Key Facts
- British fatalities
- 9,500–11,500 (largely from disease)
- Unit death rates
- Up to 80–90% in some units
- Previous failed attempts
- 2 naval attacks in 1740
- War ended by
- Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, 1748
- Conflict duration
- War of Jenkins' Ear, 1739–1748
Strategic Narrative Overview
The British expedition of March 1741 achieved early successes, destroying the chain barrier at Boca Chica and capturing Fort San Luis. However, a subsequent night assault on Fort San Lazaro was repulsed by Spanish defenders. Disease compounded battlefield losses, and British casualties reached between 9,500 and 11,500 dead, with some units suffering mortality rates of 80 to 90 percent, forcing a full British retreat.
01 / The Origins
The Battle of Cartagena de Indias arose from long-standing commercial tensions between Spain and Great Britain that erupted into the War of Jenkins' Ear in 1739. Britain sought to break Spanish dominance in the Caribbean by capturing key colonial ports, including Porto Bello, Chagres, Havana, and Cartagena de Indias. Two British naval assaults on Cartagena in 1740 had already failed, prompting a larger combined land-and-sea operation in 1741.
03 / The Outcome
The Spanish victory effectively ended British offensive operations in the Caribbean theater. Both powers shifted attention to the broader War of the Austrian Succession. Hostilities between Spain and Britain formally concluded with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748, which restored pre-war territorial boundaries and left Spanish control over Cartagena de Indias intact.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.