Battle of Cádiz ( 1702 ) The Battle of Cádiz , fought in August / September 1702 , was an Anglo - Dutch attempt to seize the southern Spanish port of Cádiz during the War of the Spanish Succession . The Andalusian city of Cádiz was the great European centre of the Spanish – American trade . The port ’ s capture would not only help to sever Spain ’ s links with her empire in the Americas , but it would also provide the Allies with a strategically important base from which the Anglo - Dutch fleets could control the western Mediterranean Sea . The military build - up was accompanied by diplomatic measures in Portugal aimed at securing King Peter II for the Grand Alliance . The Allies also intended to garner support in Spain for an insurrection in the name of the Austrian pretender to the Spanish throne , the Archduke Charles . The battle was the first of the war in the Iberian Peninsula , but due to Allied intra - service rivalry , ill discipline , poor co - operation , and a skilful defence from the Marquis of Villadarias , Admiral George Rooke was unable to complete his objective and , after a month , he set sail for home . Background . On 15 May 1702 the Powers of the Grand Alliance , led by England and the Dutch Republic , declared war on France and Spain . Emperor Leopold I also declared war on the Bourbon powers , but his forces under Prince Eugene had already begun hostilities in northern Italy along the Po Valley in an attempt to secure for Austria the Spanish Duchy of Milan . Eugene ’ s successful 1701 campaign had aroused enthusiasm in England for war against France , and helped Emperor Leopold ’ s efforts in persuading King William III to send an Allied fleet to the Mediterranean Sea . Count Wratislaw , the Emperor ’ s envoy in England , urged that the sight of an Allied fleet in the Mediterranean would effect a revolution in the Spanish province of Naples ; win south Italy from the precarious grip of Philip V ; overawe the Francophile Pope Clement XI ; and encourage the Duke of Savoy – and other Italian princes – to change sides . More modestly , Prince Eugene pleaded for a squadron to protect the passage of his supplies from Trieste across the Adriatic . The English had their own interests in the Mediterranean : the Levant Company needed escorts , and an Allied naval presence could challenge the dominance of King Louis ’ Toulon fleet , an attack on which could deliver a mortal blow to French naval power . It was clear , however , that before the Allies could commit to the Mediterranean strategy , it would first be necessary to secure a base in the Iberian Peninsula . The decision to favour Cádiz – the capture of which would open the Straits , and place in Allied hands the gate to the trade with the New World – was taken before the death of King William III in March 1702 , but the policy was continued under his successor Queen Anne , and her ministers led by the Earl of Marlborough . England ’ s representatives at the Portuguese court in Lisbon , John Methuen and his son Paul , were also clamouring for a strong naval demonstration on the Spanish coast to encourage the wavering King Peter II to annul his recent treaties with France and Spain , and join the Grand Alliance . The Methuens were assisted by Prince George of Hesse - Darmstadt , a cousin of the Empress Eleonora . The Allies hoped that whilst the Methuens negotiated with the Portuguese , the Prince could inspire and even direct the pro - Austrian insurrection in Spain on behalf of the Emperor ’ s youngest son and pretender to the Spanish throne , the Archduke Charles . Prelude . The Anglo - Dutch fleet set sail at the end of July and passed down the Portuguese coast on 20 August . Admiral Rooke commanded 50 warships ( 30 English , 20 Dutch ) , and transports , totalling 160 sail in all ; Ormonde , commander of the troops , had under him 14 , 000 men in total – 10 , 000 English ( including 2 , 400 marines ) , and 4 , 000 Dutch . Yet Rooke had no faith in the expedition : his ships had insufficient victuals for a prolonged campaign , and he had concerns over the French port of Brest which lay between himself and England . Prince George , in his ship the " Adventure " , had joined the fleet at Cape St . Vincent . Both the Prince and Paul Methuen ( who had also joined the expedition ) , reported to Rooke that Cádiz was poorly defended , but the admiral ’ s own intelligence , received from captured fisherman , suggested that a powerful garrison of Spanish regulars had already strengthened the city . Allied doubts about the real strength opposing them were exacerbated by the Spanish stratagem of lighting extensive fires along the heights . Therefore , after the Allied fleet anchored off Cádiz on 23 August , three days were spent in futile discussions before any decision was reached . There were several options for the Allied attack . According to Rooke ’ s journal of 25 August , Sir Stafford Fairborne : Another option for the Allies was to land the army under the cover of a bombardment by the fleet on the isthmus dividing Cádiz from the mainland ; from there , the troops could storm the city . This tactic was Ormonde ’ s preference , but Major - General Sir Charles O ’ Hara insisted that a landing on the isthmus was inadvisable unless the navy could guarantee the landing of supplies on a daily basis , which , because of the lee shore , they could not . Ormonde ’ s second choice was a blockade , supported by a bombardment of the town ; but there was doubt that the ships could anchor close enough for an effective bombardment . In any case , Prince George objected to such a plan for fear of alienating the population . The decision , therefore , was to land the Allied troops between the Bay of Bulls and Fort Saint Catherine . This suited the navy because they could bring their ships near to the shore , and from the beachhead troops could seize the towns of Rota and Port Saint Mary . However , the landing place was a long way from the base of the isthmus on which Cádiz stood . ( " See map below " ) . Don Francisco del Castillo , Marquis of Villadarias was given command in the threatened province of Andalusia . Cádiz , Andalusia ’ s main city , held a garrison of some 300 poorly equipped men with a similar number lining the shore , but the sudden appearance of the Allied fleet engendered a state of emergency , and , in Philip Stanhope ’ s words , ‘ the spirit and determination to repel it ’ . The wealthy cities of Cordova and Seville contributed to the Spanish cause , the nobles took up arms , and the local peasantry were organised into battalions , so that after boosting the city ’ s garrison Villadarias could still muster in the field five or six hundred good horsemen , and several thousand militia . To increase the strength of his position further , the Spanish commander secured the harbour by drawing a strong boom and sinking two large hulks across its entrance . Battle . Landing and looting . The landing took place on 26 August in a fresh wind , resulting in the loss of some 25 landing craft , and 20 men drowned . Fire from a Spanish 4 - gun battery , and a charge from a squadron of cavalry offered resistance to the landing . The foremost ranks of the Allied forces consisted of grenadiers who repulsed the Spanish horsemen . Nevertheless , one of the Allied officers , Colonel James Stanhope , who later became British commander - in - chief in Spain , praised the courage of the English and Spanish troops engaged in the small action , admitting that 200 more such horsemen would have spoiled the Allied descent . From the landing place Ormonde ’ s forces marched on Rota . The town was found deserted ( although after a while the governor and some of the inhabitants returned to greet them ) . The Allies stayed here for two days , disembarking horses and stores . Although military power remained in Anglo - Dutch hands , Prince George had been granted the head of the civil administration in any town occupied by the Allies . He distributed manifestos calling on Spaniards to declare for the House of Austria ; the fact that some came forward to join the Allies at Rota was of value , for the Imperial representative was dependent on local volunteers to make contact with other inhabitants . However , the Spanish authorities had taken severe measures to prevent desertion to the allied cause , threatening with hanging anyone caught in possession of one of Prince George ’ s manifestos . The Allies proceeded to take Fort Saint Catherine , before entering the town of Port Saint Mary . Ormonde ’ s men initially encamped beyond the town , but the mistake was to allow them to return to it . The troops found the town full of unguarded warehouses stuffed full of goods , and the cellars full of wine and brandy , most of which was owned by English and Dutch merchants doing business under Spanish names . The men helped themselves , lost control , and fell to looting , destroying , and plundering , not just the warehouses , but also convents and churches . Prince George despaired and sent home a report damning the conduct of the officers , particularly Ormonde ’ s subordinates , Sir Henry Belasys ( Ormonde ’ s second - in - command ) , O ’ Hara , and the Dutch Baron Sparr , whom he held responsible for persuading Ormonde to quarter the troops in the town . The navy were not at first involved in the looting , but they were soon tempted to take their share . The cause of the Archduke Charles had suffered a serious setback due to the behaviour and misconduct of Ormonde ’ s men , who , according to Trevelyan , plundered Saint Mary to ' the bare walls ' . A local English merchant wrote disparagingly , " our fleet has left such a filthy stench among the Spaniards that a whole age will hardly blot it out . " These excesses ended any hope that the local population would desert Philip V and join with the Allies , and were a boost to Bourbon propaganda . Rooke himself reported that , " the inhumane plundering of Port Saint Mary made a great noise here by sea and land , and will do so throughout Christendom . " Re - embarkation . The immediate effects of the looting were detrimental to the expedition ; the army thought mainly of taking their spoils home and , according to David Francis , lost their combative spirit . For their part , the navy feared for the ships anchored off a lee shore , which in bad weather was dangerous . Nevertheless , the army ' s long march from the landing place to their objective required assistance from the men in Rooke ’ s fleet . Crew members built bridges , cut fascine s , dug trenches , fetched and carried , but , due to sickness , there was never enough labour available . Rooke was eventually obliged to limit these onerous demands on his sailors , declaring that " such slavish labour was not for seamen . " The admiral may have had no choice , but it was a blow to army – navy relations . After the occupation of Port Saint Mary the advance lost momentum . The marshy coast as far as Port Royal was occupied , and the English generals became more recalcitrant . However , Baron Sparr insisted on attacking Fort Matagorda situated on the Puntales ( a sandy spit near the entrance to the inner harbour ) , thus enabling the entry of Rooke ’ s fleet into the anchorage , before destroying the enemy ships within . With 600 Dutch and 1 , 600 English troops , the Allies made a causeway across the deep sand and brought a battery close to the stronghold , but they now found themselves within range of the Franco - Spanish ships anchored behind the boom – commanded by Conde de Fernan Núñez – and in a vulnerable position ; they were also subject to attack from the galley s which still lurked outside the harbour . Villadarias , meanwhile , continued to harass detached Allied parties and cut off their communications ; by a sudden attack he also recaptured Rota whose garrison commander , the former governor , was condemned to death and executed as a traitor . The Allies made little or no progress . Matagorda held out , and after several days Rooke declared that even if the fort was taken , the other stronghold guarding the Puntales entrance would prevent the fleet from navigating the narrow passage . On the 26 September , therefore , facing certain failure , the decision was taken to re - embark the troops . A plan to bombard the city ( against Prince George ’ s wishes ) was abandoned due to bad weather , and , after a further council of war , the fleet left on 30 September . The attempt to seize Cádiz had ended in abject failure . Aftermath . The fact that no Spanish notables had joined the Allies during their time at Cádiz meant a loss of prestige for Prince George ; but he did receive aboard his ship a deputation of Spanish grandees from Madrid which had missed him in Lisbon , and had been ferried over from Faro . The Prince informed Rooke and Ormonde that they were ready to declare for the House of Austria , but they were not prepared to commit themselves unless the Allies could guarantee them adequate support , and leave a force to winter in Spain . This assistance was not forthcoming . There had , however , already been a number of Castilian defections , the most startling of which was that of the Admiral of Castile , Juan de Cabrera , Duke of Rioseco and Count of Melgar . After leaving Madrid on 13 September 1702 , he fled to Portugal where he issued a denunciation of the Bourbon government and entered the service of the Archduke Charles . Ormonde and Prince George wanted to land at another key place in Spain but Rooke , concerned about the autumnal gales , decided to head for England . By now Ormonde and Rooke were barely on speaking terms : the general thought he could have taken Cádiz were it not for Rooke vetoing his plan ; for his part , the admiral had written bitterly to Ormonde regarding the behaviour of the soldiers on shore . However , it was fortunate for Rooke , Ormonde , and the Allied cause , that news of a Spanish silver fleet from America had arrived off the coast of Galicia . The subsequent Battle of Vigo Bay was considerably more successful than the attempt on Cádiz ( although the financial rewards were far less than expected ) , and the victory had taken the edge off the failed expedition . Nevertheless , when the fleet returned to England the House of Lords insisted on an inquiry into the conduct of the Allies at Cádiz . The bad feeling between Rooke and Ormonde had led to hopes of a fruitful inquiry , but the success at Vigo had given the Tories the opportunity to build up Rooke as a hero ; Ormonde was also given a triumphal reception and rallied to the Tory side . The inquiry , therefore , became a party struggle : the Tories glorifying Rooke and Ormonde , whilst the Whigs remained critical . The two Allied commanders made an obdurate joint defence before the House of Lord ’ s Committee . However , a Court - Martial was held into the conduct of Belasys and O ’ Hara . O ’ Hara was cleared but Belasys was dismissed from the service . Both men were expected to lose their regiments , yet Belasys was later reinstated , and O ’ Hara was promoted to lieutenant - general in 1704 .