1779 minor naval engagement of the European theater of the American Revolutionary War
A small Royal Navy frigate captured a larger Spanish merchant vessel in the Atlantic, seizing a cargo of copper, cocoa, and other valuables for Britain.
Key Facts
- Date of action
- 20 November 1779
- Duration of engagement
- Nearly 45 minutes
- Spanish casualties (killed)
- 27 men
- British casualties (killed)
- 4 men
- Spanish ship's guns mounted
- 26 twelve-pounders (pierced for 64)
- Spanish crew size
- 120 sailors and marines
By the Numbers
Cause → Event → Consequence
On 19 November 1779, HMS Hussar and HMS Chatham were escorting a trade convoy from Lisbon to England when they spotted a two-decked vessel sailing away from the convoy. Suspecting it was hostile, both ships immediately gave chase, with HMS Hussar closing the distance by the following morning.
HMS Hussar came alongside the Spanish register ship Nuestra Señora del Buen Consejo, which flew the Spanish flag and mounted 26 guns. Holding the weather gage, Hussar raked the Spanish vessel with broadsides for nearly 45 minutes. Recognizing further resistance as futile, the Spanish crew surrendered, suffering 27 killed and 8 wounded against British losses of 4 killed and 10 wounded.
The captured Buen Consejo and her cargo of copper, pewter, cocoa, Jesuit's bark, minerals, and private goods were taken to England by the British. The ship's crew, save for the dead and wounded, were taken prisoner. The episode provided Britain with both a military prize and commercially valuable goods during the ongoing war with Spain.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Captain Elliot Salter.
Side B
1 belligerent