Battle of Cap-Français

The Battle of Cap-Français was a naval engagement during the Seven Years' War fought between French and British forces outside the harbour of Cap-Français, Saint-Domingue (present-day Cap-Haïtien, Haiti) on 21 October 1757.

The British force, consisting of three ships of the line under Commodore Arthur Forrest had been sent to cruise off Saint-Domingue in the hope of intercepting a French merchant convoy bound for France, but found that the convoy's escort, under Guy François de Coetnempren, comte de Kersaint, had been heavily reinforced. The French came out to drive the British away, whereupon the British ships attacked them. Fighting against a substantially superior force, the British inflicted considerable damage on their opponents, but were in turn badly damaged, and after several hours the French broke away and returned to port. The British squadron also returned to port to carry out repairs, and the French convoy left the following month.

Though the battle was tactically indecisive, the British officers involved became popular heroes for their daring in fighting against heavy odds. The young nephew of one of the officers present, who was in time to also embark on a naval career, was Horatio Nelson. Nelson considered the date of the battle a good omen, when 48 years to the day later, he faced a French fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar.