Carlos Frederico Lecor (October 6, 1764 – August 2, 1836) was a Portuguese-born Brazilian general and politician. He was the first Baron of Laguna, in Portugal, and later ascended to Viscount of Laguna, in Brazil. He was most notably the only non-British General to have commanded one of the Anglo-Portuguese divisions of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...

's Peninsular Army (the seventh, in late 1813), as well as having commanded the Portuguese forces who invaded the Banda Oriental del Uruguay (Eastern Bank of Uruguay) in 1816. His last name is sometimes written as Lecór or Le Cor. The latter is very common in English sources of the 19th century. Most Spanish sources give him as Carlos Federico Lecor.

Early life and military career (1764–1807)

Son of Louis Pierre Lecor, a French émigré, and Quitéria Maria Krusse, Carlos Frederico Lecor was born in the Parish of Santos-o-Velho, in Lisbon. He had French ancestry by his father, and German, Dutch and Spanish ancestry by his mother. He was born into merchant families, and, as the older son of five, was destined to pursue a commercial career. Instead, having moved to Faro in the decade of 1770, he would eventually enlist in the Portuguese Army, as a ''Pé de Castelo'' (Castle Guard) in 1793, as a gunner, at the unusual age of 29. Having been placed at the Fortress of Santo António da Barra, in

Tavira Tavira () is a Portuguese town and municipality, capital of the ''Costa do Acantilado'', situated in the east of the Algarve on the south coast of Portugal. It is east of Faro and west of Huelva across the river Guadiana into Spain. The Gilã ...

, he rose to the rank of Sargeant. He was then made an adjutant to the military commander of

Portimão Portimão () is a city and a municipality in the district of Faro, in the Algarve region of southern Portugal. The population in 2011 was 55,614, in an area of 182.06 km2. It was formerly known as Vila Nova de Portimão (). In 1924, it was ...

, presumably at officer level. In 1794, he became first lieutenant in the

Artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during si ...

Regiment of

Algarve The Algarve (, , ; from ) is the southernmost NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities ( ''concelhos'' or ''municípios'' in Portuguese). The region has it ...

, as second in command to the ninth company of gunners. In 1795 and 1796, he was part of the artillery complement of the ''Nau'' Príncipe da Beira, the flagship of a fleet escorting commercial ships to

Salvador Salvador, meaning " salvation" (or "saviour") in Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese may refer to: * Salvador (name) Arts, entertainment, and media Music *Salvador (band), a Christian band that plays both English and Spanish music ** ''Salvador'' ( ...

, in Brazil. Upon returning to Lisbon, he was promoted to Captain in the Light Troops Legion, an experimental unit of the Portuguese Army, eventually becoming the aide-de-camp to General Marquis of Alorna. In this capacity he was promoted to Major (1802) and Lieutenant-Colonel (1805).

Peninsular War (1807–1814)

On the occasion of the first French Invasion of Portugal, in November 1807, Carlos Frederico Lecor is credited with having spotted the invading army, commanded by Junot, north of Abrantes, and having personally informed the Prince-Regent, future King John VI. As Lecor didn't want to serve in the '' Légion Portugaise'', formed out of the remnants of the dismantled Portuguese Army to serve

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

, he fled to

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to ...

, England, hoping to embark to Brazil, but on hearing the news of the Portuguese uprisings of June 1808, he participated in the creation of the

Loyal Lusitanian Legion The Loyal Lusitanian Legion (LLL) was a foreign volunteer corps of the British Army, organized with Portuguese émigrés in England, that fought in the Peninsular War. The LLL was created by the initiative of Portuguese Army Colonels José Maria ...

, a military unit created by the Portuguese exiles in England. He then returned to Portugal, with Colonel Robert Wilson. Despite being originally made responsible for the recruitment of a second battalion of the Legion, he was made colonel of the 23rd Infantry Regiment, in Almeida, in December 1808. Between 1809 and 1813, Lecor acted as commander of several units in the Portuguese Army, mainly

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. ...

-level, and as military commander of the Beira Baixa region, based in Castelo Branco. He was promoted to

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointe ...

on May 8, 1811. For a brief period in 1811, he commanded the Portuguese Brigade of the Allied 7th Division. He participated in the Bussaco campaign, as well as the Lines of Torres Vedras, under general

Rowland Hill Sir Rowland Hill, KCB, FRS (3 December 1795 – 27 August 1879) was an English teacher, inventor and social reformer. He campaigned for a comprehensive reform of the postal system, based on the concept of Uniform Penny Post and his solut ...

. On the eve of the Vitoria Campaign, in 1813, Lecor was placed again at the command of the Portuguese Brigade (later numbered sixth) of the seventh Division of the Anglo-Portuguese Army, under the command of

Lord Dalhousie James Andrew Broun-Ramsay, 1st Marquess of Dalhousie (22 April 1812 – 19 December 1860), also known as Lord Dalhousie, styled Lord Ramsay until 1838 and known as The Earl of Dalhousie between 1838 and 1849, was a Scottish statesman and co ...

. He was promoted to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

(Marechal de Campo) on June 4, 1813. He then went on to fight in the Battle of Sorauren, as brigade commander and the Battle of Nivelle, acting as commander of the 7th Division. He was then placed as the commander of the Portuguese Division, which he commanded until the end of the war, participating in the Battle of the Nive, on its last day, also called the Battle of St. Pierre.

Service in Brazil and Uruguay (1815–1829)

Having returned to Portugal, in mid-1814, after the conclusion of the Peninsular War, Lecor is appointed military governor of the

Alentejo Alentejo ( , ) is a geographical, historical, and cultural region of south–central and southern Portugal. In Portuguese, its name means "beyond () the Tagus river" (''Tejo''). Alentejo includes the regions of Alto Alentejo and Baixo Alent ...

for a brief period of time. In June, 1815, he is promoted to

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on th ...

and appointed commander of the Prince's Royal Voluntary Division ('' Divisão de Voluntário Reais do Príncipe'') a unit to be sent for service in Brazil, made up mostly of peninsular veterans. In 1816 he led the successful Portuguese conquest of the Banda Oriental against the

Federal League The Federal League of Base Ball Clubs, known simply as the Federal League, was an American professional baseball league that played its first season as a minor league in 1913 and operated as a "third major league", in competition with the e ...

José Gervasio Artigas José Gervasio Artigas Arnal (; June 19, 1764 – September 23, 1850) was a political leader, military general, statesman and national hero of Uruguay and the broader Río de la Plata region. He fought in the Latin American wars of in ...

, who had liberated the

Banda Oriental Banda Oriental, or more fully Banda Oriental del Uruguay (Eastern Bank), was the name of the South American territories east of the Uruguay River and north of Río de la Plata that comprise the modern nation of Uruguay; the modern state of Rio Gra ...

(present-day Uruguay) from Spanish rule the year before.
He personally ruled the newly conquered Cisplatina Province, until the

Cisplatine War The Cisplatine War (), also known as the Argentine-Brazilian War () or, in Argentine and Uruguayan historiography, as the Brazil War (''Guerra del Brasil''), the War against the Empire of Brazil (''Guerra contra el Imperio del Brasil'') or t ...

of 1825–1828. During this war, he succeeded in defending Montevideo against an Argentine-Uruguayan siege, but when Uruguay became independent in the peace treaty, he had to return to Brazil.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* *CHARTRAND, René & YOUNGHUSBAND, Bill. ''The Portuguese Army of the Napoleonic Wars''. (vol. 2), Oxford: Osprey, 2000. *DUARTE, Paulo de Queirós (1984), ''Lecor e a Cisplatina 1816–1828'' (3 vv.), Biblioteca do Exército: Rio de Janeiro. *QUINTA-NOVA, Jorge (2008), "Carlos Frederico Lecor: The Making of a Portuguese General", in: "Napoleon Series"

arch 3, 2010*SILVA, Alfredo P.M. ''Os Generais do Exército Brasileiro, 1822 a 1889'', M. Orosco & Co., Rio de Janeiro, 1906, vol. 1, 949 pp. *SILVA LOPES, João Baptista. ''Corografia, ou Memoria Economica, Estadistica, e Topografica do Reino do Algarve''. Lisbon: Academia Real das Sciencias, 1841. *TEIXEIRA BOTELHO, Gen. José Justino. ''Novos Subsídios para a História da Artilharia Portuguesa''. Lisbon: Comissão de História Militar, 1944. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lecor, Carlos Frederico 1764 births 1836 deaths People of the Cisplatine War Brazilian people of Portuguese descent 19th-century Brazilian people 19th-century Portuguese people Portuguese military commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Marshals of Brazil Brazilian nobility People of the Peninsular War People from Lisbon