Battle of Lagos ( 1693 ) The Battle of Lagos was a sea battle during the Nine Years ' War on 27 June 1693 ( 17 June 1693 O . S . ) , when a French fleet under Anne Hilarion de Tourville defeated an Anglo - Dutch fleet under George Rooke . Rooke ' s squadron was protecting the ' Smyrna convoy ' , and it is by this name that the action is sometimes known . Prelude . In the spring of 1693 , a large convoy was organized to transport English and Dutch merchant ships which were bound for Spain and the Mediterranean ; they had been held back by the threat of attack by the French fleet , or by commerce raiders . The convoy , consisting of upwards of 200 sail , was to be escorted by a strong squadron of eight English and five Dutch ships of the line , with fireships , scouts and other auxiliaries , under the command of Admiral George Rooke . This squadron was bound for the Mediterranean , to take up station there . The convoy was to be covered by the combined allied fleet for its passage across the Channel , until it was past the port of Brest , to guard against attack by the French stationed there . The fleet , which was also charged with protecting England from the threat of invasion , would then double back to cover the Channel . The French , however , whilst they had made good their losses of the previous year , had abandoned the intent to invade in favour of a " guerre de course " , a war against the allies ' trade and commercial interests . To this end , Louis XIV had dispatched the French fleet under Tourville , his most able commander , to set an ambush for the convoy before it entered the Straits of Gibraltar . By the end of May , Tourville had assembled a fleet of 70 ships of the line , plus fireships , stores vessels and other auxiliaries , about 100 sail in total ; and taken up station near Lagos Bay in Portugal . The convoy sailed at the end of May , with the allied fleet of 24 Dutch warships under Philips van Almonde and 45 English under a leadership committee of Vice Admiral Henry Killigrew , Sir Ralph Delaval and Cloudesley Shovell . By 7 June ( O . S ) the convoy was about 150 miles southwest of Ushant , and the main allied fleet had turned back , leaving Rooke and the convoy to proceed south . The allies had made no move to check where the French fleet was , and received no news of its whereabouts until 17 June ( O . S ) . By this time Rooke and the convoy were in action off Lagos , having been sighted by the French on the morning of 17 June ( O . S ) . The battle . Rooke could not avoid battle , but held the advantage of being to windward . Ordering the merchant ships to disperse , his squadron took up battle positions . The battle started around 8 pm . when the rear of his squadron was overtaken by the French van ( Gabaret ) . < br > Two Dutch ships , " Zeeland " ( 64 , Philip Schrijver ) and " Wapen van Medemblik " ( 64 , Jan van der Poel ) , engaged the French , thus sacrificing themselves . They fought valiantly , giving the rest of the allied ships time enough to escape . When the two Dutch ships finally surrendered , Tourville was very impressed and congratulated the two captains , asking them if they " were men or devils " . < br > Rooke declared it " one of the best judged things I ever saw in action " . The next day Rooke , with 54 merchant ships in company , was standing west . In pursuit were just four French warships . As they closed , Rooke ' s flagship , the " Royal Oak " ( 100 ) guns , turned to face them . After a short exchange they abandoned the chase and drew off . Rooke and his group were able to reach Madeira without further incident , where he found " Monk " ( 60 ) with one of the Dutch warships , and 40 or 50 merchant ships in company . With this party and stragglers collected en route , Rooke was able to reach Ireland on 30 July . Aftermath . Over half of the convoy was saved . Some 90 ships were lost , the majority were Dutch and 40 were captured by the French . The two main goals of the convoy : first , to deliver the traders to their destinations in the Mediterranean and second , to establish a naval presence there , were defeated . For the French there was a huge gain , with prizes valued at 30 million livres . The City of London judged it the worst financial disaster since the Great Fire , 27 years previously . For Tourville it was worthy revenge for his defeat in the Battle of La Hogue one year earlier .