagena de Indias–Havana–Cádiz in less than three months.
In 1790 he received for the first time the command of a ship of the line (the largest class of warship of the era), the Paula. With it he took part in the evacuation of Oran, protecting the withdrawal of the army that was abandoning those African possessions and embarking for Cartagena.
After being promoted to squadron commander, he traveled to England (now an ally of Spain) with the aim of expanding his knowledge of seamanship and naval tactics. He was received with the highest honors. On his return he obtained command of four ships of the line, with which he passed into the Mediterranean and took an active and prominent part in the war against Revolutionary France. His flagship was the San Hermenegildo, of 112 guns.
In 1796, after he was promoted to lieutenant general, Spain signed the Treaty of San Ildefonso with France, entering into war against Great Britain. He fought as second-in-command of the squadron under the orders of Don José de Mazarredo.
After the signing of the peace he received the post of Ambassador of Spain in Paris. His diplomatic post carried a condition requested by himself: in the event of war, he would return to naval and military activity.
Napoleonic Wars
Once hostilities with Great Britain had opened, Gravina moved to Cádiz and took command of the Spanish war fleet. He hoisted his flag on the ship of the line Argonauta (80 guns) on February 15, 1805.
Napoleon Bonaparte intended to invade Great Britain. Following the orders of Godoy's government, Gravina placed himself under the command of the French Admiral Villeneuve, who led the Franco-Spanish squadron to Caribbean waters in order to mislead the English fleet. The objective was to draw most of the English fleet away from the English Channel so as to allow the crossing of the 180,000 men whom Napoleon had waiting at Texel and Boulogne to attack England.
The deception was partly effective, since the English squadron commanded by Nelson set out in search of the combined squadron without managing to intercept it. However, on its return the Franco-Spanish fleet fought the Battle of Cape Finisterre, losing the Spanish ships of the line Firme and San Rafael. After this it took refuge in Cádiz by order of Villeneuve, contradicting Napoleon's original plan. The 180,000 French soldiers never embarked and were moved into the interior of Europe, many of them taking part in the Battle of Austerlitz.
Battle of Trafalgar
In Cádiz, Federico Gravina and other senior Spanish commanders, such as Cosme de Churruca (in command of the ship of the line San Juan Nepomuceno) or General Cisneros (in command of the enormous Santísima Trinidad), held heated discussions with the French commanders. The latter favored leaving Cádiz, while the Spaniards recommended waiting, since the wind was unfavorable and a storm was approaching the area. Finally the fleet sailed from Cádiz on October 20, 1805, and the following day the Battle of Trafalgar took place, in which they were defeated by the English squadron.
Federico Gravina was wounded and lost an arm, and that wound would end up killing him months later. Despite this, he managed to reach Cádiz with his ship Príncipe de Asturias.
Last months of his life
Federico Gravina attained the highest military dignity when he was promoted to Captain General of the Navy. But his wounds worsened and he finally died on May 9, 1806, at 49 years of age. His remains lie in the Pantheon of Illustrious Sailors in San Fernando (Cádiz).
See also
Bibliography
- Fernández Duro, Cesareo. Historia de la Armada Española desde la unión de los reinos de Castilla y de Aragón (in español). Vol. Tomos V, VI, VII y VIII.
- Vela, Rubén (2017). Presas de la Armada Española 1779-1828: listado de buques apresados e incorporados a la Real Armada por apresamiento (in español).
References
- ↑ He was a direct descendant of Giovanna Ventimiglia Pignatelli (d. Palermo, March 16, 1734), daughter of Francesco Roderico IV de Ventimiglia y Nortman de Aragón, 12th Marquis of Irache, 26th Count of Geraci, Prince of Castelbuono, a direct descendant of the Norman dynasties (House of Hauteville) that conquered Sicily.
- ↑ Vincenzo Palizzolo Gravina, Un diploma di Re Martino e la famiglia Gravina della regia stirpe normanna, editore R. Starrabba, Palermo, 1872
- ↑ Vela, Presas... p. 37
External links
- Navarro Sotillos, Álvaro y Pablo (2020). "Federico Gravina, el olvido de un marino ilustrado y audaz". Ensayo histórico (in español). Desperta Ferro.
- Benítez Martín, Manuel (2018). "Federico Carlos Gravina y Napoli". Diccionario Biográfico Español (in español). Real Academia de la Historia.
- Text adapted with the author's permission, who allowed its reproduction on Wikipedia under the GFDL license: Foro de Historia Naval de España y Países de habla española (registration required).
