Miguel Ricardo de Álava y Esquivel

Don Miguel Ricardo de Álava y Esquivel
Detail of a portrait of Miguel Ricardo de Álava by William Salter
Born	7 July 1770 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, Spain
Died	14 July 1843(1843-07-14) (aged 73) Barèges, France
Allegiance	Spain
Service/branch	Navy/Army
Years of service	1785-1815
Rank	Brigadier General
Battles/wars	War of the Third Coalition * Battle of Trafalgar Peninsular War *Battle of Bussaco *Battle of Vitoria Hundred Days *Battle of Waterloo
Relations	Ignacio Maria de Alava y Saenz de Navarrete (uncle)
Other work	Politician/Diplomat

Don Miguel Ricardo de Álava y Esquivel Order of Santiago, Order of Charles III, KCB, MWO (7 July 1770 – 14 July 1843) was a Spanish General and statesman. He was born in the Basque Country of Spain, at Vitoria-Gasteiz, in 1770. Álava holds the distinction of having been present at both Trafalgar and Waterloo, fighting against the British on the former and with them on the latter.^[1] Alava served as a naval aide-de-camp during the time of Spain's alliance with France but switched sides following Napoleon's invasion of his homeland in 1808.^[2] Later he joined the headquarters of Wellington's Peninsular Army as a military attaché, eventually becoming one of the Duke's finest and closest companions. He played a crucial role in the Battle of Vitoria and was present at the Battle of Bussaco, where he was made Brigadier. Having attached himself to Wellington's staff, Álava stuck close to the Duke during the Battle of Waterloo.^[3] Yet, despite being in the thick of the action, both Wellington and Alava survived the 10 hours' slaughter without so much as a scratch, the Duke declaring to his friend: 'The hand of Almighty God has been upon me this day.'^[4]

War of the Third Coalition

Álava served first in the Navy, and had risen to be captain of a frigate when he exchanged into the army, receiving corresponding rank. He was present as a Marine at the Battle of Trafalgar on board the flagship of his uncle Admiral Ignacio Álava.

Peninsular War

In politics he followed a very devious course. At the assembly of Bayonne in 1808, he was one of the most prominent of those who accepted the new constitution from Joseph Bonaparte as King of Spain. After the national rising against French aggression, and the defeat of General Dupont at Bailen in 1808, Álava joined the national independence party, who were fighting in alliance with the English. At the end of January 1810 he was ordered to move to Portugal in order to communicate Wellington the difficult military situation in that they were against the French. During this stay a deep friendship between Wellington and Alava was created, to the point that the Duke took him to remain like delegate of the Spanish Meetings in the British units, participating together in different crucial operations,the Battle of Talavera and the one of Bussaco, thanks to which he ascended to Brigadier by express recommendation of Wellington. Arthur Wellesley named Alava to command the troops against the city of Ciudad Rodrigo, by then in possession of the French, gaining the victory little later, in January 1812, which supposed its ascent to Field marshal by order of the 31 of January of the same year.

Hundred Days

Before the close of the Peninsular War, he had risen to the rank of Brigadier-General. On the restoration of Ferdinand, Álava was cast into prison, but the influence of his uncle Ethenard, the Inquisitor, and of Wellington secured his speedy release. He soon contrived to gain the favor of the King, who appointed him ambassador to The Hague in 1815. It was therefore his remarkable fortune to be present at the Battle of Waterloo with Wellington's staff. He is supposed to have been the only man who was present at both Waterloo and Trafalgar. Four years later, he was recalled, owing, it is said, to the marked kindness he had shown to his banished fellow-countrymen.

Politician and diplomat

Equestrian statue of the General in the Monument to the Battle of Vitoria (1813), Vitoria, Spain.

On the breaking out of the revolution of 1820, he was chosen by the province of Álava to represent it in the Cortes, where he became conspicuous in the party of the Exaltados, and in 1822 was made President. In the latter year, he fought with the militia under Francisco Ballesteros and Pablo Morillo to maintain the authority of the Cortes against the rebels. When the French invested Cádiz, Álava was commissioned by the Cortes to treat with the Duc d'Angoulême, and the negotiations resulted in the restoration of Ferdinand, who pledged himself to a liberal policy. No sooner had he regained power, however, than he ceased to hold himself bound by his promises, and Álava found it necessary to retire first to Gibraltar and then to England. There, he was given a house on the Duke of Wellington's Hampshire estate Stratfield Saye and introduced to his bank Coutts: "This is my friend, and as long as I have any money with your house, let him have it to any amount he thinks proper to draw for."

On the death of Ferdinand, he returned to Spain, and espousing the cause of Maria Christina against Don Carlos was appointed ambassador to London in 1834, and to Paris in 1835. Proposed as Prime Minister in September 1835, he rejected his nomination. After the insurrection of La Granja, he refused to sign the constitution of 1837, declaring himself tired of taking new oaths, and was consequently obliged to retire to France, where he died at Barèges in 1843.

Frequent and honorable mention of Álava is made in Napier's History of the Peninsular War, and his name is often met both in lives of the Duke of Wellington and in his correspondence.

Quotation

• Aversion to certain English words

References

1. ^ Summerville p.3
2. ^ Summerville p.4
3. ^ Summerville p.4
4. ^ Summerville p.5

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). "Miguel Ricardo de Alava". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Don_Miguel_Ricardo_de_Alava. 
• Christopher Summerville, Who was Who at Waterloo: A Biography of the Battle (2007). ISBN 0582784050

Political offices
Preceded by The Count of Toreno	Prime Minister of Spain 14 September 1835-4 October 1835	Succeeded by Juan Álvarez Mendizábal
	Minister of State 14 September 1835-4 October 1835

Persondata
Name	Álava y Esquivel, Miguel Ricardo, Marquess de Álava
Alternative names	General Álava
Short description	Spanish general
Date of birth	7 July 1770
Place of birth	Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, Spain
Date of death	14 July 1843
Place of death	Barèges, France