At the end of December 1779, a large fleet sailed from Great Britain under the command of Admiral Sir George Brydges Rodney, being one of the purposes of this British fleet to resupply Gibraltar, a place that was blocked by land and sea by the Spaniards. During the trip, Rodney intercepted a Spanish convoy of the Royal Guipuzcoan Company of Caracas at Cape Finisterre on 8 January 1780, capturing it completely.