Beresford, William Carr Beresford, Viscount

Beresford, William Carr Beresford, Viscount, 1768–1854, British general. He served with distinction in Egypt (1801–3) and participated (1806) in the capture of Cape Colony (later Cape Province, South Africa) from the Dutch. He captured Buenos Aires in 1806 but held it only briefly before it was retaken by Jacques de Liniers. Beresford occupied Madeira (1807) and for a time was governor of the island. Joining Arthur Wellesley (later duke of Wellington) in Portugal (1808), he successfully reorganized the Portuguese army and was prominent throughout the Peninsular War. Created viscount in 1823, he was master general of ordnance in Wellington's cabinet from 1828 to 1830.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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