page_title: Action of 14 September 1779
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Action of 14 September 1779 / Background
context_page_description: The Action of 14 September 1779 was a minor naval engagement that occurred on 14 September 1779, off the Azores between the Royal Navy frigate HMS Pearl under the command of George Montagu and the Spanish Navy frigate Santa Mónica under the command of Miguel de Nunes, with the Pearl capturing the Santa Mónica after a brief engagement. The battle was an episode during the American Revolutionary War, where American rebels under the overall command of George Washington launched a revolution against the British government based on perceived grievances. Spain, having been handed a humiliating defeat during the Seven Years' War by the British, was eager to enter the war on the side of the Americans to regain the territories they had lost, such as Florida, Menorca and Gibraltar. British and Spanish naval forces engaged each other several times during the war, as the conflict spilled over into Europe with the Spanish laying siege to Gibraltar.
  In September 1779, three years into the war, George Montagu set sail on his newly commissioned ship, HMS Pearl, on a cruise in the eastern fringes of the Atlantic Ocean.
context_section_description: In the aftermath of the Seven Years' War, Spain was forced to cede Florida and Menorca in the Treaty of Paris to the British, gaining back Havana and Manila in return. The war marked a humiliating downfall from the height of Spanish military ascendancy during the War of the Austrian Succession, and forced the King of Spain Charles III to undergo a military review of his armed forces. This resulted in a massive reorganization of the Spanish military from the top down. Spain entered the American Revolutionary War on the side of the Americans, eager to avenge their earlier defeat, and laid siege to Gibraltar along with dispatching expeditions to re-capture Florida and Menorca. The Royal Navy dispatched naval forces to the Atlantic Ocean to resupply the garrison of Gibraltar and ensure Spanish forces did not hold command of the seas, which would have certainly led to the capture of the "gateway to the Mediterranean".
  Since July 1779, the Spanish Navy had conducted naval patrols near the Azores to search for British ships in the area. The force dispatched consisted of a small squadron of warships under the command of Lieutenant-general Don Antonio de Ulloa. The ships under his command were made up of four ships of the line: his 80-gun flagship Fenix (famed for bringing the young Charles III from Naples to Barcelona), Gallardo, Diligent and San Julián, and the frigates Santa Maria and Santa Mónica. The British commander, George Montagu, had received his first command in 1771 at the age of 21. in 1779, he was given command of the newly laid down frigate HMS Pearl, and was ordered by the Admiralty to conduct naval patrols in the region as well. On 14 September, while Montagu was cruising off the Azores in the early hours of the morning, he spotted a large Spanish ship. He gave to order to give chase to the ship, and after a two-hour chase caught up to her and identified her as a Spanish frigate, with both ships readying themselves for the ensuing battle.
caption: A portrait of the British commander, George Montagu, by Thomas Beach.
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