People

Francisco Manuel Barroso

The victor of Riachuelo.

Francisco Manuel Barroso
Francisco Manuel Barroso da Silva around 1865. Reconstructed portrait.
Life
29 September 1804, Lisbon; 8 August 1882, Montevideo
Rank at Riachuelo
Division commander ‡
Flagship
Frigate Amazonas
Title
Baron of Amazonas (1866)
Remains
Moved to Rio de Janeiro in 1908

Born in Lisbon, he entered the Naval Academy in Rio de Janeiro as a cadet in 1821. In 1865 he was chief of staff of Tamandaré’s squadron and commanded the imperial naval force on the Paraná River. On 11 June 1865, at Riachuelo, he used his frigate Amazonas as a ram against the Paraguayan steamers and won the battle. He became a vice admiral in 1868; in 1873 he retired with the rank of admiral and settled in Montevideo.

‡ Disputed.Barroso is often called “admiral”, but at Riachuelo he was a division commander, a rank equivalent to commodore.

Sources: Revista Marítima Brasileira, biography of Admiral Barroso; Pablo Palermo, Revista de Historia Naval no. 160 (2023); “Francisco Manuel Barroso, Baron of Amazonas”, English Wikipedia.

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