The action of 6 May 1801 was a minor naval engagement between the 32-gun

xebec A xebec ( or ), also spelled zebec, was a Mediterranean sailing ship that was used mostly for trading. Xebecs had a long overhanging bowsprit and aft-set mizzen mast. The term can also refer to a small, fast vessel of the sixteenth to nineteenth ...

-frigate ''El Gamo'' of the Spanish Navy under the command of Don Francisco de Torres and the much smaller 14-gun

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the ...

under the command of Thomas, Lord Cochrane. ''El Gamo'' was captured despite being four times as large, with much greater firepower and a crew six times the size of ''Speedy'', which had a reduced crew of 54 at the time of the engagement.

Background

In March 1800 Commander Lord Cochrane took command of ''Speedy''; he had been operating in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

and had fought many actions from its base in

Port Mahon A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

Menorca Menorca or Minorca (from la, Insula Minor, , smaller island, later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca. Its capi ...

. ''Speedy'' was cruising off

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

at dawn on 6 May 1801 when a large enemy frigate was sighted. The frigate, a

-rigged vessel named ''Gamo'', commanded by Don Francisco de Torres and carrying 319 men, was armed with 8- and 12-pounder guns, with 24-pounder

carronade A carronade is a short, smoothbore, cast-iron cannon which was used by the Royal Navy. It was first produced by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, and was used from the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century. Its main func ...

s. This amounted to a total broadside of 190 pounds, more than seven times that of ''Speedy''. ''Gamo'' had "22 long 12-pounders, 8 9-pounders and 2 heavy carronades". Furthermore, Cochrane had only 54 men on board ''Speedy'', having sent men away as prize crews for ships previously taken.

Battle

Instead of evading the Spanish frigate, Cochrane closed on her, and at 9.30 a.m. ''Gamo'' fired a gun and hoisted Spanish colours. In return Cochrane hoisted American colours. The Spanish hesitated, allowing Cochrane to get closer, hoist British colours, and evade the first broadside. ''Gamo'' fired another, which Cochrane again evaded, holding fire until ''Speedy'' ran alongside her and locked her yards in her rigging. ''Gamo'' attempted to fire upon her smaller opponent, but her guns were mounted too high and could not be depressed sufficiently, causing their shot to pass through ''Speedy''s sails and rigging. Cochrane then opened fire with his 4-pounders double- and treble-shotted, their shots passing up through the sides and decks, the first broadside killing the Spanish captain and boatswain. Seeing their disadvantage the Spanish second-in-command assembled a boarding party, at which Cochrane drew off, pounded their massed ranks with shot and musket fire, before drawing in close again. After having their attempts to board frustrated three times, the Spanish returned to their guns. Cochrane then decided to board the ''Gamo'', and assembled his entire crew into two parties, leaving only the ship's doctor to command and crew ''Speedy''. The British then rushed the ''Gamo'', boarding from bow and waist, the boarders at the bow had their faces blackened to look like pirates. The Spanish faltered at this, and were then set-upon by the party that had boarded from the waist. There was a hard-fought battle between the two crews, until Cochrane called down to the doctor, at the time the only person on ''Speedy'', ordering him to send the rest of the men over. At the same time, he ordered the Spanish colours to be torn down. Thinking that their officers had surrendered the ship, the remaining Spanish seamen stopped fighting.

Aftermath

The British had lost three men killed and nine wounded, while the Spanish had lost 14 killed and 41 wounded, with the rest captured; a total casualty list exceeding ''Speedy''s entire complement. The British then secured the Spanish prisoners below deck and made their way back to Port Mahon, Minorca. Finding that he had been beaten by such an inferior foe, the Spanish second-in-command asked Cochrane for a certificate assuring him that he had done all he could to defend his ship. Cochrane obliged, with the equivocal wording that he had 'conducted himself like a true Spaniard'. ''El Gamo'' was subsequently sold to the ruler of Algiers as a

merchantman A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are u ...

In fiction

This battle inspired

Patrick O'Brian Patrick O'Brian, Order of the British Empire, CBE (12 December 1914 – 2 January 2000), born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of sea novels set in the Royal Navy during t ...

in his novel ''

Master and Commander ''Master and Commander'' is a 1969 nautical historical novel by the English author Patrick O'Brian, first published in 1969 in the US and 1970 in the UK. The book proved to be the start of the 20-novel Aubrey–Maturin series, set largely in t ...

'', where, as the first major battle led by his main character

Jack Aubrey John "Jack" Aubrey , is a fictional character in the Aubrey–Maturin series of novels by Patrick O'Brian. The series portrays his rise from lieutenant to rear admiral in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. The twenty (and one incomple ...

, in a very similar manner, the brig HMS ''Sophie'' escapes from and then lures and captures the Spanish Xebeque-frigate ''Cacafuego''.

References

Bibliography

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External links

HMS ''Speedy'' vs ''El Gamo''

Thomas Cochrane – the sea-captain and inspiration for Horatio Hornblower
{{authority control Conflicts in 1801 1801 in Spain Naval battles involving the United Kingdom Naval battles involving Spain Naval battles of the Napoleonic Wars May 1801 events