Ricardo Wall - Prime Minister of Spain

Prime Minister of Spain

In 1754 Wall was recalled from London to become Minister of Foreign Affairs, after the death of José de Carvajal. A few months later he played a part in driving Carvajal's successor the Marquis of Ensenada from office, helping Huescar and the British ambassador, Benjamin Keene. He retained his position till 1763. Grimaldi was his successor.

The despatches of the British Minister, Sir Benjamin Keene, and of his successor, George Hervey, 2nd Earl of Bristol, contain many references to Wall. They are creditable to him. Though a constant partisan of peace and good relations with Britain, Wall was firm in asserting the rights of the government he served. During the early stages of the Seven Years' War (1756–63) he insisted on claiming compensation for the excesses of British privateers in Spanish waters. He frequently complained to the British ministers of the difficulties which the violence of these adventurers put in his way. As a foreigner he was suspected of undue favour to Britain, and was the object of incessant attacks by the French party. Wall himself began to become concerned that Britain's colonial acquisitions from France now meant that Spain's South American Empire was threatened.

The new king, Charles III (1759–88), kept Wall in office. When war was declared by Spain in 1761 the minister carried out the policy of the king, but he confessed to the English ambassador, Lord Bristol, that he saw the failure of his efforts to preserve peace with grief. The close relations of Charles III with the French branch of the House of Bourbon made Wall’s position as foreign minister very trying. Yet the king, who detested changing his ministers, refused all his requests to be allowed to retire, till Wall extorted leave in 1763 by elaborately affecting a disease of the eyes which was in fact quite imaginary.

Throughout his ministry he created a network of clients which survived him by several decades and directed Spain during the following reign. Among his clients were: Marquess of Grimaldi, the count of Aranda, the count of Campomanes, Manuel de Roda, the Pignatelli de Aragon family of Ambassadors in different European countries and counts of Fuentes, and the de Funes Villalpando, counts of Ricla.

Among his committed supporters there were many Irishmen: D. Alejandro O'Reilly, the count of Mahony, the count of Lacy, Diego Purcell, Diego Nangle, Pedro Stuart, Ambrosio O'Higgins, Irish geologist and mining engineer in Spain William Bowles (1720–84), Bernardine Ward and Carlos McCarthy.

Also he was befriended by people with well-known names as Francisco Pérez Bayer, Jose Clavijo y Fajardo, Benito Bails, Celestino Mutis, Jose Agustín de Llano y de la Cuadra (1722–94), Spanish Embassador in Vienna since 1786 under Emperor Joseph II, a nephew of First Secretary of State of Spain (1736–46), Sebastián de la Cuadra, 1st Marquis of Villarías, the numerous members of the family associated to politician and translator Juan de Iriarte (1701–71), Bernardino del Campo, the Ambassador José Nicolás de Azara, and Juan Chindulza.