Nicolas Xavier de Ricard (July 12, 1726 in Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône – 30 May 1812 in Paris), was a brigadier general of the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are consider ...
.
Professional career
He became an engineer in April 1744 and served in Flanders until 1748 when he became lieutenant. He resumed service in the royal guards of Solas in 1757 and served under François de Chevert until 1762. He was appointed major in the Rothenburg regiment by Richelieu, and he was sent to
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label= Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the t ...
as a lieutenant colonel in December 1764. He served in Fort St. Louis from 1765 to 1768.
He was promoted to Field Marshal on 21 September 1788, and he became commander/Governor of the island of
Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindia ...
in 1793. On 4 February 1794 he proclaimed the Decree for the Abolition of Slavery in the French Antilles. However, the British attacked and gained possession of Saint Lucia on 4 April 1794. De Ricard was forced to capitulate to the English, and became their prisoner. He was allowed to return to
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...
, France on December 21, 1795, and retired on January 27 1804.
See also
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List of colonial governors and administrators of Saint Lucia
This is a list of viceroys in Saint Lucia from the first French settlement in 1650, until the island gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1979. Saint Lucia was colonized by the British and French in the 17th century and was the subject ...
References
{{Authority control
History of Saint Lucia
Republicanism in Saint Lucia
Governors of French Saint Lucia
1726 births
1812 deaths