Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes facts for kids
The sinking of Mercedes
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Quick facts for kids History |
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| Name | Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes |
| Launched | Havana, Cuba, 1786 |
| Fate | Sunk by the British 5 October 1804 |
| Notes | Thought to be the wreck discovered by Odyssey Marine Exploration, codenamed "Black Swan" |
| General characteristics | |
| Armament | 36 guns |
Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes (which means Our Lady of Mercy in English) was a Spanish Navy ship. It was a type of warship called a frigate. This ship sank off the coast of Portugal on October 5, 1804, during a battle.
Contents
The Ship's Last Journey
When the ship sank, Spain and England were not at war. The Spanish frigate Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes was part of a small group of ships. They were sailing from Montevideo, which is in Uruguay, to Cadiz, a city in Spain.
These ships were carrying important cargo. They had silver, gold, and other valuable goods like vicuña wool, cinnamon, and quinoa. The other ships in this group were named Medea, Santa Clara, and Fama.
The Battle at Sea
A group of British warships, led by Graham Moore on HMS Indefatigable, stopped the Spanish ships. The British told the Spanish ships to change direction and go to a British port for inspection.
The Spanish commander, José de Bustamante y Guerra, said no. He explained that their countries were at peace. He refused to follow the order and prepared his ships for battle. Even though the Spanish ships had fewer guns and fewer ships, they were ready to fight.
A single shot from a British ship, HMS Amphion, hit the Mercedes. The shot struck the ship's powder room, where gunpowder was stored. This caused a huge explosion that sank the ship.
After the Sinking
About 250 Spanish sailors died when the ship exploded and sank. Only 51 people survived and were rescued from the sea. They were taken as prisoners by the British. The other three Spanish ships were taken to Britain.
The sinking of Mercedes was a big event. It led to a war between Spain and Britain. Many people compare it to the sinking of the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor. Both events caused many deaths and started wars.
Finding the Sunken Treasure
In 2007, a company called Odyssey Marine Exploration announced they had found a very rich shipwreck. They called it the "Black Swan" project. From this wreck, Odyssey recovered almost 500,000 silver and gold coins. They took these coins to the United States.
Spanish researchers quickly realized that the ship Odyssey found was Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes. The Spanish government then started a legal fight. They believed Odyssey's actions were illegal looting.
Who Owns the Treasure?
Peru also tried to claim the treasure. They said the gold and silver had originally been taken from Peru by the Spanish. However, a court decided that the Spanish government was the rightful owner. At the time the ship sank, Peru was a Spanish colony. It was not a separate country. So, Peru had no legal right to the treasure.
A U.S. court and a higher court agreed with Spain. They said Spain owned the contents of the ship. In February 2012, Spain took control of the treasure. A small number of coins and items were kept in Gibraltar at first. These items showed signs of an explosion, which helped prove the wreck was indeed the Mercedes. These items were returned to Spain in 2013.
On December 2, 2012, the 14.5 tons of gold and silver coins were moved. They were taken to the National Museum of Subaquatic Archaeology in Cartagena, Spain. There, they are being studied and put on permanent display.
Showing the Treasure
The Spanish Naval Museum and the National Archaeological Museum of Spain showed the recovered treasure. The exhibition was called "The last trip of the frigate Mercedes. A recovered cultural treasure." It ran from June to December 2014.
In 2015, the Spanish government sent archaeologists to study the shipwreck. They found that Odyssey had damaged parts of the ship when they took out the coins.
See also
- Cabo de Santa Maria (Faro)
- List of Spanish sail frigates
- Black Swan Project
- In Spanish: Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes (1786) para niños
