Action of 9 August 1780

Action of 9 August 1780
	Part of the American Revolutionary War
	; The British convoy of 63 merchant ships with all but 8 ships captured by the fleet under Luis de Cordova, Unknown author
Date	9 August 1780
Location	Off Cape St. Vincent, Atlantic Ocean35°50′1″N 13°14′0″W
Result	Franco-Spanish victory
Belligerents
Spain ; France	Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
Luis Córdova ; Jose Mazarredo ; Antoine Beausset	John Moutray
Strength
32 ships of the line ; 6 frigates	1 ship of the line ; 2 frigates ; 63 merchantmen
Casualties and losses
None	3,144 prisoners ; 55 merchantmen captured

The action of 9 August 1780 was a naval engagement of the American Revolutionary War, in which a Spanish fleet, led by Admiral Luis de Córdova y Córdova, along with a squadron of French ships, encountered a large British convoy. The Spanish and French force captured almost all the merchant vessels in the convoy, which dealt a severe blow to the commerce of Great Britain.

The British convoy, escorted by HMS Ramillies (74 guns, under Captain Sir John Moutray) and two frigates - Thetis (36 guns) and Southampton (36 guns), sailed from Portsmouth on 27 July. On 9 August, they encountered the Spanish fleet.

The Franco-Spanish fleet captured 55 of the 63 merchant vessels present, making it one of the most complete naval captures ever made. The losses, were, in total 80,000 muskets, equipment for 40,000 troops, 294 cannons, and 3,144 men. The financial impact of the losses were estimated to be around £1,500,000 (£1,000,000 in gold and £500,000 – £600,000 in equipment and ships). The action also helped to derail a secret British diplomatic effort to make peace with Spain. The loss was still remembered in Great Britain (by then the United Kingdom) 30 years later, at the height of the Napoleonic Wars.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.