Reinald Oudinot

Who was Reinald Oudinot?

Reinald Oudinot was born in Serpignes, near Verdun, France in 1747, and became a military Engineer in the French Army, rising to the rank of Brigadier.

For some years there had been considerable cooperation between France and Portugal and in [1766] he arrived in Northern Portugal, where he was commissioned to design or assist in the repair and restoration of a number of architectural and engineering projects.

Evidence shows that he married Dª Vicencia do Carmo and had a family in Portugal, as the name still exists today, and that his daughter married a Portuguese Military Engineer whose name was Luís Gomes de Carvalho.

He alone, and then with his son in law, worked mainly in the Porto and Aveiro area and they are credited with a number of important works.

Together, their most important works were the improvements to the entry of the harbour at Leixões where Oudinot worked from 1789 to 1802 and Gomes de Carvalho continued until 1826, and the linking of the Vouga River directly to the sea at Aveiro which began in 1802.

These were extensive engineering concerns carried out during the golden age of canal building in Northern Europe.