Raid on Cartagena (1697)
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The Raid on Cartagena was a successful attack by the French on the fortified city of Cartagena, Colombia on May 6, 1697, as part of the War of the Grand Alliance.
By this time in the war, the French navy could not face the English and Dutch in an open sea battle anymore, and therefore had switched to privateering.
Bernard Desjean, Baron de Pointis, active in the Carribean since the begin of the war, was able to convince Louis XIV to try a daring attack on the richest city of the region : Cartagena in present-day Colombia.
He received command of a fleet of 7 ships, 3 frigats and some smaller vessels. The squadron left from Brest on january 7 1697, and arrived at Saint-Domingue on March 3. Pointis asked assistance from governor Jean Du Casse, who gave his support reluctantly, as he preferred an attack on Porto Bello.
One month later a fleet of 1200 soldiers and 650 buccaneers appeared before Cartagena.
The once reknown Spanish defences were not what they used to be, and Pointis conquered both fortresses which defended the city relatively easily , losing only 60 men. On May 6 the French entered and plundered the city until May 24, when they left with a loot of 10 to 20 million pounds.
Pointis sailed directly for France, cheating his buccaneer-allies on their promessed share of the loot. Outraged, the buccaneers returned to the city and plundered it a second time, this time untempered by the French regular soldiers, in an orgie of rape, extortion and murder.
[edit] Aftermath
The French did not leave unpunished, as yellow fever spreaded through the fleet, killing hundreds of sailors. On his way to France, Pointis avoided the allied squadron of Admiral Nevell, who captured only one ship.
Unfortunately this was a hospital ship infested with yellow fever , which now spreaded through the English and Dutch fleets.
The disease killed 1300 English sailors, 6 capitains and Amiral Nevil.
In the Dutch fleet only one capitain survived.
Pointis made it back to France and gave Louis XIV his share of 2 million pounds.
The rest of the loot made Pointis an immensly rich man.
He published "Relation de l'expedition de Carthagene faite par les Frangois en 1697" (Amsterdam, 1698).
