Spain and the American Revolutionary War facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Anglo-Spanish War (1779–1783)
Part of the American Revolutionary War
Bernardo de Gálvez at the siege of Pensacola, painting by Augusto Ferrer-Dalmau
Date June 1779 – September 1783 Location English Channel, Straits of Gibraltar, Balearic Islands, Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, The Bahamas, Central America, Louisiana, Alabama, Missouri, Illinois, Florida, Arkansas Result Spanish victory Treaty of Versailles Territorial changes East Florida, West Florida, and Minorca ceded to Spain
Belligerents
Spanish Empire	British Empire
Commanders and leaders
Bernardo de Gálvez, Matías de Gálvez, Luis de Córdova y Córdova, Juan de Lángara	George Brydges Rodney, Richard Howe, George Augustus Eliott, John Campbell

The Anglo-Spanish War (1779–1783) was a big conflict between Spain and Great Britain. It happened at the same time as the American Revolutionary War, where the American colonies fought for their freedom from Britain. Spain joined the war as an ally of France, which was already helping the Americans.

Spain played a very important part in helping the United States become independent. Spanish forces attacked British areas in the southern parts of North America. They famously captured West Florida from Britain during the siege of Pensacola. This victory helped protect the southern supply routes for the Americans. It also stopped Britain from attacking the western frontier of the United States through the Mississippi River. Spain also sent money, supplies, and weapons to the American forces.

Starting in 1776, Spain helped fund a trading company called Roderigue Hortalez and Company. This company provided important military supplies to the Americans. Spain also helped pay for the final siege of Yorktown in 1781. They collected gold and silver in Havana, which was then part of Spanish Cuba. Spain and France were allies through a special agreement called the Bourbon Family Compact. This war was a chance for them to fight their common enemy, Great Britain. In 1777, the Count of Floridablanca, a top Spanish minister, wrote that Spain cared a lot about the American colonies and would help them as much as possible.

How Spain Helped the United States (1776–1778)

Spain helped the new American nation in a few main ways. Supplies came from French ports, funded by Rodrigue Hortalez and Company. Goods also traveled through the port of New Orleans and up the Mississippi River. Other supplies came from warehouses in Havana and from Bilbao, Spain, through the Gardoqui family's trading company.

Spain gave loans to the United States to buy war supplies. The House of Gardoqui provided many important items. They supplied the Americans with 215 bronze cannons, 30,000 muskets, and 30,000 bayonets. They also sent over 500,000 musket balls, 300,000 pounds of gunpowder, and 12,868 grenades. On top of that, they gave 30,000 uniforms and 4,000 field tents during the war.

Smuggling supplies from New Orleans started in 1776. General Charles Lee sent two American officers to ask the New Orleans Governor, Luis de Unzaga, for help. Governor Unzaga didn't want to openly upset the British. So, he agreed to secretly help the American rebels. He allowed a shipment of much-needed gunpowder. This deal was arranged by Oliver Pollock, an American supporter and financier. When Bernardo de Gálvez became Governor of New Orleans in January 1777, he continued and even increased these supply operations.

In March 1777, American diplomat Benjamin Franklin reported from Paris. He said that the Spanish court quietly allowed American ships into the rich port of Havana. This port was usually restricted. Franklin also noted that three thousand barrels of gunpowder were waiting in New Orleans. Merchants in Bilbao also had orders to ship any necessary items the Americans needed.

Why Spain Declared War

Before joining the war against Britain, Spain had a successful conflict with Portugal (1776-77). In 1777, Spain gained Uruguay and other territories from Portugal. In 1778, Spain also gained Equatorial Guinea. With these agreements, Portugal left the war. Later, Portugal even joined a group of neutral countries to resist Britain.

Jerónimo Grimaldi, 1st Duke of Grimaldi, a Spanish diplomat, explained Spain's position. He told American diplomat Arthur Lee that Spain was not ready to declare war yet. Spain was still fighting Portugal, France was not fully prepared, and Spanish cargo ships from South America had not arrived. However, Grimaldi assured Lee that supplies like clothing and gunpowder were being stored for the Americans in New Orleans and Havana. More blankets were also being gathered in Bilbao.

By June 1779, Spain had finished its war preparations. Britain seemed to be struggling at that time. Spain then joined France in the war, following a treaty they signed in April 1779 called the Treaty of Aranjuez.

Fighting in Europe

Spain's main goals in Europe were to get back Gibraltar and Menorca. Britain had controlled these places since 1704. Spain also wanted to hurt British trade using privateer ships.

The Great Siege of Gibraltar lasted a very long time, from June 16, 1779, to February 7, 1783. Even though the combined Spanish and French army was huge (33,000 soldiers at one point), the British forces inside the fortress held strong. They were led by George Augustus Elliott. British ships were able to resupply Gibraltar by sea three times.

The combined Spanish and French forces had more success with the invasion of Menorca in 1781. Menorca surrendered the next year. After the war, Menorca was given back to Spain. This happened almost 80 years after Britain first captured it. In 1780 and 1781, the Spanish fleet led by Luis de Córdova y Córdova captured British supply ships heading to America. This caused a lot of damage to British military supplies and trade.

Battles in the West Indies and Gulf Coast

In the Caribbean, Spain focused on stopping Britain from landing troops in Cuba. They remembered when Britain captured Havana during the Seven Years' War. Other goals included taking back Spanish Florida (which Britain had split into West Florida and East Florida in 1763). They also wanted to settle arguments about British logging in Belize.

On the mainland, the governor of Spanish Louisiana, Bernardo de Gálvez, led many successful attacks. He fought against British forts in the Mississippi Valley. First, he captured Fort Bute at Bayou Manchac. Then, he forced the surrender of Baton Rouge, Natchez, and Mobile in 1779 and 1780.

A hurricane stopped an attempt to capture Pensacola in 1780. Pensacola was the capital of British West Florida. But in 1781, Gálvez's forces won a major victory against the British at the Battle of Pensacola. This gave Spain control of all of West Florida. This win secured the southern route for supplies for the Americans. It also stopped Britain from attacking the western frontier of the United States through the Mississippi River.

When Spain joined the war, Britain also attacked in the Caribbean. They planned an expedition against Spanish Nicaragua. A British attempt to gain a foothold at San Fernando de Omoa was stopped in October 1779. An expedition in 1780 against Fort San Juan in Nicaragua was successful at first. However, diseases like yellow fever killed most of the British force. The remaining soldiers then left and returned to Jamaica.

Fighting in the Mississippi Valley

Statue of the Viscount of Galveston in Málaga

After the Seven Years' War, France gave the Mississippi Valley to Spain. This was to prevent Britain from taking control of it. Spain helped the United States in their campaigns in the American Midwest. In January 1778, Virginia Governor Patrick Henry sent George Rogers Clark on an expedition. Clark captured the fort at Vincennes. This helped secure the northern Ohio region for the American rebels.

Clark relied on Governor Gálvez and Oliver Pollock for support. They supplied his soldiers with weapons and ammunition. They also provided credit for food and other needs. The money Pollock used to buy supplies for Clark was supposed to be backed by the state of Virginia. However, Pollock often had to use his own money. Gálvez also allowed Spanish government funds to be used as loans for Pollock. These funds were often delivered secretly by Gálvez's private secretary.

Spanish soldiers in the Louisiana region fought off attacks from British units and their Indian allies. This happened in the Battle of St. Louis in 1780. A year later, a Spanish group traveled through what is now Illinois. They captured Fort St. Joseph in modern-day Michigan. This expedition gave Spain some claim to the Northwest Territory. However, Britain and the United States stopped this claim in their separate peace treaty in 1783.

Spain's Help at Yorktown

Spain also helped during the siege of Yorktown in 1781. This was a very important and final major battle of the war in North America. French General Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau asked for urgent help. He needed money in the Caribbean to pay for the Yorktown campaign.

With the help of Spanish agent Francisco Saavedra de Sangronis, the needed cash was raised. Over 500,000 silver pesos were collected in Havana, Cuba, in just 24 hours. This money was used to buy important supplies for the siege. It also paid the soldiers of the American Continental Army.

The Antilles War: A Costly Expedition

After Spain joined the war, Major General John Dalling, the British governor of Jamaica, planned an expedition in 1780. He wanted to attack the Spanish province of Nicaragua. The goal was to sail up the San Juan River to Lake Nicaragua. Then, they would capture the town of Granada. This would effectively cut Spanish America in half. It would also give Britain possible access to the Pacific Ocean. However, this expedition turned out to be a very costly disaster due to disease and supply problems.

The expedition left Jamaica on February 3, 1780. It was escorted by Captain Horatio Nelson, who was only 21 years old. Nelson was the highest-ranking naval officer, but his power was only for naval operations. The overall commander was Captain John Polson. Polson had about 300-400 regular soldiers and several hundred local recruits.

After many delays, the expedition started moving up the San Juan River on March 17, 1780. On April 9, Nelson led an attack that captured a Spanish fort on Bartola Island. The siege of Fort San Juan began on April 13. This fort had about 150 armed defenders.

Because of poor planning and lost supplies, the British quickly ran low on ammunition and food. When the tropical rains started on April 20, soldiers began to get sick and die. They likely suffered from malaria, dysentery, and possibly typhoid fever. Nelson himself got sick and was sent downriver on April 28. The Spanish surrendered the fort the next day.

About 450 British reinforcements arrived on May 15. But the local recruits left the expedition because of illness and unhappiness. Even though Dalling tried to gather more soldiers, sickness continued to kill many. The expedition was finally given up on November 8, 1780. The Spanish took back the remains of the fort after the British blew it up. In total, more than 2,500 men died. This made the San Juan expedition the most costly British disaster of the entire war.

Following these successes, a Spanish force captured the Bahamas in 1782 without a fight. In 1783, Gálvez was getting ready to invade Jamaica from Cuba. However, these plans were stopped when Britain asked for peace.

The Peace of Paris Treaty

The changes Spain made after its poor performance in the Seven Years' War generally worked well. As a result, Spain kept Menorca and West Florida in the Treaty of Paris. They also got back East Florida. However, the lands east of the Mississippi River were recognized as part of the newly independent United States of America.

Spain's Role in the Victory

France's involvement was key to Britain's defeat. Spain's help was also very important. By becoming allies with other countries, the United States used the power struggles in Europe to their advantage. They basically formed a united front against Britain.

The new American nation wanted to spread its ideas of republicanism. This could threaten Spain's own colonies, and it later did during the Latin American wars of independence. Still, Spain continued to support the Americans throughout the war. They did this to protect their own interests around the world. Historian Thomas A. Bailey said that Spain was interested in fighting England to get back land and get revenge. However, Spain was also worried about a strong, independent American republic. Such a new country might try to take Spanish land in the Mississippi Valley or even Spain's colonies in the New World.

What Happened After the War

Spain's involvement in the American Revolutionary War was seen as a success. Spain took a risk by joining the war. They bet on Great Britain being weak because it was fighting its rebellious colonies in North America. Britain was also fighting a global war on many fronts against several major powers. This situation helped Spain gain some relatively easy victories.

North American borders proposed by the Spanish diplomacy near the end of the American Revolutionary War, August 3rd, 1782

The war boosted Spain's reputation, which had suffered from losses to Britain in the Seven Years' War. Even though Spain's most desired target, Gibraltar, remained out of its reach, Spain gained a lot. They got back Menorca and reduced the British threat to their colonies in the Caribbean. All these gains were very important to Spain.

Spain was seen as getting real benefits from the war, especially compared to its ally, France. The French king had spent huge amounts of soldiers, money, and supplies for little clear military or economic gain. France was left with huge debts that were hard to pay off. These debts would become a major cause of the French Revolution in 1789. Spain, in comparison, paid off its debts more easily. This was partly because silver production from mines in Mexico and Bolivia greatly increased.

One special outcome of the war was that it made Prime Minister Floridablanca more powerful. His government continued to lead Spanish politics until 1792.

Don Diego de Gardoqui, from the Gardoqui trading company that helped the Americans so much, became Spain's first ambassador to the United States in 1784. Gardoqui became good friends with George Washington. He even marched in President Washington's first parade. King Charles III of Spain continued to communicate with Washington. He sent Washington livestock from Spain for his farm at Mount Vernon.

|

See also

In Spanish: Guerra anglo-española (1779-1783) para niños