Action of 23 March 1654
| Action of 23 March 1654 |
|---|
| Part of Dutch-Portuguese War |
| Date | 23 March 1654 |
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| Location | Near Colombo, Ceylon |
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| Result |
Portuguese victory |
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|
| Belligerents |
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.svg.png) Portuguese Empire |
 Dutch Republic |
| Strength |
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|
5 galleons |
3 ships |
|
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| Prolonged conflicts shown in bold
|
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The Action of March 23, 1654 is the name given to a naval battle which took place near Colombo, Ceylon, when a force of 5 Portuguese galleons which were escorting 5 merchant galliots to Colombo, fought its way through a Dutch blockading squadron of 3 ships. 2 of the Dutch ships were captured, but the Portuguese in the confusion of having their 2 top officers killed, these ships were recaptured. They ran aground but were refloated.
Ships involved
Portugal
- Nazaré 42 (flag, António Pereira)
- São João 38 (second flag, Álvaro de Novais)
- Santo António de Mazagão 36 (António Sottomaior)
- São José 34 (Francisco Machado Deca)
- São Filipe e Santiago 24 (António de Abreu)
Netherlands
- Windhond (flag?)
- Renoçer (Rhinoceros) (second flag?)
- Drommedaris (yacht)
Renoçer and probably Windhond were the captured ships.