Jose de Mazarredo y Salazar

Lieutenant-General Jose de Mazarredo Salazar de Muñatones y Gortázar (8 March 1745 – 29 July 1812) was a Spanish Navy officer, cartographer, diplomat and astronomer who served in the American Revolutionary War and French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. A professor of naval tactics, he was considered to be one of the best Spanish naval commanders of the period.

Early career His inclination toward the sea began at a young age; at 14 he enlisted himself aboard the sloop Andaluz. After 12 years of service in the Spanish navy, he was promoted to assistant of the maritime department of Cartagena. In 1772 Mazarredo went to the Philippines aboard the Frigate Venus. In 1774 he was transferred to the frigate Rosalía and took part in a hydrographic campaign in South America.

In 1775 he took part of the Spanish attack on Algiers. The decisions on navigation, anchorage and disembarkation of the twenty thousand men of the Spanish army were made by him. Shortly after, Mazarredo developed a tabular system for the use by the Spanish Navy. In 1778, as commander of the ship of the line San Juan Bautista, he completed hydrographic surveys in the Iberian Peninsula, contributing to the creation of a Maritime Atlas.

Tactics Mazarredo was an original theorist. The Spanish Navy entered the American Revolutionary War with a system of tactics devised by him, Teniente de navío de la Real Armada, and expounded in Rudimentos de Táctica Naval para Instrucción de los Officiales Subalternos de Marina, printed at Madrid in 1776, dedicated to King Charles III. Despite bearing some evidence of the influence of Paul Hoste and Sébastien Morogues, it was a text book for junior officers, though it could clearly have been read with profit by all alike. Thanks to his proposal of a bold manoeuvre, which his colleagues considered reckless, Two years later he took part in the indecisive Battle of Cape Spartel. At the end of the American Revolutionary War he was sent to Algiers as ambassador, in order to negotiate peace after the Spanish bombardments of Algiers.

French Revolutionary Wars

In 1793 Mazarredo received the military Order of Santiago. During the French Revolutionary Wars Mazarredo's fleet from Cádiz joined Lángara's Squadron in the Mediterranean. During those months Mazarredo, who had relieved Lángara carried out several operations in the Mediterranean Sea, one of which was the evacuation of soldiers and civilians from Roses, that was being besieged by the French.

Shortly after, Mazarredo had written to warn Godoy of the dangers of a Spanish naval decline, accusing the government of bad administration. This cost him his rank, being dismissed and sent to Ferrol weeks later. But after the Spanish defeat at the Battle of Cape St Vincent, the admiralty requested his reinstatement. Among the news that Napoleon learned that the French Atlantic Squadron, commanded by Admiral Étienne Eustache Bruix, had entered the Mediterranean and was at Toulon, Bonaparte learned that a Spanish squadron under Mazarredo had left Cádiz and was at Cartagena. This last bit of news, which presaged a joint Franco-Spanish action in the Mediterranean, should perhaps have induced Bonaparte to remain in Egypt in order to await its issue.

Later years In 1804 he was sent as ambassador from Spain to France having previously given up the command of the Squadron at Brest to Don Federico Gravina in 1801. His frank bearing and firmness of character were little agreeable to the First consul, who required more flexibility in the agents employed by other powers, with greater deference to his own views and pretensions. It was imperative upon the Spanish court to conciliate the rising power of Napoleon, and Mazarredo soon heard of his recall. Mazarredo had greatly displeased Napoleon by his outspokenness and lack of flexibility, thus he was dismissed to soothe the angry Napoleon, and the subordination of Spanish interest to those of France was complete.

Despite his open criticism of the naval systems at the end of his career, Mazarredo had a well-rounded record of sea time, ship command, commander-in-chief of the corps of marines, and responsible posts as aide to senior Spanish commanders at sea. He conducted several comparative sea trials to perfect ship-handling methods and ships' signalling routines in the San Ildefonso-class.