Wager's Action facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Wagers Action |
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the War of the Spanish Succession | |||||||
 Action off Cartagena, 28 May 1708, Samuel Scott |
|||||||
|
|||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Great Britain |
 Spain France |
||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Charles Wager |
José de Santillán † Jean du Casse |
||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 5 ships of the line 1 fireship |
3 galleons 1 hulk 14 merchant ships |
||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 14 killed or wounded | 1,247 killed or wounded 1 galleon captured 1 galleon destroyed 1 hulk scuttled |
||||||
Wager's Action was an important sea battle that happened on June 8, 1708. It was fought between a British fleet led by Charles Wager and the Spanish treasure fleet. This battle was part of a bigger conflict called the War of the Spanish Succession. The British won this fight against the Spanish ships.
Contents
What Led to the Battle
In the spring of 1708, Charles Wager was on a mission in the Caribbean Sea. He had a group of four ships with him:
- Expedition (70 guns), led by Captain Henry Long
- Kingston (60 guns), led by Captain Simon (Timothy) Bridges
- Portland (50 guns), led by Captain Edward Windsor
- Vulture (28 guns), a special "fire ship" led by Commander Caesar Brooks
In April, Wager's ships got supplies at a small island called Pequeña Barú. This island was only 30 miles from Cartagena. The Spanish knew the British were there. The governor of Cartagena sent warnings to the Spanish fleet, which was docked in Portobelo.
Even with the warnings, the leader of the Spanish treasure fleet, José Fernández de Santillán, decided to sail from Portobelo to Cartagena on May 28. He had to leave soon because the hurricane season was coming. Other ships and their escorts, led by Jean Du Casse, were waiting for him in Havana. They might leave without him.
The Spanish fleet had fourteen merchant ships. It also had a lightly armed hulk (a type of old ship). Three warships were protecting them:
- San José (64 guns), led by Capitan José Fernández de Santillán
- San Joaquín (64 guns), led by Capitan Villanueva
- Santa Cruz (44 guns), led by Capitan de la Rosa
Most of the gold and silver was on the three largest ships. The San José carried a huge amount, about 7 to 11 million pesos. The San Joaquín had 5 million pesos. The Santa Cruz had a smaller amount compared to the other two.
The Battle Begins
The Spanish fleet arrived at Isla de Barú on the evening of June 7 and stopped there. The next day, there was very little wind. Around 3 p.m., they saw Wager's British ships coming closer. The Spanish ships got ready to defend themselves. But the British knew they had to attack the biggest ships because those ships held the most money.
Around 5 p.m., the British ship Kingston attacked the San Joaquín. They fought for two hours. Then, the San Joaquín managed to get away in the dark, with help from another ship called the Concepción.
The British ship Expedition attacked the San José. The Expedition got very close, planning to board (get onto) the Spanish ship. Around 7 p.m., after about 90 minutes of fierce fighting, the two ships were only 60 meters apart. Suddenly, the San José exploded! The ship sank right away. It took its valuable cargo and almost everyone on board to the bottom of the sea. Only 11 people out of 600 crew and passengers survived. José Fernández de Santillán, the Spanish commander, went down with his ship.
It was dark by now, but the moon was full. Wager managed to find the Santa Cruz at 2 a.m. After a short fight, the British captured the Santa Cruz. In this fight, 14 British sailors and 90 Spanish sailors died. However, the Santa Cruz did not have any government treasure. It only had 13 chests of pieces of eight and 14 pigs of silver. These seemed to be private property.
At dawn, the British saw the San Joaquín. Wager ordered the Kingston and Portland to capture it. But after a few shots, the San Joaquín successfully escaped towards Cartagena harbor. The British decided not to follow them. The rest of the Spanish fleet also reached Cartagena safely. The only exception was the hulk Concepción. The British cornered it, and its crew ran the ship onto Baru Island. Then they set the ship on fire.
What Happened After
The British had defeated the three main Spanish treasure ships. They stopped the Spanish fleet from taking gold and silver to Europe. This gold and silver was needed to pay for the war effort of Spain and France. Charles Wager became a rich man from the treasure they captured. However, he was disappointed because they could have captured much more if they had caught the San Joaquín. Captains Bridges and Windsor were put on trial for not capturing the San Joaquín.
The Lost Treasure of the San José
The San José sank with an estimated $1 billion (£662 million) in treasure. This treasure is still at the bottom of the ocean. It was found in 2015. Experts now think it could be worth about 4 billion US dollars. This is because it likely had 7 million Spanish pesos in gold when it sank. Its sister ship, the San Joaquín, which survived, carried a similar amount. The San José is sometimes called the "Holy Grail of Shipwrecks."
A group of investors from the United States, called Sea Search Armada (SSA), said they found the ship in 1981. This was off the coast of Colombia. But Colombia did not agree to share the treasure with them. Colombia passed a law saying the state owned all the treasure. SSA would only get a small "finder's fee." SSA sued Colombia in court. After many years, in 2007, a Colombian court said the treasure should be split equally. However, SSA's lawsuits in US courts were dismissed. The US court said the ship belonged to the Colombian state. The Colombian government has not confirmed if the ship was at the coordinates SSA gave.
On November 27, 2015, the Colombian Navy officially found the galleon San José. The President of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos, announced the discovery on December 5. They found it using a special underwater robot called a REMUS 6000. There is no doubt about the ship's identity. From underwater photos, Colombian experts saw unique bronze cannons with dolphins carved on them. This proved it was the San José. Colombia has claimed the ship as part of its underwater history. The exact location of the ship is a state secret.
Images for kids
-
Charles Wager's Engagement with the Fleet of Spanish Men of War and Galleons off of Cartagena on 28 May 1708
See also
In Spanish: Batalla de Barú para niños
