War of Jenkins' Ear

War of Jenkins' Ear
	Part of the War of the Austrian Succession
	; Trade map of the West Indies and North America during the war, 1741
Date	22 October 1739 – 18 October 1748
Location	New Granada and the Caribbean; Florida–Georgia; Pacific and Atlantic
Result	Status quo ante bellum (see aftermath);
Belligerents
British Empire	Spanish Empire
Commanders and leaders
Sir Robert Walpole #; Lord Wilmington #; Henry Pelham; Edward Vernon; Chaloner Ogle; George Anson; Charles Knowles; Thomas Wentworth; James Oglethorpe; Lord Cathcart #;	Philip V #; Ferdinand VI; Sebastián de Eslava; Blas de Lezo #; Manuel de Montiano; Andrés Reggio; Gabriel de Zuloaga;
Casualties and losses
20,000 dead and wounded, majority from disease outbreaks; 407 ships lost	4,500 dead, ; 5,000 wounded, ; 186 ships lost[citation needed]

The War of Jenkins' Ear (Spanish: Guerra del Asiento, lit. 'War of the Agreement') was a conflict lasting from 1739 to 1748 between Britain and Spain. The majority of the fighting took place in New Granada and the Caribbean Sea, with major operations largely ended by 1742. It was related to the 1740 to 1748 War of the Austrian Succession. The name was coined in 1858 by British historian Thomas Carlyle,^[3] and refers to Robert Jenkins, captain of the British brig Rebecca, whose ear was allegedly severed by Spanish coast guards while searching his ship for contraband in April 1731.

Response to the incident was tepid until opposition politicians in the British Parliament, backed by the South Sea Company, used it seven years later to incite support for a war against Spain, hoping to improve British trading opportunities in the Caribbean.^[4] They also wanted to retain the lucrative Asiento de Negros, a contract issued by Spain to British merchants granting them permission to sell slaves in Spanish America, which is why the Spanish call it the Guerra del Asiento.^[5] The failed British attack at the Battle of Cartagena de Indias in 1741 resulted in heavy British casualties, primarily from disease and was not repeated.^[6]

Apart from minor fighting in Florida, Georgia and Havana, after 1742 the conflict was largely subsumed into the War of the Austrian Succession, which involved most of the powers of Europe, and ended with the 1748 Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. Great Britain failed to achieve its territorial and economic ambitions,^[7] and Spain successfully defended its possessions in the Americas.^[8]^[9] The war is remembered in British naval history for Admiral George Anson's voyage around the world from 1740 to 1744.

^ Bemis, Samuel Flagg (1965). A Diplomatic History of the United States. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. p. 8.
^ Newman, Gerald; Brown, Leslie Ellen (13 November 1997). Britain in the Hanoverian Age, 1714-1837: An Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780815303961. All in all, the war cost Britain 20,000 casualties and 407 ships, primarily merchantmen, in exchange for little commercial or strategic gain.
^ Carlyle discusses Jenkins' Ear in several passages of his History of Friedrich II(1858), most notably in Book XI, chap VI, where he refers specifically to "the War of Jenkins' Ear"
^ Graboyes & Hullar 2013, pp. 368–372.
^ Olson 1996, pp. 1121–1122.
^ Webb 2013, pp. 396–398.
^ "Spain's fortifications, fleet and merchant marine were able to repel Great Britain's offensive. England's design to detach the Americas from the Spanish monarchy failed, for the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which ended the war in 1748, left the Spanish empire intact while cancelling British trading privileges in Spanish territory". Chavez, Thomas E.: Spain and the Independence of the United States: An Intrinsic Gift. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2004, p. 4. ISBN 9780826327949
^ "The Spanish archives reveal that Spain was not prepared for war but willing to take measures to defend her colonies in America. Her men fought well, and for the most part successfully, when the chips were down. That they were aided, in part, by English errors and indecision, should not detract from their victories". Naval History (1680 - 1850), edited by Richard Harding, 2006
^ Ogelsby 1970

[1] Bemis, Samuel Flagg (1965). A Diplomatic History of the United States. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. p. 8.

[2] Newman, Gerald; Brown, Leslie Ellen (13 November 1997). Britain in the Hanoverian Age, 1714-1837: An Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780815303961. All in all, the war cost Britain 20,000 casualties and 407 ships, primarily merchantmen, in exchange for little commercial or strategic gain.

[3] Carlyle discusses Jenkins' Ear in several passages of his History of Friedrich II(1858), most notably in Book XI, chap VI, where he refers specifically to "the War of Jenkins' Ear"

[FOOTNOTEGraboyesHullar2013368–372-4] Graboyes & Hullar 2013, pp. 368–372.

[FOOTNOTEOlson19961121–1122-5] Olson 1996, pp. 1121–1122.

[FOOTNOTEWebb2013396–398-6] Webb 2013, pp. 396–398.

[7] "Spain's fortifications, fleet and merchant marine were able to repel Great Britain's offensive. England's design to detach the Americas from the Spanish monarchy failed, for the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which ended the war in 1748, left the Spanish empire intact while cancelling British trading privileges in Spanish territory". Chavez, Thomas E.: Spain and the Independence of the United States: An Intrinsic Gift. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2004, p. 4. ISBN 9780826327949

[8] "The Spanish archives reveal that Spain was not prepared for war but willing to take measures to defend her colonies in America. Her men fought well, and for the most part successfully, when the chips were down. That they were aided, in part, by English errors and indecision, should not detract from their victories". Naval History (1680 - 1850), edited by Richard Harding, 2006

[9] Ogelsby 1970

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

v t e War of Jenkins' Ear
Americas Portobello Fort Mosé St. Augustine Anson expedition Cartagena de Indias 1st Santiago de Cuba Panama Georgia Bloody Marsh Gully Hole Creek La Guaira Puerto Cabello Matina 2nd Santiago de Cuba Brunswick Havana Europe 8 April 1740 Fuerteventura Saint Tropez Mataró and Palamós Cape Sicié Villafranca Glorioso campaign 18 March 1748
Part of the War of the Austrian Succession