Battle of Portland

The naval Battle of Portland, or Three Days' Battle, took place during 18–20 February 1653 (28 February – 2 March 1653 (Gregorian calendar)), during the First Anglo-Dutch War, when the fleet of the Commonwealth of England under General at Sea Robert Blake was attacked by a fleet of the Dutch Republic under Lieutenant-Admiral Maarten Tromp escorting merchant shipping through the English Channel.

This article is about the naval battle off the south coast of England in 1653. For the battle at Portland, Maine, in 1863, see Battle of Portland Harbor.

Battle of Portland
Part of the First Anglo-Dutch War
Date18–20 February 1653
Location
Off Isle of Portland, English Channel
Result English victory
Belligerents
 Commonwealth of England  Dutch Republic
Commanders and leaders
Robert Blake
Richard Deane		 Maarten Tromp
Strength
80 warships
12,000 men
2,800 guns		 80 warships
8,600 men
2,450 guns
Casualties and losses
3 warships sunk 12 warships sunk

The battle failed to settle supremacy of the English Channel, although both sides claimed victory, and ultimate control over the Channel would only be decided at the Battle of the Gabbard which allowed the English to blockade the Dutch coast until the Battle of Scheveningen, where Admiral Maarten Tromp was killed in a firefight.

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