Luis Brión
| Luis Brión | |
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| Born | July 6, 1782 Plantage Rozentak, Curaçao |
| Died | September 27, 1821 Scharloo, Curaçao |
Pedro Luis Brión (July 6, 1782, Curaçao – September 27, 1821, Curaçao) was a military officer who fought in the Venezuelan War of Independence. He rose to the rank of admiral in the navies of Venezuela and the old Republic of Colombia.
He was baptized as Phillipus Ludovicus Brion, son of the merchant Pierre Louis Brion and Marie Detrox, both from what is now Belgium. They arrived in Curaçao in 1777. In 1794 they sent their son to the Netherlands to complete his education. While he was there, he enlisted in the forces of the Batavian Republic to fight the British invasion of the northern Netherlands. He participated in the battles of Bergen (September 19, 1799) and Castricum (October 16, 1799). He was taken prisoner by the British but freed after a short time in the prisoner exchange under the Convention of Alkmaar.
On his return to Curaçao he took an active part in the revolutionary movement on the island, in September 1800. Shortly after his return the island was occupied by the British. He escaped from the British authorities, fleeing to the United States. There he studied naval science and business.
He returned to his native island in 1803 (since recovered by the Batavian Republic), dedicating himself to business. From 1803 to 1806 he led various actions to prevent the British reoccupation of the island. Nevertheless, the British occupied the island again in 1807, and Brión went into exile on the Danish island of Saint Thomas. From here he continued to run his business and maritime interests.
In 1813 Brion took up the cause of Venezuelan independence and a year later Simón Bolívar made him captain of a frigate. In 1815 he went to England, where he acquired the 24-gun corvet Dardo, with which he intended to aid the rebels of Cartagena de Indias. To bring aid to the revolutionists, he had sailed from London for Cartagena at his own expense, with 14,000 stand of arms and a great quantity of military stores. Arriving too late to be useful in that quarter, he re-embarked for Les Cayes, Haiti, whither many emigrant patriots had repaired after the surrender of Cartagena.
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