Battle of Vigo Bay | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of the War of the Spanish Succession | |||||||
The Battle of Vigo Bay , by Ludolf Backhuysen | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
England Dutch Republic | France Bourbon Spain | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
George Rooke Philips van Almonde | Château-Renault Manuel de Velasco | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
25 ships of the line + frigates and fireships [2] | 15 French ships of the line 3 Spanish galleons + frigates, fireships, and transports [3] | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
~800 killed [4] | All ships burnt or captured ~2,000 killed [5] |
The Battle of Vigo Bay, also known as the Battle of Rande (Galician : Batalla de Rande; Spanish : Batalla de Rande), was a naval engagement fought on 23 October 1702 during the opening years of the War of the Spanish Succession. The engagement followed an Anglo-Dutch attempt to capture the Spanish port of Cádiz in September in an effort to secure a naval base in the Iberian Peninsula. From this station the Allies had hoped to conduct operations in the western Mediterranean Sea, particularly against the French at Toulon. The amphibious assault, however, had proved a disaster, but as Admiral George Rooke retreated home in early October, he received news that the Spanish treasure fleet from America, laden with silver and merchandise, had entered Vigo Bay in northern Spain. Philips van Almonde convinced Rooke to attack the treasure ships, despite the lateness of the year and the fact that the vessels were protected by French ships-of-the-line.
The French and Spanish fleet sought safety behind a boom with twin batteries. However, Allied marines captured the harbour batteries while an Allied ship broke the boom. The main Anglo-Dutch fleet then attacked the outnumbered and immobilized French fleet. The French surrendered six ships-of-the-line, and others were destroyed. [6]
The engagement was an overwhelming naval success for the Allies: the entire French escort fleet, under the command of Châteaurenault, together with the Spanish galleons and transports under Manuel de Velasco, had either been captured or destroyed. Yet because most of the treasure had been off-loaded before the attack, capturing the bulk of the silver cargo had eluded Rooke. Nevertheless, the victory was a welcome boost to Allied morale and helped persuade the Portuguese King, Peter II, to abandon his earlier treaty with the French, and join the Grand Alliance.
The accession of the Bourbon Philip V to the Spanish throne in 1700 had aroused little opposition in Spain. In the Spanish American empire, however, officials and colonists resisted French attempts to take over their trade. Dutch and English traders, though officially illegal, were accepted by the Spanish, but in the Caribbean, French admirals who had come to "protect" Spanish silver home to Europe were regarded with intense suspicion. [7] The first French squadron sailed in April 1701 under the Marquis de Coëtlogon, but the Spanish governors would not even permit him to buy victuals, and he returned empty handed. [7] Nevertheless, the weakness of the Spanish navy left the government in Madrid little choice but to rely on French warships for escort duty. Every effort was made to ensure that the bullion was landed in Spain rather than France, from where it might never return. [7]
The naval campaign of 1702 was therefore played out in two distant theatres of America and Spain, linked together by the trail of the Spanish treasure ships across the Atlantic. The American theatre became a scene long remembered in popular English tradition following Admiral Benbow's running battle in August off Santa Marta. [8] However, the Royal Navy's main effort was not off the Spanish Main, but off the Spanish coasts in Europe. [9] Under the leadership of King William III, the Maritime Powers, England and the Dutch Republic, had resolved upon a Mediterranean strategy for the Allied fleets, a policy continued under William's successors following his death in March 1702. It was hoped that this strategy would encourage Portugal to join the Allies, open the Strait of Gibraltar, and secure English naval power in the Mediterranean. [9] Their allies, the Austrians, were also clamouring for a naval presence in the Mediterranean to assist them in achieving their own primary ambitions, the capture of Spain's provinces in Italy. To meet these ends, the Anglo-Dutch fleets would first need to seize a port in the Iberian Peninsula from which their ships could operate. The Allies, therefore, resolved upon an expedition, led by Admiral George Rooke, to capture the southern Spanish port of Cádiz, and at a stroke cut off Spain's transatlantic trade. [7]
On 11 June 1702, the Spanish silver fleet from New Spain left Veracruz under escort of a French squadron commanded by Admiral Châteaurenault. The Spanish vessels were commanded by Manuel de Velasco in his armed galleon, the Jesús María y José, one of three ships forming the Armada de Barlovento whose task it was to protect the fleet. [10] The whole convoy arrived at Havana on 7 July, before striking out across the Atlantic on the 24th. [11] The fleet comprised 56 vessels: 22 were Spanish, the rest French, including a large number of merchantmen which, by the end of the voyage, had sailed for France as soon as their safety across the Atlantic had been assured. [11]
When Châteaurenault had set out for the Caribbean in 1701, war between France and the Maritime Powers had not yet been declared, but the convoy had since received news of the outbreak of hostilities and of Rooke's blockade of Cádiz, the usual destination of the silver fleet from America. [11] It was clear, therefore, a new harbour would be needed. Velasco considered the small port of Los Pasajes, but Châteaurenault favoured Brest, La Rochelle or even Lisbon. [11] A compromise was put forward, and on 23 September the Franco-Spanish fleet entered Vigo Bay in Galicia. There was, however, considerable delay in unloading the cargo. The whole administrative apparatus normally present at unloading (inspectors, valuers, royal officials, etc.), was in Seville and Cádiz, and had to be awaited before anything could be put ashore. When the unloading eventually began, it was found that means of transporting the goods were lacking. As a result, priority was given to the silver, which was unloaded first and despatched inland to Lugo. [12]
By mid-October the English government had learnt of the Spanish presence in Vigo Bay, and immediately sent off messengers to scour the seas for Rooke and Admiral Cloudesley Shovell, the latter of whom had been cruising with his squadron off Ushant. [13] By now Rooke was returning home from the disastrous campaign against Cádiz, which, due to ill-discipline and poor co-operation, had forced the admiral to abandon the enterprise at the end of September. Fortuitously, however, Rooke had already learnt the news of the Spanish convoy from one of his own ships – Captain Thomas Hardy in the Pembroke who had stayed behind to water in the Portuguese port of Lagos. Pembroke's chaplain, a Jersey man named Beauvoir, had learned from the boastful French consul of the treasure ships in the harbour, news of which had been confirmed to Beauvoir by a messenger from the Imperial Embassy in Lisbon. At once, Hardy gave chase, and caught Rooke on 17 October in time to prevent him crossing the Bay of Biscay. [14] Admiral Rooke recorded in his journal:
Under consideration of the intelligence brought to Captain Hardy of the Pembroke ... It is resolved that we make best our way to the port of Vigo, and insult them immediately with our whole line, if not by such detachments as shall render the attempt most effectual. [15]
Rooke sent ships to explore the mouth of Vigo Bay. A landing party had gleaned information from a captured friar that King Philip's part of the treasure had already been landed, but that much wealth was still left on board the Spanish vessels. [14]
On the evening of 22 October the Anglo-Dutch fleet entered the Ria de Vigo, and sailed past the two forts of the city of Vigo that fired at them as they passed by. At the end of the bay the French fleet and Spanish treasure ships lay in the harbour of Redondela, surrounded by the Galician mountains. Châteaurenault had taken charge of the defensive measures, and had blocked the narrow entrance, across the Rande Strait, with a boom made largely of timber and chain tightly bound together. [14] At the north end of the boom was positioned a gun battery which, according to Rooke's journal, comprised "fifteen or sixteen" guns; at the south end sat Fort Rande sitting a little way up from the sea, consisting of a strong stone tower with platforms constructed for cannon. The space between the tower and the water's edge consisted of a fortified enclosure, at the bottom of which stood a battery commanding the straits. In total, the Rande fortifications had been armed with more than 30 guns. To supplement the French troops from the fleet, a number of levies were raised by the Prince of Barbançon, governor and captain-general of Galicia. [11]
Aboard the Royal Sovereign an Allied council of war discussed the options for the attack. The plan was to destroy the boom with English and Dutch ships, whilst the troops from the fleet would silence the shore defences. But the naval encounter would not be a conventional line-of-battle engagement: Vigo Bay allowed no room for the deployment of a battle line, so Rooke had to adapt his tactics to the exigencies of the situation. [15] Rooke recorded in his journal:
Upon consideration of the present position of Monsieur Châteaurenault's squadron ... and in regard the whole fleet cannot, without great hazard of being in a huddle, attempt them where they are: it is resolved to send in a detachment of fifteen English and ten Dutch ships of the line of battle with all the fireships, to use their best endeavours to take or destroy the aforesaid ships of the enemy ... [16]
Early in the morning on 23 October, Vice Admiral Thomas Hopsonn in the Torbay led the attack on the boom, closely followed by a strong squadron of his English ships, and of Dutch vessels under Vice Admiral Philips van der Goes. [17] Near each end of the boom Châteaurenault had moored two of his largest men-of-war: the Bourbon, and the Esperance. Within the boom he had moored five other large men-of-war with their broadsides bearing upon the entrance.
Meanwhile, Ormonde with some 2,000 men, had landed on the shore near Teis and marched on Fort Rande. Ormonde sent Lord Shannon with the vanguard of grenadiers to assault the position, defended by several hundred troops. The wall enclosing the outer ward was stormed, and the seaward battery silenced in time to assist the breaking of the boom by the ships. The tower, defended by approximately 300 Franco-Spanish troops, held out a little longer, but this also fell to the Allied grenadiers. As the southern shore guns were being assailed by Ormonde's men, the 90 gun Association attacked and silenced the smaller northern battery on the other side of the bay. [17]
The Torbay, favoured by a breath of wind, crashed at the boom. It cracked, and the ship floated through in amongst the French squadron beyond. However, a sudden drop in the breeze prevented any other Allied vessel following, and Hopsonn found himself temporarily outnumbered. A fireship was laid alongside the Torbay, setting it alight. Fortunately for Hopsonn the fireship, laden with snuff from the Spanish Indies, suddenly blew up, and a great cloud enveloped the English vessel, partly extinguishing the flames thus enabling the crew to control the blaze. [18] According to Rooke's journal 53 men were drowned in the incident, but as the breeze picked up the other Allied ships managed to traverse the boom and engage with the enemy.
With the boom broken, and the forts silenced, the Franco-Spanish fleet was lost. Offering little resistance, Châteaurenault's men set fire to their own ships in the harbour, and sought safety on shore. The Allied seamen worked throughout the night to save their prizes, and by morning there was not a single French or Spanish vessel that had not been either captured or destroyed. [18]
Vigo Bay was a major naval disaster for the French: [19] of the 15 ships of the line, 2 frigates and one fireship, not a single vessel escaped. [20] Five ships were captured by the English, and one by the Dutch. The rest were burnt, either by the Allies or the French themselves. (See table below). The Spanish suffered as badly: of the three galleons and 13 trading vessels in their fleet, all were destroyed, save five which were taken by the Allies (at least three of these were captured by the English). By 24 October most of the damage was complete. What remained of the ships and the fortifications were destroyed by Admiral Shovell's squadron on 27 October. [20]
Spanish naval losses meant a total dependence on the French navy to keep up communications with the Americas. [21] However, the Spanish government felt no financial blow: it owned only two of the three large galleons, and none of the trading vessels. Those who suffered most, not just from the losses of the ships but also from the immense merchandise on board (pepper, cochineal, cocoa, snuff, indigo, hides, etc.) were the private traders. The news that the treasure fleet had got safely to Vigo was initially the cause of celebration for the merchants of Holland but the subsequent reports of the battle were received with mixed feelings in Amsterdam as the wealth captured or destroyed belonged as much to the English and Dutch traders as it did to the Spanish. [22] What the Spanish government did own was the silver, most of which had already been unloaded from the ships before the Allied attack, and was ultimately deposited in the castle of Segovia. [23]
The Allies, therefore, did not capture as much silver for themselves as was often supposed. The Master of the Mint, Isaac Newton, stated in June 1703 that the total metal handed in to him by that date was 4504 lb 2 oz of silver (~2,043 kg), and 7 lb 8 oz and 13 dwt of gold (~3.4 kg), estimated at a value of just £14,000. [24] Coins subsequently struck from these metals bore the word VIGO below Anne's bust, and are rare and valuable.
In February 1703, Philip V issued a decree, by way of reprisal, to confiscate all the silver that had come with the treasure fleet belonging to the English and Dutch, totalling four million pesos. In addition, the King decided to borrow two million pesos from what had come for the Spanish traders and the Consulate of Seville. In total, Philip managed to keep nearly seven million pesos, representing over half the silver from the fleet, amounting to the biggest sum in history obtained from the American trade by any Spanish king. [25] The result was an immense financial windfall for Philip V. [25]
The naval success at Vigo had considerable implications for the Grand Alliance. On the accession of the Bourbon Philip V to the Spanish throne, King Peter II of Portugal, anxious to remain friends with his more powerful neighbour, had signed an alliance with France in June 1701. But it was the security of Portugal's overseas empire that was more important than its inland frontier. [26] To protect Portugal's trade routes from South America, the ministers in Lisbon knew the importance of aligning themselves with the dominant naval power in the Atlantic. After Rooke's success at Vigo, it was clear that that naval strength reposed in the Maritime Powers. [26]
In May 1703, the Portuguese signed the Methuen Treaties with England. "The preservation of our overseas colonies makes it indispensable for us to have a good intelligence with the powers which now possess the command of the sea," commented José da Cunha Brochado, the Portuguese minister in London, "the cost is heavy, but for us such an understanding is essential." [26] It was an Allied triumph to detach Portugal from her French alliance: with Lisbon as a base the Allied fleet could dominate the Strait of Gibraltar and cripple French action in the Mediterranean. [27] But the alliance with Portugal forced a major change in Allied strategy: the Maritime Powers now found themselves committed to extensive campaigning in Spain, with one army based in Lisbon, another based to the east in Catalonia. The policy was ultimately to prove a heavy burden and the cause of a disastrous campaign in the peninsula, but in the long term, the commercial provisions of the treaties were to prove an essential component of Britain's wealth. The naval victory at Vigo, therefore, made an indirect but powerful contribution to Britain's 18th century prosperity. [26]
Efforts to recover the sunken treasure began almost immediately and continued for centuries. After their initial attempts failed, the Spanish government hired private contractors to recover the treasure, but these also proved unsuccessful. [28] In 1728, a Frenchman named Alexandre Goubert managed to bring a ship almost completely to shore, but abandoned his efforts when it became apparent that it was a French battleship without treasure. An English expedition in 1825 led by William Evans utilized a diving bell, and over the course of a year managed to recover small amounts of silver, cannonballs, and other items. Around the same period, a group calling itself The American Vigo Bay Treasure Company made an ill-fated attempt to raise a ship, tearing it apart. Decades later, Cavalier Pino, using his invention the hydroscope, scanned the location and mapped out several ships, and with a series of careful experiments managed to recover several cannons and preserved wood. [28]
On 10 August 1990 after being surveyed by sonar side scan on behalf of 5º Centenario (Spanish Government 500th anniversary of America's discovery) remains of the wreckage Santo Cristo de Maracaibo were found off the Cíes Islands by R.O.V submarine at 79 metres depth. The Contractor was Hidrografic S.A., Tarragona, Surveyor and R.O.V. Pilot: Olaf Hingst, Vessel: 'Potela Seis', Vigo.
In the Netherlands, the battle, and more specific the capture of the Spanish treasure, was referred to in a popular broadside ballad Een Nieuw Lied van den Spaensche Zilvervloot ("A New Song on the Spanish Silver Fleet"), published in susequent publications during the 18th century. [29]
The battle is referred to in Jules Verne's 1870 novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas . The book's protagonist, Captain Nemo, draws his wealth and the funding for his submarine Nautilus from the cargoes of the ships sunk by the Grand Alliance fleet during the battle, which are depicted as never having offloaded their treasure and as being easily accessible to divers. [30]
Ship | Guns | Commander | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Mary | 62 | Captain Edward Hopson | Accompanied by Phoenix (fireship) |
Grafton | 70 | Captain Thomas Harlowe | Accompanied by Vulture (fireship), Captain Thomas Long |
Torbay | 80 | Vice-Admiral Thomas Hopsonn Captain Andrew Leake | |
Kent | 70 | Captain John Jennings | |
Monmouth | 70 | Captain John Baker | |
Dordrecht | 72 | Captain Barend van der Pott | |
De Zeven Provinciën | 92 | Vice-Admiral Philips van der Goes Captain Starrenburgh | Accompanied by one fireship |
Veluwe | 64 | Captain Baron van Wassenaer | |
Berwick | 70 | Captain Richard Edwards | Accompanied by Terrible (fireship), Captain Edward Rumsey |
Essex | 70 | Rear-Admiral Sir Stafford Fairborne Captain John Hubbard | Accompanied by Griffin (fireship), Captain William Scaley |
Swiftsure | 70 | Captain Robert Wynn | |
Ranelagh | 80 | Captain Richard Fitzpatrick | |
Somerset | 80 | Admiral Sir George Rooke Captain Thomas Dilkes | Accompanied by Hawk (fireship), Captain Bennett Allen |
Bedford | 70 | Captain Henry Haughton | Accompanied by Hunter (fireship), Commander Sir Charles Rich |
Slot van Muiden | 72 | Captain Schrijver | |
Holland | 72 | Lieutenant-Admiral Gerard Callenburgh | Accompanied by one fireship |
Unie | 94 | Vice-Admiral Baron J. G. van Wassenaer | |
Reigersbergen | 74 | Captain Lijnslager | |
Cambridge | 70 | Captain Richard Lestock | |
Northumberland | 70 | Rear-Admiral John Graydon Captain James Greenaway | Accompanied by Lightning (fireship), Captain Thomas Mitchell |
Orford | 70 | Captain John Norris | |
Pembroke | 60 | Captain Thomas Hardy | |
Gouda | 64 | Captain François van Aerssen | |
Wapen van Alkmaar | 72 | Vice-Admiral Anthonij Pieterson | Accompanied by one fireship |
Catwijk | 72 | Captain Cornelis Beeckman | |
Association | 90 | Captain William Bokenham | Attacked forts at mouth of harbour |
Barfleur | 90 | Captain Francis Wyvill | Attacked forts at mouth of harbour |
Ship | Guns | Commander | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Fort | 70 | Admiral Château-Renault | Burnt |
Prompt | 76 | Admiral Beaujeu | Captured by the English |
Assuré | 66 | d'Aligre | Captured by the English |
Espérance d'Angleterre | 70 | Gallissonnière | Taken, but run ashore and bilged |
Bourbon | 68 | Montbault | Captured by the Dutch |
Sirène | 60 | Mongon | Taken, but run ashore and bilged |
Solide | 50 | Champmeslin | Burnt |
Ferme | 72 | Beaussier | Captured by the English |
Prudent | 60 | Grandpré | Burnt |
Oriflamme | 64 | Edme-Elie Certaines de Fricambault † | Burnt |
Modéré | 56 | L'Autier | Captured by the English |
Superbe | 70 | Botteville | Taken, but run ashore and bilged |
Dauphine | 40 | Duplessis | Burnt |
Volontaire | 46 | Sorel | Taken, but run ashore |
Triton | 42 | Claude-Élisée de Court de La Bruyère | Captured by the English |
Entreprenant | 22 | Burnt | |
Choquante | 8 | Burnt | |
Favori | 14 | Fireship, burnt | |
Jesus Maria José | 70 | Taken and destroyed | |
Bufona | 54 | Taken and destroyed | |
Capitana de Assogos | 54 | Taken and destroyed | |
Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Rooke was an English naval officer. As a junior officer he saw action at the Battle of Solebay and again at the Battle of Schooneveld during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. As a captain, he conveyed Prince William of Orange to England and took part in the Battle of Bantry Bay during the Williamite War in Ireland.
Vice-Admiral John Benbow was an English Royal Navy officer. He joined the Navy in 1678, seeing action against Barbary pirates before leaving to join the Merchant Navy in which Benbow served until the 1688 Glorious Revolution, whereupon he returned to the Royal Navy and was commissioned.
HMS Royal Katherine was an 84-gun full-rigged second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched in 1664 at Woolwich Dockyard. Her launching was conducted by Charles II and attended by Samuel Pepys. Royal Katherine fought in both the Second and Third Anglo-Dutch Wars and afterwards, the War of the Grand Alliance before entering the dockyard at Portsmouth for rebuilding in 1702. In this rebuilding, she was upgraded to carry more guns, 90 in total, and served in the War of the Spanish Succession during which she was renamed Ramillies in honour of John Churchill's victory at the Battle of Ramillies. She was rebuilt again in 1742–3 before serving as the flagship of the ill-fated Admiral John Byng in the Seven Years' War. Ramillies was wrecked at Bolt Tail near Hope Cove on 15 February 1760.
Philips van Almonde was a Dutch States Navy officer who served in his nation's maritime conflicts of the 17th and early 18th centuries.
HMS Somerset was a three-decker 80-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Chatham Dockyard on 31 May 1698. She was the first ship to bear the name.
The battle of Málaga, also known as the battle of Vélez-Málaga, was a major fleet action which took place during the War of the Spanish Succession between an Anglo-Dutch fleet and a Franco-Spanish naval force on 24 August 1704. Both sides fought an intense engagement before the Anglo-Dutch fleet withdrew the next day. The French subsequently returned to Toulon, transforming the battle from a tactical stalemate into a strategic defeat, as they would not put out to sea again for the duration of the conflict. Occurring soon after the Anglo-Dutch capture of Gibraltar a few weeks prior, the battle served as one of the numerous engagements which took place for control over the settlement during the war.
The Battle of Cádiz was an attempt by English and Dutch forces to seize the southern Spanish port of Cádiz in 1702 during the War of the Spanish Succession. The Andalusian port of Cádiz served as the centre of Spanish trade with its American colonies. As such, the port's capture would not only help to sever Spain's links with her empire in the Americas, but it would also provide the Allies with a strategically important base from which the English and Dutch navies could control the western Mediterranean Sea.
François-Louis Rousselet, marquis de Châteaurenault was a French Navy officer and nobleman. In his youth, he fought in the Battle of the Dunes (1658) against the Spanish. In 1661 he joined the French navy and distinguished himself in the conquest of Jijel under François de Vendôme, duc de Beaufort. In 1672 he became captain of his own ship and fought in the Mediterranean against the pirates from Salé. In 1673 he led a squadron in the North Sea and fought Michiel de Ruyter in 1675. In 1677, along the Spanish coast and with only six ships, he withstood an attack by a fleet of 25 Dutch ships under Cornelis Evertsen the younger.
The Battle of Bantry Bay was a naval engagement fought on 11 May 1689, a week before the declaration of the Nine Years' War. The English fleet was commanded by Admiral Arthur Herbert, created Earl of Torrington after the Battle; the French fleet by François Louis de Rousselet, Marquis de Châteaurenault. Apart from the inshore operations at La Rochelle in 1627–28, the Battle of Bantry Bay was the first time English and French navies had met in fleet action since 1545.
Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Leake was a Royal Navy officer and politician. As a junior officer he saw action at the Battle of Texel during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. He then distinguished himself when he led the convoy that broke the barricading boom at Culmore Fort thereby lifting the siege of Derry during the Williamite War in Ireland. As a captain he saw action in some of the heaviest fighting at the Battle of Barfleur and was also involved in a successful attack on the French ships at the Battle of La Hogue during the Nine Years' War.
The Battle of Lagos was a sea battle during the Nine Years' War on 27 June 1693, when a French fleet under Anne Hilarion de Tourville defeated an Anglo-Dutch fleet under George Rooke near Lagos Bay in Portugal. Rooke's squadron was protecting the Smyrna convoy, and it is by this name that the action is sometimes known.
Sir Thomas Hopsonn or Hopson was an English Royal Navy officer and politician. His most famous action was the breaking of the boom during the battle of Vigo Bay in 1702. After retiring from active service, he became a Navy Commissioner and the governor of Greenwich Hospital.
HMS Berwick was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Chatham Dockyard during 1677/1679. After completion she was placed in Ordinary for 10 years. She was commissioned for the War of the English Succession 1689-1697, participating in the battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt between 1697 and 1700. She was commissioned for the War of Spanish Succession 1702-1712, participating in the battles of Vigo Bay, Capture of Gibraltar and Velez Malaga. placed in Ordinary in 1712, she was converted to a hulk at Portsmouth in 1715 before being broken in 1742.
HMS Eagle was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Portsmouth Dockyard during 1677/79. When completed she was placed in Ordinary for 10 years. She was in active commission during the War of the English Succession partaking in the Battle of Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699 at Chatham. She again played an active role in the early part of the War of Spanish Succession participating in the Capture of Gibraltar, and the Battle of Velez Malaga. She was wrecked in the Isles of Scilly in October 1707.
HMS Grafton was a 70-gun third rate built at Woolwich Dockyard in 1677/79. She was delivered to Chatham and placed in Ordinary in 1679. She was commissioned in 1683 to participate in the evacuation of Tangier, Morocco. She served during the War of the English Succession fighting in the Battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699/1701. She was in active commission during the War of Spanish Succession. She fought in the Battle of Vigo, the capture of Gibraltar and the Battle of Velez Malaga. She was taken by the French in 1707 and incorporated into the French Navy. Finally, being broken at Brest in 1744.
The capture of Gibraltar by Anglo-Dutch forces of the Grand Alliance occurred between 1 and 4 August 1704 during the War of the Spanish Succession. Since the beginning of the war the Alliance had been looking for a harbour in the Iberian Peninsula to control the Strait of Gibraltar and facilitate naval operations against the French fleet in the western Mediterranean Sea. An attempt to seize Cádiz had ended in failure in September 1702, but following the Alliance fleet's successful raid in Vigo Bay in October that year, the combined fleets of the "Maritime Powers", the Netherlands and England, had emerged as the dominant naval force in the region. This strength helped persuade King Peter II of Portugal to sever his alliance with France and Bourbon-controlled Spain, and ally himself with the Grand Alliance in 1703 as the Alliance fleets could campaign in the Mediterranean using access to the port of Lisbon and conduct operations in support of the Austrian Habsburg candidate to the Spanish throne, the Archduke Charles, known to his supporters as Charles III of Spain.
Admiral Sir James Wishart (1659–1723) was a Scottish admiral in the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament (MP) for Portsmouth. Wishart served at the Battle of Cadiz and the Battle of Vigo Bay in 1702 and at the Capture of Gibraltar.
Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Hardy was a Royal Navy officer of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Having joined the navy sometime before 1688, Hardy's career was supported by Captain George Churchill, whom he served as first lieutenant during the Battle of Barfleur in 1692. Promoted to captain in 1693, Hardy served in the Channel Islands and off the coast of England until 1702 when he was given command of HMS Pembroke off the coast of Spain. He fought at the Battle of Cádiz, and subsequently discovered the location of the Franco-Spanish fleet through the intervention of his chaplain, which resulted in the Battle of Vigo Bay. Hardy was knighted for his services.
Philips van der Goes was a Dutch military officer during the 17th and 18th centuries. He took part in the Nine Years' War and the War of the Spanish Succession and ended his military career at the rank of vice-admiral.
Captain Sir Andrew Leake was a Royal Navy officer of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, who distinguished himself at the Battle of Vigo Bay, during the War of the Spanish Succession. From Lowestoft, Leake joined the navy in 1688 under the patronage of John Ashby. Promoted to commander, Leake fought under Ashby as a supernumerary at the Action at La Hogue in 1692. His services at La Hogue brought him promotion to captain, and a series of commands that culminated in 1702 with Leake joining HMS Torbay. At Vigo Bay later that year Torbay broke the boom protecting a Franco-Spanish treasure fleet, resulting in the capture or destruction of the entire fleet. Leake was knighted for this, and went on to command HMS Grafton at the Capture of Gibraltar in 1704. He was mortally wounded at the Battle of Málaga later the same year.