Battle of Les Formigues

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Battle of Les Formigues
Part of the Aragonese Crusade
Date September 4, 1285 Location near Barcelona, present-day Spain Result Aragonese victory
Belligerents
Crown of Aragon	France, Genoa
Commanders
Roger of Lauria Ramon Marquet Berenguer Mallol	France: Guilhem de Lodeva Genoa: Henry di Mari John de Orreo
Strength
40 galleys (30 Sicilian, 10 Catalan)	30 galleys
Casualties and losses
Unknown	15–20 or more galleys sunk, burnt, or captured

The naval Battle of Les Formigues (Catalan) or Las Hormigas (Spanish) took place probably in the early morning of 4 September 1285 near Les Formigues Islands, about 85 km northeast of Barcelona, when a Catalan-Sicilian galley fleet commanded by Roger of Lauria defeated a French and Genoese galley fleet commanded by Guilhem de Lodeva, Henry di Mari, and John de Orrea.

There are three almost completely different accounts of this battle in Ramon Muntaner, Bernard Desclot, and the Gesta comitum Barchinonensium. The Gesta places the battle at Las Formigueres (or Formigas), while Muntaner favoured a location off Roses (Rosas) to the north. Either Lauria or the French were ashore for the night and encountered by the other, or they were both at sea when the encounter took place. The accounts agree that it happened at night, which was unusual for medieval naval battles, but suited Lauria who was skilled at night-fighting. He used two lanterns on each galley to increase his apparent numbers. Ten to sixteen Genoese galleys under John de Orreo fled, leaving about fifteen to twenty French galleys to be captured, and some others sunk or burnt. The troubadour Joan Esteve blamed treachery for the capture of the French admiral Guilhem.