Action of 28 November 1751

Action of 28 November 1751
Part of the Spanish-Barbary Wars
Anonymous engraving depicting the final battle between the Dragón and the Danzik
Date November 28 – December 2, 1751 Location Off Cape St Vincent, Atlantic Ocean Result Spanish victory
Belligerents
Spain	Regency of Algiers
Commanders and leaders
Pedro Fitz-James Stuart	Mohammed Chirif
Strength
2 ships of the line	2 ships of the line
Casualties and losses
3 killed 25 wounded[1][2]	194 killed 90 wounded 1 ship of line destroyed[1][2][3]
50 European slaves freed

The action of 28 November 1751 was a naval engagement off Cape St. Vincent between a squadron of two Spanish ships of the line under captain Pedro Fitz-James Stuart and an Algerine squadron of two ships of the line under corsair Mohammed Chirif, which was fought from November 28 to December 2, 1751, and resulted in a victory for the Spanish fleet. The Algerine ships had come from the port of Algiers, and were acting as corsairs, conducting commerce raiding against Christian merchant ships and enslaving their crews. This was part of the Barbary slave trade, where the Barbary states, autonomous vassals of the Ottoman Empire, raided Christian settlements and merchant vessels for slaves to sell in their own cities. The corsairs targeted Spain, a Christian country, and the Spanish Navy was sent to track down the formidable Algerine force of two ships of the line, which posed a significant threat to any Christian vessels in the region. When the fleets sighted each other on November 28, 1751, they found that they were evenly matched with their opposition; both fielded two ships of the line.^[4]

The Spanish navy had been put to sea in the aftermath of the War of the Austrian Succession to ensure that they remained an experienced force. Pedro Fitz-James Stuart sighted the Algerine corsairs off Cape St. Vincent on the coast of Portugal, and moved to engage the two corsairs before they could escape. The Algerine ships, led by Mohammed Chirif commanding the flagship of the Algerine fleet, opened fire on the Spanish ship first, initiating the engagement. However, they then tried to escape back to a safe port, reasoning that they were no match for the trained Spanish crews. The Spanish set their sails in pursuit, and caught up to the Algerine flagship, the Danzik, while the other warship, the Castillo Nuevo, took the opportunity to flee and successfully made it back to a safe port. Fitz-James Stuart's ship, the Dragón, engaged the Danzik over the course of two days, eventually disabling her after heavy fighting. The heavily damaged corsair was removed of the crew and Christian slaves held in the hold before set on fire, as it was too weak to make it back to port. Fitz-James Stuart returned to Spain to applause and recognition from the Spanish Navy.^[4]