The War of Jenkins' Ear was a conflict lasting from 1739 to 1748 between Britain and Spain. The majority of the fighting took place in New Granada and the Caribbean Sea, with major operations largely ended by 1742. It was related to the 1740 to 1748 War of the Austrian Succession. The name was coined in 1858 by British historian Thomas Carlyle, and refers to Robert Jenkins, captain of the British brig Rebecca, whose ear was allegedly severed by Spanish coast guards while searching his ship for contraband in April 1731.
Puerto Cabello is a city on the north coast of Venezuela. It is located in Carabobo State, about 210 km west of Caracas. As of 2011, the city had a population of around 182,400. The city is home to the largest and busiest port in the country and is thus a vital cog in the country's vast oil industry. The word 'cabello' translates to 'hair'. The Spanish took to saying that the sea was so calm there that a ship could be moored to the dock with a single hair.
La Guaira is the capital city of the Venezuelan state of the same name and the country's main port. It was founded in 1577 as an outlet for Caracas, 30 kilometres (19 mi) to the southeast. The town and the port were badly damaged during the December 1999 floods and mudslides that affected much of the region.
The Battle of Cape Passaro, also known as Battle of Avola or Battle of Syracuse, was a major naval battle fought on 11 August 1718 between a fleet of the British Royal Navy under Admiral Sir George Byng and a fleet of the Spanish Navy under Rear-Admiral Antonio de Gaztañeta. It was fought off Cape Passaro, in the southern tip of the island of Sicily of which Spain had occupied. Spain and Britain were at peace, but Britain was already committed to supporting the ambitions of the Emperor Charles VI in southern Italy.
HMS Lively was a 38-gun fifth rate frigate of the Royal Navy, launched on 23 July 1804 at Woolwich Dockyard, and commissioned later that month. She was the prototype of the Lively class of 18-pounder frigates, designed by the Surveyor of the Navy, Sir William Rule. It was probably the most successful British frigate design of the Napoleonic Wars, to which fifteen more sister ships would be ordered between 1803 and 1812.
HMS Duke was an 8-gun fireship of the Royal Navy. She was acquired for service in 1739, having previously been a merchant vessel, and served in the War of Jenkins' Ear and the War of the Austrian Succession, being expended in a naval operation in 1742.
HMS Suffolk was a 70-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built by contract of 20 February 1678 by Sir Henry Johnson at Blackwall. She participated in the War of the English Succession 1689 - 1697, in the Battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699. She was actively involved in the War of Spanish Succession 1702 - 1713. Her later career was as guard ship duties, deployments to the Baltic Sea and the West Indies. She was finally broken in 1765 after lying in Ordinary for almost twenty years.
HMS Norwich was a 50-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Deptford on 24 August 1693.
HMS Burford was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Deptford Dockyard to the 1719 Establishment, and launched on 19 July 1722. Burford was notably the early posting of both John Forbes and John Byng, both of whom rose to become admirals.
Admiral Sir Charles Knowles, 1st Baronet was a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy, seeing service during the War of Jenkins' Ear, the wider War of the Austrian Succession, and the Seven Years' War. He also briefly served under the Imperial Russian Navy during the Russo-Turkish War. He rose to the rank of Admiral in a long and varied career, crowned with both success, and at times, controversy.
HMS Warwick was a 60-gun fourth-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built to the 1719 Establishment at Plymouth by Peirson Lock. The keel was laid down on 1 April 1730, and the ship was launched on 25 October 1733, and completed on 24 August 1734.
HMS Weymouth was a 60-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched in 1736 and in service during the War of the Austrian Succession. Initially stationed in the Mediterranean, she was assigned to the Navy's Caribbean fleet in 1740 and participated in Battle of Cartagena de Indias in 1741. Decommissioned later that year, she was restored to active service in the Caribbean in 1744. A navigational error on 16 February 1745 brought her too close to the shore of Antigua, where she was wrecked upon a submerged reef. Three of Weymouth's officers were subsequently found guilty of negligence, with two required to pay substantial fines and the third sentenced to a two-year jail term.
The Battle of La Guaira or La Guayra, took place on 2 March 1743 in the Caribbean, off the coast of La Guaira, present day Venezuela. La Guaira was a port of the Royal Gipuzkoan Company of Caracas, whose ships had rendered great assistance to the Spanish navy during War of Jenkins' Ear in carrying troops, arms, stores and ammunition from Spain to her colonies, and its destruction would be a severe blow both to the Company and the Spanish Government. A British expeditionary fleet under Sir Charles Knowles was defeated, and the expedition ended in failure. 600 men were killed, among whom was the captain of HMS Burford, and many of the ships were badly damaged or lost. Knowles was therefore unable to proceed to Puerto Cabello until he had refitted.
The action of 8 April 1740 was a battle between the Spanish third rate Princesa under the command of Don Parlo Augustino de Gera, and a squadron consisting of three British 70-gun third rates; HMS Kent, HMS Lenox and HMS Orford, under the command of Captain Colvill Mayne of Lenox. The Spanish ship was chased down and captured by the three British ships, after which she was acquired for service by the Royal Navy.
The battle of Santiago de Cuba, which took place on 9 April 1748, was a failed attempt by elements of the British Royal Navy under Rear-Admiral Charles Knowles to force the entrance of the port of Santiago de Cuba with the aim of striking a blow to the Spanish trade and privateering, since Santiago was a major base of the Spanish privateers in the Caribbean. Two British ships of line were put out of action by the batteries of Morro Castle and had to be towed to open sea. The remaining British warships retreated soon after.
Lord Augustus FitzRoy was a British officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the War of the Austrian Succession, and was involved in the capture of the Spanish ship of the line, Princesa, a major prize in the war. He was also the father of Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton, who became Prime Minister of Great Britain.
The Battle of Saint-Louis-du-Sud, also known as the Battle of Port Louis, was fought in the Austrian War of Succession on 22 March 1748 in the French Caribbean colony of Saint Domingue. A British squadron under the command of Admiral Charles Knowles attacked and destroyed a large French fort under command of French governor Étienne Cochard de Chastenoye.
The Cutting out of the Hermione, or Capture of Hermione, was a naval action that took place at Puerto Cabello, Venezuela on 25 October 1799. The formerly British frigate HMS Hermione, which had been handed over to the Spanish by its crew following a vicious mutiny, lay in the heavily guarded sea port of Puerto Cabello, now under the command of Don Ramón de Chalas.
San Felipe Castle is an eighteenth-century star fort protecting Puerto Cabello in Venezuela. It was named in honour of Philip V, King of Spain at the time of its construction in the 1730s. It has an alternative name Castillo Libertador, explained by its connection with Simón Bolívar, known as El Libertador because of his role in Latin American independence.
Rear-Admiral Polycarpus Taylor was a Royal Navy officer of the eighteenth century, most notable for his service commanding ships in the West Indies during the War of the Austrian Succession. Having joined the Royal Navy some time before 1733, Taylor then served at the Battle of Cartagena de Indias and Invasion of Cuba before being promoted to commander in 1742. After commanding several vessels and being promoted to post-captain, in August 1744 Taylor took command of HMS Fowey; serving in the English Channel he ran ashore and destroyed the French privateer Griffon in 1745.
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