Battle of the Black River facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of the Black River |
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| Part of the American Revolutionary War | |||||||
 Portrait of Colonel Edward Marcus Despard |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Spain |
 Great Britain |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Matías de Gálvez Don Tomás Julia |
Edward Despard James Lawrie |
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| Strength | |||||||
| 1,400 regulars, marines and sailors | 1,180+ regulars, militia & Miskitos 12 ships |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 60 killed 100 wounded 750 captured 400 due to disease, 1 ship captured |
Approx. 50 casualties unknown losses due to disease |
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The Battle of the Black River was a series of fights that happened between April and August 1782. It was part of the American War of Independence. This battle was fought between British and Spanish forces. They were fighting for control of the Black River settlement. This important place was located on the Mosquito Shore.
In April 1782, Spanish forces managed to push out a small British army and most of the people living there. But the British fought back in August. They gathered the settlers and brought in more soldiers from Jamaica. They successfully took back the settlement from the Spanish. Many Spanish soldiers had become sick, which made them weaker.
Why the Battle Happened
King Charles III of Spain wanted to remove the British from their settlements. These settlements were hidden along the coast of Honduras and on the Mosquito Coast. This area is now part of Belize, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The British had long-standing rights to cut down trees there.
In March 1782, a Spanish leader named Matías de Gálvez led over 800 soldiers. They attacked and captured Roatán. The British army there had only about eighty men. Gálvez then got 600 more soldiers. The next month, he captured the Black River settlement. This place was defended by fewer than twenty British soldiers.
Major James Lawrie was in charge of the small British force. He tried his best to defend the settlement. But he and his men had to leave their defenses. They escaped through the jungle to Cape Gracias a Dios.
The British governor of Jamaica, General Sir Archibald Campbell, was busy. He was worried about a planned attack on Jamaica by French and Spanish forces. So, he could not send help right away.
However, the attack on Jamaica was called off. This happened after the British won a big victory at the Battle of the Saintes. In that battle, Admiral Rodney defeated the French fleet. This stopped the French from joining the Spanish. By the end of April, the British Royal Navy had become much stronger in the Caribbean Sea.
Because of this, Governor Campbell gave Edward Marcus Despard permission to take back the Black River settlement. He learned that Lawrie had a group of people ready to fight back.
The Battle Begins
Lawrie managed to gather about 800 local people. These included the Rattan (Roatan) and Black River Volunteers and Miskitos. They were in the Cape Gracias a Dios area. These groups bothered the Spanish soldiers using surprise attacks, like guerrilla warfare.
Despard arrived from Jamaica. He landed at Cape Gracias a Dios. He brought soldiers from the Loyal American Rangers, a group of Loyalist fighters. They met up with Lawrie and his group near the mouth of the Plantain River.
Their combined force was strong. It included 80 Loyalist Americans, 500 settlers (people from the shore and freed slaves), and 600 Miskitos. In total, there were about 1,200 men. A group of British Royal Navy ships and armed merchant ships were also ready to help. Despard attacked the Spanish quickly to surprise them.
Meanwhile, many Spanish soldiers at Black River had become sick. This happened since they captured the settlement in early April. At a place called Quipriva, there was a small Spanish group of 75 soldiers. They were surprised by Despard's forces. Almost all of them were killed or captured. Only one survivor, Manuel Rivas, escaped to warn other Spanish soldiers.
Finally, on August 22, Despard surrounded Caribe at Black River Bluff. This was across from the Eastern blockhouse. He overwhelmed the 140 Spanish soldiers there. They gave up after a short fight.
A day after this surrender, a Spanish ship was captured. It was a 16-gun polacre from Trujillo. It was carrying 100 more soldiers and supplies for the Spanish. The small British group of ships captured it just off the coast. The rest of the Spanish force from Gálvez's April trip surrendered by the end of August. Don Tomás Julia offered terms of surrender to Despard, who accepted them.
What Happened Next
Lawrie and Despard had successfully taken back control of Black River. They captured more than 27 Spanish officers and 715 regular soldiers. They also took three flags, which were later shown to King George III in November. They also captured 33 cannons.
Most of the captured Spanish soldiers agreed not to fight again until the war ended. They were sent to Omoa. Lawrie and Despard decided to stay and protect the area. They were worried the Spanish might try to attack again.
Juan de Cagigal, the Governor of Havana, learned about the defeat. He was not happy with Gálvez and was about to remove him from command. Gálvez asked for more soldiers, but the governor did not send any.
At this time, the Spanish and their French allies were mostly defending their positions. Their plans had changed after the Battle of the Saintes. Spanish leaders became very worried about attacks. They focused on defending Havana and San Juan, Puerto Rico. This was more important than attacking new places.
Other military actions by Spain and France in the Americas were also put on hold. This was because they were focusing on fighting in Europe, especially at Gibraltar. Also, peace talks were happening in Europe. British forces used this chance to their advantage. They recaptured the Bahamas in 1783. Lawrie and Despard held onto the British settlements on the Mosquito Coast until the war ended.
For his efforts, Despard was given an important job. He became the Superintendent of the Bay of Honduras. For several years, he governed the area that later became Belize.
See also
