I have always prided myself on being an
amateur historian, knowing far more than most people. So you can
imagine my surprise when I found out, about ten years ago, that I knew nothing
about one of the most important battles in world history, whose ramifications
echo down to this day.
This is the Battle
of Cartagena de los Indias, fought between the Spanish and British empires
off the coast of present-day Colombia in 1741. It was part of the
War of Jenkin's Ear, a war where Britain's ultimate aim was to break the
Spanish empire and impose a British hegemony over the Western hemisphere.
The war went poorly for the British and is usually considered a
bit of a draw – with a reversion to the status quo ante. Actually,
the British were forced to make concessions to the Spanish, including the loss
of slave trading rights (called the Asiento) in Latin
America.
How often do we hear about Latin victories in America, where it is
usually assumed that the English or Americans always won such engagements?
However, when examined more closely, the War of Jenkin's Ear was
a complete disaster for Britain. Britain suffered casualties two to
three times greater than the Spanish, with a loss of over twice as many
ships. Moreover, the British Navy was humiliated, which had great
ramifications for European affairs.
The signal event in the war was the
British attack on Cartagena, South America, where the British launched
a fleet even larger than the Armada that Spain had hurled against Britain a
century and a half earlier. In fact, it would be the largest naval armada in
history until the Normandy invasion.
After Great Britain declared war on Spain in 1739,
Cartagena quickly became the British forces' top target. [Vice]
Admiral Edward Vernon soon embarked with what was then the largest
transatlantic amphibious fleet ever assembled: a massive train eventually
totaling some 150 ships, carrying 8,000 British soldiers and 4,000
reinforcements from the American colonies, the largest contingent the colonies
ever had sent from the mainland.
Actually, the National Geographic figures are low. They
do not include other British forces. The British were so sure of
their upcoming conquest that they struck medals celebrating their anticipated
victory.
The British outnumbered the Spanish roughly five to one or more,
depending on which source is used. Wikipedia lists
the British forces to include:
27,400-30,000 men
29 ships of the line
22 frigates
71 sloops-of-war
80 troop ships
50 merchant ships
29 ships of the line
22 frigates
71 sloops-of-war
80 troop ships
50 merchant ships
Against the British were:
2,700 Spanish regulars
400 Spanish marines
600 sailors
300 militia
600 native archers
6 ships of the line
numerous shore-based guns
400 Spanish marines
600 sailors
300 militia
600 native archers
6 ships of the line
numerous shore-based guns
Other sources give similar numbers (as this video). What
is clear is that the Spanish stood no chance.
Worse yet, the commander of the Spanish forces was Blas de Lezo, a
Basque with one leg, one arm, and one eye, due to wounds he had received in
wars, often against the British.
But de Lezo, who had lost his leg to British cannon in 1704, was
prepared.
To shorten a long story, de Lezo sank the few ships he had to
prevent the British from entering the port harbor. He dug a
zigzagged trench around Cartagena to withstand British fire. He sent
out two Spanish soldiers to feign a surrender and give false information to the
British troops. De Lezo then sent out Spanish troops to sneak attack
at night. (Click
here for a short video.)
British forces made it to the outer defenses of Cartagena before
disease and poor supplies took their inevitable toll. The British
were forced to retreat. Amazingly, de Lezo had won. One
can get a sense of de Lezo's life and the
disaster that befell the British from this video.
The fighting had lasted 68 days, ended with the British
Royal Navy withdrawing in defeat, after losing 9,500 dead, 7,500 wounded, 1.500
[sic] guns and 50 ships either sank [sic] or badly damaged by enemy fire or
disabled or just abandoned for lack of crews. There were nineteen
ships of the line damaged, four frigates and twenty-seven transports lost. Of
the 3,600 American Minuteman [sic], who had volunteered lured by promises of
land and pillage of mountains of gold, only 300 returned; most died of yellow
fever, dysentery, and outright starvation. Lawrence Washington,
George's brother, was a privileged one who returned back home to renamed [sic]
his Virginia plantation Mount Vernon, after Admiral Vernon.
The Spanish casualties were: 800 dead, 1,200 wounded, 6
ships lost. The forts and castles of Bocachica, Castillo Grande
Castle and Manzanillo battery were completely destroyed.
This was horrific for the English, they were completely
humiliated. The largest operation of the Royal Navy so far resulted in the
greatest defeat of her history.
Vice Admiral Vernon would go on to recapitulate this defeat with a
subsequent botched conquest of Cuba.
When news of the gigantic British defeat got back to Europe,
Britain was humiliated. Suddenly, Britain's enemies during the War
of Austrian Succession were given a respite. Eventually, the British
had to accept a rough draw.
British plans for the conquest of Spanish America were
thwarted. Lawrence Washington – George's older half-brother – was
one of the few colonial troops to survive. Lawrence had to have
brought back to the colonies that news that Britain was not as invincible as
formerly thought. This no doubt must have consoled George Washington
in his darker moments during the Revolution.
It is claimed – and also disputed – that King George II prohibited
the publishing of the British defeat, and therein may be a story about the
18th-century British Deep State. The losing naval commander, Vice
Admiral Edward Vernon, was treated as a hero and later promoted to a full admiral,
while finally being given full burial honors at Westminster Cathedral, with
this engraved on his tomb:
He subdued Chagre, and at Carthagena conquered as far as
naval forces could carry victory[.]
With such a denial of history, one has to wonder if Edward Vernon
was a progenitor of some Democratic politicians.
On the other side, de Lezo would succumb to typhus a few months
later. Unbelievably, the Spanish government blamed him for sinking
his ships without engaging the English Navy directly. Apparently,
humiliating the British was not enough.
De Lezo's grave would be forgotten and lost.
The victory secured American trade to Spain over 60
years. Britain never returned, neither [sic] appeared in front of
Cartagena de Indias Bay. Spanish rule of the seas was so hegemonic
that not only the Caribbean Sea but the Atlantic Ocean itself became a Spanish
lake again. The Spanish could freely fly their flag on the Atlantic
Ocean for 60 years.
This would not be the same after Trafalgar, when the
British became the Lords of the Sea.
But victors write history, and the British who were ascendant in
the 18th and later 19th century must have made little note of the battle – as
demonstrated by Vernon's tomb. The British Deep State – which had
worked to suppress the news – had won. This is why few Americans
know of it.
Blas de Lezo's forces, who should go down in history as the
equivalent of the men at the Alamo or the Spartans at Thermopylae – even more
so, as they won the battle – are barely known outside
Colombia. Again, this is no doubt due to British ascendancy in the
19th century.
A similar effect can be seen regarding present American histories
of the Napoleonic Wars, where American historians seem to adopt the British
view of Napoleon rather than understanding him from the contemporary American
viewpoint, which was to view Napoleon with disdain but to remember that
Britain, not France, was the enemy.
The Spanish gave de Lezo begrudging recognition over
time. His son inherited a peerage. A bust of de Lezo was
raised in San Sebastián in the Basque country, and a
frigate was named after him. However, it was only in 2014
that Madrid finally gave de Lezo the honor that was due him with a
full statue in the Plaza Colón.
What brought de Lezo's memory back was the
internet. Videos started appearing, and the world rediscovered the
incredible triumph of this preternatural Basque. Slowly, the word is
getting out.
Do not kid yourself: de Lezo's victory weakened the British, and
probably distantly contributed to the American victory in the
Revolution. It also contributed to the failure of the British to lay
a full claim on the Falkland Islands until the 19th century, which is why
Argentina counter-claims the islands. The British were famous for
grabbing major ports on every continent, except South America, where all they
got was the backwater of British Guiana...thanks to Blas de Lezo.
What is more important is how we allow official sources to control
our view of history and of the world. Since American Thinker readers
are an educated lot, I have to assume that some of you knew of Blas de Lezo,
but I also have to assume that for some of you, this is the first time you have
heard of him. So it was for me, a few years earlier.
This should not be so. Blas de Lezo is actually a giant
of history, who was almost forgotten, thanks to Deep States in both Britain and
Spain. Consider what else is being hidden from you!
Mike Konrad is the pen name of an American
who wishes he had availed himself more fully of the opportunity to learn
Spanish better in high school, lo those many decades ago. He runs a
website about the Arab community in South America at http://latinarabia.com and
a website about small computers at http://thetinydesktop.com.
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/02/an_18thcentury_hero_versus_the_deep_state.html