View source for Blas Salcedo y Salcedo

{{Short description|Spanish naval officer (1758–1810)}}
{{family name hatnote|Salcedo|Salcedo|lang=Spanish}}
{{Infobox military person
| name          = Blas Salcedo y Salcedo
| image         =
| caption       =
| birth_date    = 1758
| death_date    = 2 November 1810
| birth_place   = [[Fuentenovilla]], [[Guadalajara, Spain|Guadalajara]]
| death_place   = [[Viveiro]], Lugo
| allegiance    =
| branch        = Navy
| serviceyears  =
| rank          = [[Captain (naval)|Captain]]
| battles       =
| awards        =
| laterwork     =
| relations     =
}}
'''Blas Salcedo y Salcedo''' (1758–1810) was a Spanish naval officer.
==Early career==
In 1775 he served as a junior officer on board the [[xebec]] ''Atrevido'', part of [[Pedro Castejón]]'s squadron for the [[Invasion of Algiers (1775)]] seeing active service on several occasions. Promoted to frigate lieutenant in 1782 and [[Lieutenant (navy)|lieutenant]] in 1784, he was given command of a [[gunboat]], again seeing action in an attack on Algiers as part of a squadron led by [[Antonio Barceló]].<ref name=gonzalez>{{in lang|es}}. González Fernández, Marcelino. [https://dbe.rah.es/biografias/6125/blas-salcedo-y-salcedo "Blas Salcedo y Salcedo".] [[Real Academia de la Historia]]. Retrieved 3 June 2023.</ref>
After being stationed on land for several years, in 1794 he was given command of the brig ''Atocha'' and, in  1796, command of the brig ''Pájaro''. Promoted that year to [[frigate captain]], the following year he was given command of the frigate [[HMS Imperieuse (1805)|''Medea'']] on board which he made two voyages to the Americas. Appointed military commander of [[Viveiro]], Lugo, in 1800, he later requested to return to active duty on board a ship and, in 1802, was given command of the frigate ''Clara''.<ref name=gonzalez/>
==Peninsular War==
{{main|Peninsular War}}
Promoted to [[Captain (naval)|captain]] in 1808, he was given command of the 38-gun {{ship|Spanish frigate|Santa Maria Magdalena|1773|2}} on board which he patrolled the [[Cantabrian Sea]] and saw action that year at [[Santander, Spain|Santander]] (1808).<ref name=gonzalez/>
===Cantabrian Expedition===
{{main|Cantabrian Expedition}}
The ''Magdalena'' was then chosen as flagship of a joint Anglo-Spanish [[landing operation]] under the command of [[Captain (naval)|Captain]] [[Joaquín Zarauz]], to establish a base at [[Santoña]], in [[Cantabria]], then in the hands of the French, from which to free the western part of the coast of the [[Cantabrian Sea]] of French troops and then move on to [[Getaria, Spain|Guetaria]], freeing up the central and eastern coast of the region, thereby cutting off [[Irun]] as the main gateway for French supplies to Spain.<ref name=gonzalez/> The landing party consisted of 1,200 Spanish troops, under Field Marshal [[Mariano Renovales|Renovales]] and 800 British Marines.<ref name=gonzalez/><ref name=oman3>[[Charles Oman|Oman, Charles]] (1908). [https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/55231/pg55231-images.html#FNanchor_583 ''A History of the Peninsular War'', Vol. III, pp. 486–488.] ''Project Gutenberg''. Retrieved 3 June 2023.</ref><ref group=note>The British squadron of four frigates and a [[brig-sloop]] was commanded by [[Robert Mends|Mends]], on board the {{HMS|Arethusa|1781}}. The other British ships were {{HMS|Medusa|1801|6}}, {{HMS|Narcissus|1801}}, {{HMS|Amazon|1799}} and the [[brig-sloop]] {{HMS|Port Mahon|1798}}, most of which had participated some months earlier in a similar, but more modest joint Anglo-Spanish expedition, on that occasion led by Mends.</ref>
Although the expedition had had some success in capturing the important port of [[Gijón]], in Asturias, as they were anchored in the bay of Santoña in preparation for the landing operation a sudden gale forced ships to head out to sea on 23 October, the ''Magdalena'' and the ''Palomo'' cutting their anchor cables.<ref name=gonzalez/>
The ships then all headed back to [[Viveiro]], where a hurricane caused the ''Magdalena'' to founder and the ''Palomo'' to be smashed against the rocks.<ref group=note>Of the 75 men on board the ''Palomo'', 50 perished in the storm, while the remaining 25, including their captain, managed to reach the shore. (González Fernández.)</ref> Of the 508 people on board the ''Magdalena'', 500 perished in the storm,<ref name=gonzalez/> including Blas Salcedo,<ref name=gonzalez/> and the commander-in-chief of the Expedition, Zarauz.<ref name=duro>{{in lang|es}}. [[Cesáreo Fernández Duro|Fernández Duro, Cesáreo]] (1867). [https://books.google.com/books?id=0NFSAAAAcAAJ&q=magdalena ''Naufragios de la Armada Española...'', pp. 219–225, 407, 420. Diaz y Lopez.] ''Google Books''. Retrieved 3 June 2023.</ref> Of the eight that managed to reach shore, five later died of their injuries.<ref name=gonzalez/>
Captain Salcedo's body was found embracing that of his son, who had also perished in the storm. As a result, a Royal Order (''Orden Real'') was issued prohibiting fathers and sons or brothers and brothers being part of the crew on the same ship.<ref name=gonzalez/>
==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=note}}
==References==
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{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Salcedo y Salcedo, Blas}}
[[Category:1758 births]]
[[Category:1810 deaths]]
[[Category:Spanish naval officers]]
[[Category:Spanish commanders of the Napoleonic Wars]]
[[Category:Military personnel killed in the Napoleonic Wars]]