ORLÉANS, DUC D’: French aristocrat and soldier who took part in several episodes in the War of Spanish Succession, in Italy as well as in Spain. In 1708 he led the siege of Tortosa, a strategic location in the south of Catalonia. Following the death of Louis XIV, he succeeded him as regent, scandalizing Europe with his private orgies and parties.
ORTIZ: Pro-Austrian colonel who played a significant role in the battle of Santa Clara when his troops contributed toward surrounding the Bourbon vanguard.
PALLARÈS, DÍDAC: Barcelona citizen who was a member of the Coronela, or the city’s militia. During the siege, three of his sons, who were also members of that militia, died or were seriously injured.
PERET: Fictional character.
PHILIP V: Duc d’Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV of France, and Bourbon pretender to the Spanish throne following the death of Carlos II. After the retreat of the Allied troops, he considered Catalan resistance a seditious rebellion and decided to deal with the “rebels” with particular viciousness. From a very early age, Philip had shown symptoms of severe mental imbalance. In the final phase of his life, the symptoms of dementia became more acute, to the point where he grew his nails over ten inches long, dressed in rags, and slept in open coffins.
PORKY: Fictional character.
POLASTRON: Senior French officer killed in combat at the siege of Barcelona.
PÓPULI, RESTAINO CANTELMO STUART, DUKE OF: Italian nobleman serving Philip V. Pópuli felt personal ill will toward the Barcelonans because, he claimed, they had mistreated his wife during the disturbances of 1705. In 1713 Philip placed under his command the Franco-Spanish troops who were to begin the occupation of Catalonia. Faced with unexpected resistance from Barcelona, Pópuli laid siege to it. His inability to take the city led to his replacement by Berwick nine months later.
POU, JOSEP: Doctor from Vic who made an offer to the Bourbon troops of the city’s surrender, without the Catalan government’s knowledge.
ROGER, LLUÍS: Catalan nobleman who voted against Barcelona taking up arms against Philip V. He accepted the result of the final vote, which went in the opposite direction, and took part in the city’s defense. Died in combat.
SAAVEDRA Y PORTUGAL, GREGORIO DE: Pro-Austrian who appears at the most critical moments in the story of the siege, such as the battle of Santa Clara. During the final days of the siege, Zuviría was carrying out anti-mine work. This might explain why he does not mention that it was Saavedra tasked with answering the final Bourbon ultimatum to surrender. When the marquis of Tserclaes approached the walls to learn the city’s reply, Saavedra said: “The commons have met and have decided as follows: not to listen to any proposals from the enemy. Has Your Excellence anything to say?” “No.” “Well then, withdraw, because the fight will go on.”
SALA, BENET: Bishop of Barcelona who, in the 1713 debates, intervened behind the scenes for the pro-surrender position but without success. Despite his efforts, at the end of the war, he would face reprisals from the Bourbon regime.
SANT JOAN, NICOLAU DE: Catalan politician who, during the 1713 debates, led the group in favor of surrendering the city.
SANTA CRUZ (FATHER AND SON): Soldiers who held the command of the engineering corps of the besieged city of Barcelona. They deserted and offered their services to the Bourbon leadership, but the offer was not accepted, and father and son were evacuated to Alicante, suggesting that their posts were purely nominal.
SAUVEBOEUF: French soldier killed in combat during the attacks on Barcelona.
SHITSON: Foreign officer, name unknown, who took part with the Catalan troops in the ill-fated expedition by the military deputy. Castellví tells us only that he was an officer repudiated by his former superiors, and that in his flight, the deputy left the troops in his charge.
STANHOPE, JAMES: English aristocrat and soldier who, in 1710, was sent to Spain as commander of the English military force tasked with bringing an end to the war. His performance was heavily criticized, both politically and militarily, and in 1710 he was taken prisoner along with most of his troops. Stanhope would marry the daughter of the governor of Madras and enter a career in politics, and such an unfortunate one that his role as finance minister would coincide with the crisis that came to be known the South Sea Bubble, which ruined the English economy.
STRETCH: Fictional character.
TIMOR, JAUME: Catalan commander who, in 1714, played a significant role in the battle for Santa Clara, managing to prevent the defenders from abandoning the bastion when the situation was at its most desperate.
TOMEU: Colonel who, together with Colonel Ortiz, outflanked the vanguard of the Bourbon trench, a maneuver that completed the Franco-Spanish defeat during the battle of Santa Clara.
VALÈNCIA, ANTONI: Barcelonan nobleman. In 1713 he voted against shutting the city’s gates and resisting the Bourbon attack. He died defending the city.
VAN COEHOORN, MENO: Dutch military engineer who developed theories of siege warfare completely opposed to the Vaubanian model. Coehoorn was a contemporary of Vauban’s, and they even confronted each other directly in the siege of Namur. Vaubanian, who had been leading the besieging army, received the surrender directly from Coehoorn himself.
VAN VERBOOM, JORIS PROSPERUS: Military engineer of Dutch origin who served the Spanish Bourbons. In 1710 he was wounded in battle and captured by the pro-Austrian troops. He spent two years as a prisoner in Barcelona, where he studied the city’s defenses. In 1714 he was indeed the man appointed to design the attack trench that would take the city by storm. Subsequently, he built the Citadel in the interior of the city, as a means to subdue the citizens.
VAUBAN, CHARLOTTE: Elder daughter of Sébastien Vauban.
VAUBAN, JEANNE: Younger daughter of Sébastien Vauban. Married a member of the French nobility who, shortly after the wedding, went mad in his search for the philosopher’s stone, although some years later, surprisingly, recovered his wits.
VAUBAN, SÉBASTIEN LE PRESTE: French engineer, marquis, and marshal known for his innovations in the art of fortification and siege warfare including the development of new methods of siege and attack.
VENDÔME: French marshal sent to Spain by Louis XIV to provide military aid to his grandson, Philip. In 1710 he took part in the battles of Brihuega and Villaviciosa, whose results were inconclusive. He died in 1712, in Vinaroz, of indigestion from eating prawns.
VILLARROEL, ANTONIO DE: Spanish soldier who, at the start of the war, served in the Bourbon army. In 1708 he played a notable part in the attack on the strategically important city of Tortosa. In 1710, however, he switched sides and joined the pro-Austrian army at a general’s rank. Villarroel’s cavalry was decisive in the Battle of Villaviciosa for avoiding defeat. In 1713 he was appointed the commander of Barcelona by the Catalan government. A few days before the attack in 1714, he resigned from his post, believing that resisting to the end would be tantamount to a massacre. Despite this, rather than setting sail, he decided at the last moment to remain in the city. During the fighting of September 11, he was gravely injured, and soon afterward, though this went against terms of the capitulation, he was arrested and imprisoned. He was made to suffer terribly in prison and was not freed until shortly before his death.