Juana María de los Dolores de León Smith
Juana María de los Dolores de León Smith (born March 27, 1798 - October 12, 1872 ) was the wife of the British general Sir Harry Smith , governor of the British Cape Colony .
Juana was born into an old Spanish noble family; she was a great-granddaughter of Juan Ponce de León . Orphaned at an early age, she lived with her sister in Badajoz . In 1812 - Juana was almost 14 - her hometown was besieged for the fourth time by British and Portuguese troops as part of the Spanish War of Independence . After the unusually bloody storming of the city, the sisters sought protection from the plundering and robbing soldiers with some British officers whose camp they had located near the city wall. One of the officers was Captain Harry Smith, of the 95th Rifles , an innovative and unconventional light infantry unit at the time. Smith and Juana were married a few days later. The marriage remained childless.
As a result, she accompanied her husband through the entire campaign. She rode with the regimental baggage or the troops and lived in camp or quarters. Because of her beauty, courage, dependability, and lovable character, she won the affection of officers - including the Duke of Wellington , who confidently called her "Juanita". It was also the respect and adoration of the soldiers.
With the exception of his tour in the British-American War , she accompanied her husband on all missions. So she lived for many years in South Africa, where Sir Harry worked several times in different roles.
A number of cities are named after Juana Smith, first and foremost Ladysmith in KwaZulu-Natal , South Africa, but also Ladismith in the Western Cape Province , South Africa, and (indirectly) Ladysmith, British Columbia, Canada and Ladysmith, Wisconsin, USA.
Georgette Heyer's historical novel The Spanish Bride tells the story of the Smiths from the storming of Badajoz to the Battle of Waterloo and is based on Harry Smith's autobiography and other contemporary sources.
literature
- Harry Smith: Autobiography . J. Murray, London 1901
- Sir John Kincaid: Adventures in the rifle brigade in the Peninsula, France and the Netherlands from 1809-1815 . London 1830
- Joseph H. Lehmann, "Remember you are an Englishman": A Biography of Sir Harry Smith, 1787-1860 . Jonathan Cape, London 1977.
- Georgette Heyer: The Spanish Bride . Heinemann, London 1940
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Smith, Juana María de los Dolores de León |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Wife of British General Sir Harry Smith, Governor of the British Cape Colony |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 27, 1798 |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 12, 1872 |