View source for José Miguel de la Cueva, 14th Duke of Alburquerque

{{short description|Spanish general and ambassador (1775-1811)}}
{{Infobox noble|type
| name              = José Miguel de la Cueva y de la Cerda
| title             = 14th [[Duke of Alburquerque]]
| image             = Anonymous drawing of José María de la Cueva y de la Cerda, 14th Duke of Alburquerque.jpg
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| birth_date        = {{Birth date|1775|12|26|df=yes}}
| birth_place       = Madrid
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| death_date        = {{death date and age|1811|02|18|1775|12|26|df=yes}}
| death_place       = London
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| occupation        = General
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[[General officer|General]] '''José Miguel de la Cueva y de la Cerda, 14th Duke of Alburquerque'''<ref name=martin>{{in lang|es}}. Martín-Lanuza, Alberto. [https://dbe.rah.es/biografias/69672/jose-miguel-de-la-cueva-y-de-la-cerda "José Miguel de la Cueva y de la Cerda". ''Diccionario Biográfico electrónico'' (''DB~e''.).] [[Real Academia de la Historia]]. Retrieved 29 April 2023.</ref> (1775–1811) was an aristocrat, diplomat, and senior [[Spain|Spanish]] officer in the [[Peninsular War]].{{sfn|Haythornthwaite|2004|p=66}}<ref group=note>García León gives his full name as ''José María de la Cueva y de la Cerda, XIV Duque de Alburquerque'' (José María de la Cueva and de la Cerda, 14th Duke of Albuquerque) {{harv|García León|2007|p=50}}</ref><ref group=note>[[Charles Oman|Oman]] spells the surname '''Albuquerque'''. (Oman, 1902: Transcriber's note.)</ref>
==Biography==
===Early career===
After serving as a cadet in the Queen's Dragoons Regiment (Regimiento de Dragones de la Reina), he was promoted to captain in 1792. Thanks to his family's influence, he was rapidly promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1793, to colonel the following year and, in 1795, at the age of 19, he was promoted to Cavalry brigadier and given the command of the Lusitania Dragoons Regiment.<ref name=martin/>
On inheriting his father's titles in 1803, he resigned from his regiment.<ref name=martin/>
===Peninsular War===
{{main|Peninsular War}}
====1808====
At the start of the war, Alburquerque was given command of the Army of Castille, serving under [[Juan Pignatelli|Pignatelli]], and on its dissolution he was transferred to [[Francisco Javier Castaños, 1st Duke of Bailén|Castaños's]] corps.<ref name=martin/>
====1809====
He was promoted to field marshal the following November and in January 1809 the [[Pedro de Alcántara Álvarez de Toledo, 13th Duke of the Infantado|Duke del Infantado]] gave him the command of vanguard of the Army of the Centre, replacing [[Francisco Javier Venegas|Venegas]], an appointment he took up following the Spanish defeat at [[Battle of Uclés (1809)|Uclés]] (13 January).<ref name=martin/>
With General [[José de Urbina y Urbina, 3rd Conde de Cartaojal|Cartaojal]] now in command of the Army of the Centre, in February, Alburquerque, still at the head of the vanguard division, comprising 2,000 horse and 9,000 infantry,<ref name=oman1/> tried to surprise [[Alexandre, vicomte Digeon|Digeon's]] brigade of dragoons at Mora,<ref name=oman1>[[Charles Oman|Oman, Charles]] (1902). [https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/54279/pg54279-images.html#Page_145 ''A History of the Peninsular War'', Vol. I, pp. 144–145, 591–592, footnote 160.] ''Project Gutenberg''. Retrieved 29 April 2023.</ref> and shortly after his division was forced to retreat at Consuegra by [[Horace François Bastien Sébastiani de La Porta|Sebastiani]], who had arrived with his 1st division of the 4th Corps, and two brigades of [[Victor de Fay de La Tour-Maubourg|Latour-Maubourg]]'s cavalry.<ref name=oman1/>
When Cartaojal met up with his vanguard, the two commanders disagreed about the next move, with Alburquerque keen to advance on Toledo with Cartaojal's full force, while his superior proposed that Alburquerque go ahead alone with a single division of infantry. At that moment orders came from the Supreme Junta that troops were to be detached from Cartaojal's Army of La Mancha to strengthen [[Gregorio García de la Cuesta|Cuesta's]] Army of Extremaduran. Cartaojal seized the opportunity to send Alburquerque off with a division of seven infantry battalions (4,500 men)<ref name=martin/> and a cavalry regiment of only 264 sabres,<ref name=oman1/> and which arrived just in time to see action at [[Battle of Medellín|Medellín]]. In April, Alburquerque was promoted to lieutenant general.<ref name=martin/>
In July, Alburquerque commanded the six regiments<ref name=martin/> of the 2nd Cavalry Division of the [[Ejército del Centro (1808)|Army of the Centre]] at the [[Battle of Talavera]].
The following month, he was routed<ref name=oman1/> at the [[Battle of Arzobispo]] (8 August).{{sfn|Haythornthwaite|2004|p=66}}{{sfn|Rickard|2008}} And although, in Oman's words, Alburquerque "showed plenty of useless personal courage",<ref name=oman1/> his losses were substantial: over 800 men killed or wounded; 600 men and 400 horses captured; together with his divisional battery of 16 guns.<ref name=oman1/>
====1810====
In 1810, Alburquerque commanded the [[Army of Estremadura]] and on 4 February entered [[Cádiz|Cadiz]] with 11,000 men, securing it as a Spanish base.{{sfn|Haythornthwaite|2004|p=66}}{{sfn|Musteen|2011|p=129}} He was appointed governor of the city, but he fell out with General [[Gregorio García de la Cuesta]] and resigned.
On 2 March he substituted Venegas as captain general of Andalusia and was appointed president of the Junta of Cádiz. However, due to his disgreements with the Regency,<ref name=martin/> he was dismissed and, at the end of that month, he was appointed Spanish ambassador to the [[Court of Saint James]] in London. He died the following February in London, and his funeral took place in [[Westminster Abbey]].{{sfn|Haythornthwaite|2004|p=66}}
====Funeral service====
Following the service at the Chapel-Royal of Spain, [[St James's, Spanish Place]], just off [[Manchester Square]], in London, the procession, headed by an escort of the [[15th The King's Hussars|15th Light Dragoons]], then proceeded to [[Westminster Abbey]], where another funeral service was held, with most of the ministers of the British government in attendance. The hearse, drawn by six horses, was followed by eleven mourning carriages, including those of [[Juan Ruiz de Apodaca, 1st Count of Venadito|Apodaca]], as chief mourner; the Foreign Secretary, [[Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley|Richard Wellesley]]; and [[Robert Wilson (British Army officer, born 1777)|Sir Robert Wilson]]; several other carriages of British and foreign dignatories, and followed by over a hundred other carriages of nobility and gentry, the whole brought up by another detachment of the 15th Light Dragoons.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=7qNJAAAAYAAJ&dq=funeral+Alburquerque+london&pg=PA291 ''The Gentleman's Magazine'', pp. 290–292. 1811.] ''Google Books''. Retrieved 29 April 2023.</ref>
==See also==
* [[Duke of Alburquerque]]
==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=note}}
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Bibliography==
*{{cite book |last=García León |first=José María |year=2007 |title=En Torno a Las Cortes de Cádiz |publisher=Quorum Editores |isbn=978-8-488599-92-6 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=tDtgd9uICC0C&pg=PA50 50]|language=es}}
*{{cite book|last=Haythornthwaite |first=Philip J. |year=2004 |title=The Complete Companion to the Iberian Campaigns 1807&ndash;14 |series=Brassey's almanac|edition=illustrated |publisher=Brassey's |isbn=978-1-85753-329-3|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=rPUa_Qp5Qe4C&pg=PA66 66]}}
*{{cite book |last=Musteen |first=Jason R. |year=2011 |title=Nelson's Refuge: Gibraltar in the Age of Napoleon|publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=978-1-61251-084-2 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=HThZ_inxa14C&pg=PT129 129]}}
*{{cite web|last=Rickard |first=J. |date=17 April 2008|url=http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/combat_arzobispo.html |title=Combat of Arzobispo, 8 August 1809}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cueva, José Miguel de la Cueva, 14th Duke of Alburquerque}}
[[Category:1775 births]]
[[Category:1811 deaths]]
[[Category:Spanish generals]]
[[Category:Ambassadors of Spain to the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Dukes of Alburquerque]]
[[Category:Spanish commanders of the Napoleonic Wars]]