HISTORICAL DICTIONARY A–Z - Spain and Portugal: A Reference Guide from the Renaissance to the Present - page 408

W

Wall, Richard (Ricardo Wall)
(1694-1778)
Spanish statesman
Born in Nantes, France, where his Irish
Catholic family had found sanctuary from
religious persecution, Wall was raised in
Spain, entered the naval service of that
country, and won commendation for his
role in the Sicilian campaign at the Battle
of Cape Passaro (1718-19). He later trans-
ferred to the army, fought in Italy, and
eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant
general. It was as a diplomat, however,
that Wall achieved his greatest influence,
due to his linguistic skills, polished man-
ners, and personal charm. After serving in
a junior capacity in St. Petersburg, he
eventually became ambassador to France
where he played a key role in negotiating
the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748).
Under F ERDINAND VII and C HARLES III he
successively served as minister of state and
of war. A strong proponent of an Anglo-
Spanish alliance (he had spent time as
ambassador in London), Wall was never-
theless unable to persuade Charles III to
break away from the Bourbon Family
Compact. Wall retired in 1763, spending
his last years in G RANADA , where his per-
sonality and generosity made him a popu-
lar and admired local figure.

Weyler y Nicolau, Valeriano
(marqués de Tenerife) (1838-1930)
Spanish soldier
The son of an army surgeon of German ori-
gin, Weyler eagerly entered cadet school at
the earliest possible age and was a lieuten-
ant by the age of 20. Following duty in
Spain and North Africa he made his mark
during the 1860s in Caribbean campaigns
where he aided in the repression of the
Cuban rebellion and operations against
those in Santo Domingo who opposed that
territory's short-lived return to Spanish
rule. There he developed an understanding
of irregular warfare and wrote a manual on
antiguerrilla operations. Returning to Spain
as a colonel in the early 1870s, he distin-
guished himself in the Second Carlist War
and then rose steadily in rank and respon-
sibility, serving as captain general of several
regions. (He was made marqués de Tenerife
while serving as captain general in the
C ANARY I SLANDS .) He also held further colo-
nial commands in P UERTO R ICO and the
P HILIPPINE I SLANDS .
The 1890s found Weyler back in C UBA as
captain general, charged with putting down
a new insurrection. Grasping the impor-
tance to the rebels of their civilian support
network, Weyler instituted a plan of “recon-
centration.” Under this program more than

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