Sea battle at Guetaria
| date | August 22, 1638 |
|---|---|
| place | in front of Getaria , Biscay , Spain |
| output | French victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 27–44 ships 7–8 Brander |
12-18 galleons |
| losses | |
|
No ship lost, 40 dead |
All galleons destroyed, between 4,000 and 5,000 dead |
Les Avins - Leuven - Tornavento - Guetaria - Fontarrabie - Corbie - Diedenhofen 1639 - Turin - Aire-sur-la-Lys - Honnecourt - Barcelona - Cartagena - Diedenhofen 1643 - Rocroi - Orbetello - Fort Mardyck - Dunkirk - Rethel - Bordeaux - Lens - Arras - Valenciennes - Battle of the Dunes
The sea battle at Guetaria (also known as the Battle of Guetaria , each in the other spelling as Getaria ) was a military conflict between France and Spain in the Franco-Spanish War that fought on August 22, 1638 in the waters off Getaria in northern Spain has been. A French fleet under Henri d'Escoubleau de Sourdis attacked and destroyed a Spanish fleet under Lope de Hoces .
The battle
In June 1638, a large French army crossed the Pyrenees to besiege the Spanish city of Hondarribia . This army was accompanied by a fleet under Henri d'Escoubleau de Sourdis , which consisted of a number of 27 to 44 warships and whose task it was to hinder any help that Hondarribia could receive across the sea.
De Hoces had been ordered to attack the French fleet, but had only twelve galleons and a few smaller ships available. The Spanish fleet withdrew to the port of Getaria on August 17th and took up a defensive position near the coast. This brought various advantages: The largest French ships could not get close enough in the shallow waters, so that the usual French tactics of close combat with subsequent boarding could not be carried out. In addition, the Spanish ships could be supported by shelling from land.
Therefore Sourdis decided to another approach: First, he wanted to destroy the Spanish fleet with its superior firepower, then his Brander Send in the wreaked chaos and cut off his smaller ships any escape. The prerequisite for this procedure was that the wind was favorable towards the coast. This was the case on August 22nd, so de Sourdis began putting his plan into action. The French plan worked brilliantly. De Hoces had taken no precautions against Brander, as this was not usually used by the French and de Sourdis had disguised his Brander as normal warships. With the exception of the Santiago , the entire Spanish fleet caught fire. Only about 1,000 Spaniards reached the coast alive, including Lope de Hoces.
The future French admiral de Saumeur (also known as Chevalier Paul ) distinguished himself in battle.
consequences
The success in this battle was the first important victory for the French navy built under Cardinal Richelieu . He was delighted with the victory and very grateful to the French commanders. The victory allowed France to temporarily control the Bay of Biscay on the seaside.
Despite its success at sea, the siege of Hondarribia was a failure for French combined naval and land forces. After the failed siege, the armed forces were forced to retreat on September 8, 1638, just three weeks after the naval success.
The destruction of the Spanish fleet by Brander left a deep impression on Abraham Duquesne , the captain of the French Le Saint-Jean . He successfully used the same tactics as commander of the French fleet in the naval battle of Palermo in 1676.
Ships involved
France
- La Couronne , 72 guns, 500 men under Vice-Admiral Claude de Launay-Razilly
- Navire du Roi , (52) 300 men, flagship, Philippe des Gouttes
- Vaisseau de la Reine , (38), 245 men, Capitain Danerac
- La Vierge , (34), 245 men, Jacques du Mé
- Le Cardinal , (30), 245 men, Capitain de Coypeauville.
- Le Triomphe , (30), 205 men, Capitain de Caen
- La Victoire , (30), 205 men, Capitain Contenaut
- Saint-Louis de Hollande , (24), 205 men, Capitain Treillebois
- Trois-Rois , (30), 205 men, Capitain Baptiste
- La Fortune , (30), 205 men, Capitain de Casenac
- L'Europe , (34), 205 men, Chevalier Jules de Montigny
- Le Triton , (30), 155 men, Capitain Villemoulin
- Le Faucon , (30), 155 men, Capitain Dumenillet
- Le Cygne , (30), 205 men, Chevalier de Cangé
- Le Cocq , (30), 205 men, Capitain De Chastelus
- La Licorne , (30), 205 men, Capitain La Chesnaye
- Le Corail , (30), 205 men, Capitain de Porte-Noire
- L'Emerillon , 125 men, Capitain de Morsay
- Le Saint-Charles , (28), 155 men, Saint-Etienne
- Le Dauphin du Havre , (28), 155 men, Boisjoly
- La Perle , (24), 125 men, Capitain La Roullerie
- La Renommée , (24), 125 men, Capitain Daniel
- L'Intendant , (24), 125 men, Capitain de Conflans
- Le Saint-Jean , (24), 125 men, Abraham Duquesne
- La Magdelaine de Brest , (24) 125 men, Louis de Senantes
- Turc , 100 men, Jean Guiton
- Saint-Francois , (16) 100 men, Capitain Regnier
- Marguerite , (14), 100 men, Capitain La Treille
- Hermine , (14), 100 men, Capitain de Lignieres
- Neptune , (16), 100 men, Jean-Paul de Saumeur
- Esperance-en-Dieu , (24) 100 men, Chevalier Garnier
- Petit-Saint-Jean , (16) 100 men, Capitain Razet / De Broq
- Fregate du Havre , 66 men, Capitain Clerisse
- Royale , (8), 82 men, Capitain Savigny
- Cardinale , (8), 92 men, Capitain Baronnie
- Lion
- Nassau
- Licorne
- Grande Fregate de Brest , (8), 92 men
- Flibot de Brest
- 7 or 8 burners
Individual evidence
- ↑ Michel Vergé-Franceschi, Dictionnaire d'Histoire Maritime , éditions Robert Laffont, collection Bouquins, 2002, p. 709. (French)
- ↑ Michel Vergé-Franceschi, Dictionnaire d'Histoire Maritime , éditions Robert Laffont, collection Bouquins, 2002, p.709.
- ↑ Guy Le Moing, Les 600 plus grandes batailles navales de l'Histoire, Marines Editions, 2011, p. 205 (French)