Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1719)

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Battle of Cape St Vincent
Part of the War of the Quadruple Alliance
Date20 December 1719
Location
Result Spanish victory
Belligerents
Union flag 1606 (Kings Colors).svg  Great Britain Bandera de Espana 1701-1748.svg Spain
Commanders and leaders
Naval Ensign of Great Britain (1707-1800).svg Philip Cavendish Bandera de Espana 1701-1748.svg Rodrigo de Torres
Strength
2 ships of line
1 frigate
3 ships of line
Casualties and losses
40 killed and wounded [1] [2] 20 killed
27 wounded [2]

The Battle of Cape St Vincent was a minor naval engagement of the War of the Quadruple Alliance, fought on 20 December 1719 near Cape St. Vincent between a squadron of two British ships of the line and a frigate, under Commodore Philip Cavendish and a squadron of the Spanish ships of the line Conde de Tolosa, Hermione and Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe under Don Rodrigo de Torres sent from Santander to Cádiz to avoid its capture by the Anglo-French forces patrolling the Bay of Biscay.

Contents

The Spanish squadron, which had captured a British frigate and a sloop few days before the battle, forced the British fleet to withdraw to Gibraltar with about 40 casualties after 5 hours of combat, arriving to Cádiz on 2 January 1720. Pedro Messía de la Cerda, future captain of the ship of the line Glorioso during his famous voyage carrying gold from the Spanish Main to Spain and Viceroy of New Granada, took part in the action aboard one of the Spanish ships. [3]

Ships involved

[4]

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References

  1. Charnock vol.3, p. 217.
  2. 1 2 Fernández Duro p. 172.
  3. Arsenal p. 226.
  4. Charnock, John, Biographia Navalis, Volume 3, p.217. (London, 1795)

Bibliography