The first British expedition to the Río de la Plata had the 71st Regiment as its backbone, in a number that ranged between 1,600 and 1,800 men. All of them were transported in several gunships: the 64-gun frigates Diadema and Raisonable; the frigate Diomedes, with 50 guns;
three corvettes – Leda, Narcisus and Encounter – and another small group of sea transports under the leadership of Sir Home Popham. His second in command was Brigadier Guillermo Carl Beresford. Both men of proven service to “his gracious Majesty.”
Buenos Aires did not have much to defend itself with, except the forces of Viceroy Sobremonte, who did not seem to have much aptitude for defense.
Portrayed as a picturesque and arrogant character, Sobremonte did not know how to evaluate the danger in the making and even ruled out any early opportunity for help.
Historian Isaac Pearson points out: “Although the English fleets had made some advances on American ports, The Marquis of Sobremonte informed His Majesty that the costly transfer of those regiments was useless.when he gathered 30 thousand men from disciplined militias in Buenos Aires. For this reason, the three regiments were ready to leave in Coruña…”. (1)
As it was no longer sensible to reject sending troops, on January 22, 1805, Sobremonte wrote to Spain:
“I can assure Your Excellency that in the most faithful and careful performance of my duties, for the best service of Your Majesty and for the honors that I owe to your sovereign clemency, I continue to make every effort possible for the defense of these ports and coasts, although with the disconsolation resulting from the lack of strength with which I find myself“Well, for the main ones in Buenos Aires, Montevideo and the eastern campaign bordering the Dominions of Portugal, I can barely count on a thousand veteran troops and a hundred artillerymen…” (2)
The flight of the viceroy
As is known, when the English arrived, Viceroy Sobremonte only managed to flee with the viceroyalty’s treasure.
The new ruler of Buenos Aires, William Carr Beresford, summoned the most powerful men in the city and told them that if the viceroy with his treasure did not appear, they should raise a sum similar to that carried by the marquis. Not five minutes passed when they gave him the viceroy’s location. and some offered to accompany the British troops to capture the elusive ruler.
Sobremonte was intercepted, the English invaders took the millionaire loot and immediately sent it to London.
Few definitions fit Sobremonte as accurately as those given by Dean Funes: “Similar to a drowning man, He only made efforts to grab the branch that could save him. with everything he loved most; that is, his family, his assets, his doubloons and the ceremonial of the Viceroys.” (3)
Mariano Moreno will write remembering the entry of the invader, after the flight of the viceroy: “I have seen many men cry in the square because of the infamy with which they were given; and I myself cried when at three in the afternoon on June 27, 1806 I saw 1,560 English men enterthat representatives of my country stayed in the fort and other barracks of this city.”
The people of Buenos Aires would end up driving out the invaders after just over 40 days of occupation.
The reconquest operated as an injection of courage for the Creoles who began to think that they were in a position to end the previous oppression, the Spanish one. But that’s another story.
1. Pearson, Isaac, The English Invasions, Buenos Aires, 1901, p. 9. / 2. Ibid, p. 10. / 3. Cited in Pearson, Isaac, op. cit., p. 75.
