José Romero y Fernández de Landa (1735–1807), better known as Romero Landa[1] was a Spanish naval and army officer and the Spanish Navy's first official naval engineer and ship designer. He designed several two-and three-deck ships of the line in the late 18th and early 19th centuries which fought at the Battle of Cape St Vincent and the Battle of Trafalgar.
He is also notable as the writer of Reglamento de maderas necesarias para la fábrica de los baxeles del Rey (Rules for the wood necessary for building the King's ships), published in 1784,[1] and which specified the number and dimensions of the hulls, equipment, masts and rigging for ships of 100, 74, 64 and 34 guns.[1]
On 27 May 1752 Romero Landa joined the Regimiento de Dragones de Edimburgo at Villa de Arcos, commanding a company. In 1754 he transferred to the navy, becoming an 'alférez de fragata' (ensign) and commanded the 5th Company of the 2nd Battalion of Marines at Ferrol.
On 1 November 1765 he started working at the shipyard at Guarnizo, under the ship designer Francisco Gautier. In October 1770, on the creation of the Cuerpo de Ingenieros de Marina, he was one of its few officials from the Cuerpo de Oficiales de Guerra to join the new body. Promoted to frigate captain, he was appointed Commandant of the Engineers and Engineer General, rising to Engineer General of the Fleet on 28 January 1786.
The three 64-gun ships designed by Romero Landa were an extension of his 74-gun designs, changing its main dimensions on a scale of α=49,5/52.
Five of the ships built to Romero Landa's design saw action at Trafalgar:[1]