Armada of 1779 facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Armada of 1779 |
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| Part of the American Revolutionary War | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 France Spain |
 Great Britain |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Comte d'Orvilliers Comte de Vaux Luis de Córdova y Córdova |
Sir Charles Hardy Lord Amherst |
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| Strength | |||||||
| 66 ships of the line 30,000 troops |
38 ships of the line 20,000 troops 39,000 militia |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 8,000 dead or sick from disease | 1 ship captured | ||||||
The Armada of 1779 was a huge plan by France and Spain to invade Great Britain. This happened during the American Revolutionary War. The main goal was to make Britain move its powerful navy, the Royal Navy, away from other battles. The plan was to capture the Isle of Wight and then take Portsmouth, a major British naval base. However, no big naval battles happened in the English Channel, and the invasion never took place. This threat reminded people of the famous Spanish Armada from 1588.
Contents
Why the Invasion Was Planned
After a naval battle in 1778, France felt they could have won if they had more ships. France had already become allies with the Americans in 1778. In April 1779, France also signed a secret agreement with Spain. This brought Spain into the war against Great Britain.
Spain did not openly support the American colonists. They were worried about their own land claims in America. Instead, Spain wanted to get back lands in Europe that Britain controlled. The most important was the fortress of Gibraltar. Gibraltar controlled who could trade in and out of the Mediterranean Sea.
To trick the British, the French fleet at Brest left port quickly on June 3, 1779. They did not take enough supplies. This was to avoid the British navy watching them. Then, on June 16, Spain officially declared war on Great Britain.
The Armada Sets Sail
The plan was for the French fleet to meet a Spanish fleet near the Sisargas Islands in Spain. Then they would start the invasion of Britain. The French fleet had 30 large warships called "ships of the line" and many smaller boats. It was led by Admiral d'Orvilliers.
When the French arrived, the Spanish fleet was not there. The Spanish later said the winds were bad. So, d'OrOrvilliers had to stop the invasion plan. The French fleet had left Brest without enough supplies. This caused many problems as they waited for weeks for the Spanish. Sailors became sick with scurvy, typhus, and smallpox.
Finally, on July 22, the Spanish fleet arrived. It had 36 ships of the line and was led by Don Luis de Córdova. He was to follow d'Orvilliers' orders.
Getting Ready to Invade
An army of over 40,000 soldiers was slowly gathering in northern France. They had 400 transport boats ready. The goal was for the combined French and Spanish fleets to defeat the British navy. This would allow the allied army to cross the English Channel safely. They planned to set up a base on the Isle of Wight or nearby British coast.
At this time, Britain had fewer than 40 ships of the line in the English Channel. They were led by Sir Charles Hardy, who was 64 years old and had not been at sea for 20 years.
On July 25, the Franco-Spanish Armada sailed north. Bad winds made their progress very slow. Soon, the diseases that had hit the French sailors also spread to the Spanish troops. The Armada missed chances to capture two important British merchant ship groups. These ships reached Plymouth safely on July 31.
The Armada finally entered the Channel on August 11. Three days later, a small group of five ships sailed from France towards Ireland. This was a trick to distract the British. This group was led by John Paul Jones, an American captain known for his bravery.
Admiral d'Orvilliers did not know that the British fleet was not in the Channel. Admiral Hardy had learned that the French fleet was in the Atlantic. So, he was patrolling near the Isles of Scilly.
On August 14, the huge Franco-Spanish fleet was seen near the English coast. This caused a lot of panic in Britain. However, the British ship Ardent did not know. It had left Plymouth on August 15 to join Hardy.
On August 16, the French and Spanish ships were sailing slowly east up the Channel. They received new orders from France. The government decided the best place to land troops would be near Falmouth in Cornwall. D'Orvilliers thought this was a bad idea. He sent a message back asking them to rethink. The next day, Ardent met a French group of ships. It thought they were British and was quickly captured.
The Invasion Fails
The French and Spanish allies waited near Plymouth for a reply to d'Orvilliers' message. On August 18, a strong wind from the east pushed them far west into the Atlantic.
As they struggled back east, on August 25, the French and Spanish finally found out where Hardy's fleet was. They decided to attack it quickly. They were having more and more problems with sickness and lack of food. The allies sailed towards the Scilly Isles to force a battle. But Hardy tried to avoid them.
On August 31, under the cover of fog, the British fleet slipped past Land's End. Hardy then led his opponents as far as he could towards the important British naval base of Portsmouth. Amazingly, on September 3, the British fleet reached the safe harbor of the Solent. They began getting ready for battle.
This was a big problem for the French and Spanish. They were losing men to sickness every day. French military planners also realized that if the invasion waited much longer, their troops would have to fight through the British autumn and winter. This would be very difficult. So, on that day, the leaders of the great Armada gave up their plan. They sailed back to Brest.
What Happened Next
Britain quickly improved its coastal defenses. New earthworks were built at Dover and Portsmouth. These were later made even stronger when Napoleon planned to invade in the early 1800s.
For Spain, the expedition was a waste of time and money. It stopped them from focusing all their power on Gibraltar. Gibraltar had strengthened its defenses and held out until the end of the war. For France, the expedition was very expensive. Keeping so many ships at sea and so many troops waiting for months cost a lot. Many sailors died from disease. Admiral d'Orvilliers resigned soon after returning to France.
The French and Spanish fleets continued to work together after this. They mostly attacked isolated British bases to protect troop landings. They did not directly challenge the Royal Navy again in a big way.
See also
In Spanish: Armada de 1779 para niños
