Battle of Gibraltar

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Battle of Gibraltar

The Battle of Gibraltar by Hendrick Cornelisz Vroom. Oil on canvas. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

Date	25 April 1607
Location	Bay of Gibraltar, near present-day Gibraltar
Result	Decisive Dutch victory

Combatants

United Provinces

Spain

Commanders

Jacob van Heemskerk †

Juan Álvarez de Ávila †

Strength

26 warships
4 merchant ships

21 warships

Casualties

100 dead
60 wounded

4,000 dead
21 ships destroyed

Eighty Years' War
Oosterweel – Rheindalen – Heiligerlee – Jemmingen – Jodoigne – Brielle – Haarlem – Flushing – Borsele – Zuiderzee – Alkmaar – Leiden – Reimerswaal – Mookerheyde – Gembloux – Maastricht – 1st Breda – Punta Delgada – Antwerp – Boksum – Zutphen – 1st Bergen op Zoom – Gravelines – 2nd Breda – Turnhout – Nieuwpoort – Ostend – Sluys – Gibraltar – 2nd Bergen op Zoom –3rd Breda – Bay of Matanzas – 's-Hertogenbosch – Maastricht – 4th Breda – Kallo – The Downs – Hulst – Puerto de Cavite

The naval Battle of Gibraltar took place on 25 April 1607 during the Eighty Years' War when a Dutch fleet surprised and engaged a Spanish fleet anchored at the Bay of Gibraltar. During the four hours of action, the entire Spanish fleet was destroyed.

[edit] Forces

The Dutch fleet of 26 smaller warships and four cargo ships was led by Jacob van Heemskerk.
The Dutch flagship was Æolus. Other Dutch ships were De Tijger (Tiger), De Zeehond (Seal), De Griffioen (Griffon), De Roode Leeuw (Red Lion), The Golden Lion, De Zwarte Beer (Black Bear), De Witte Beer (White Bear) and De Ochtendster (Morningstar).

The Spanish fleet of 21 ships, including 10 galleons of the largest size, was led by Don Juan Álvarez de Ávila.
The Spanish flagship San Augustin (St Augustine) was commanded by Don Juan's son. Other ships were Nuestra Señora de la Vega (Our Lady of Vega) and Madre de Dios (Mother of God).

[edit] The battle

Van Heemskerk left some of his ships at the bay entrance to prevent the escape of any Spanish ship. The attacking ships were ordered to focus on the Spanish flagship and the Dutch fleet stood into the bay.

Van Heemskerk was killed during the first approach on the Spanish flagship as a cannon ball severed his leg. The Dutch effectively then doubled up the galleons (in a move that almost two centuries later was copied by admiral Nelson during the Battle of the Nile of 1798) and a few of the galleons caught fire. One Spanish ship exploded due to a shot into the powder magazine. The Dutch captured the Spanish flagship, but let it go adrift.

Following the destruction of the Spanish ships, the Dutch deployed boats and killed hundreds of swimming Spanish sailors.

The Dutch lost 100 men including admiral Van Heemskerk. 60 Dutch were wounded. The Spanish lost their entire fleet, meaning 21 ships and 4,000 men, including Álvarez.