A Dutch victory near Livorno during the First Anglo-Dutch War that neutralized an English Mediterranean squadron.
Key Facts
- Date (Julian)
- 4 March 1653
- Date (Gregorian)
- 14 March 1653
- Dutch commander
- Commodore Johan van Galen
- English commander
- Captain Henry Appleton
- Outcome
- Dutch victory; Appleton's squadron captured
- Secondary English force
- Captain Richard Badiley, forced to withdraw
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
During the First Anglo-Dutch War, English naval forces in the Mediterranean were divided into separate squadrons. Captain Henry Appleton's squadron sought to rendezvous with Captain Richard Badiley's force, but a Dutch squadron under Commodore Johan van Galen intercepted Appleton before the junction could be made.
On 4 March 1653 (OS), near Leghorn (Livorno), Italy, the Dutch squadron under Van Galen engaged and defeated Appleton's English squadron. The battle ended with the capture of the last ships of Appleton's force. Badiley's squadron arrived only in time to witness the final captures, being too outnumbered to intervene.
Appleton's squadron was effectively destroyed, with its surviving ships captured by the Dutch. Badiley was compelled to retreat to Porto Longone, leaving the Dutch in control of the engagement's outcome and weakening English naval presence in the Mediterranean during the war.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Commodore Johan van Galen.
Side B
1 belligerent
Captain Henry Appleton, Captain Richard Badiley.