Capture of Minorca (1798)

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Capture of Minorca
Part of the Mediterranean campaign during the War of the Second Coalition
Port Mahon, Minorca with British Men-of-War at Anchor, John Thomas Serres
Date 7–15 November 1798 Location Menorca, Spain 39°57′00″N 4°03′00″E / 39.9500°N 4.0500°E / 39.9500; 4.0500 Result British victory Territorial changes Menorca occupied by the British until 1802
Belligerents
Great Britain	Spain
Commanders and leaders
John Duckworth Charles Stuart	Juan de Quesada
Strength
6,000 20 warships	4,000 8 frigates[1]
Casualties and losses
Light	Light 4,000 captured[2] 4 frigates captured[2]

In November 1798 a British expedition captured the island of Menorca (historically called "Minorca" by the British) from Spain. A large force under General Charles Stuart landed on the island and forced its Spanish garrison to surrender in eight days with only some bloodshed. The British occupied the island for four years, using it as a major naval base, before handing it back to Spain following the Treaty of Amiens.