The Capture of Pensacola took place in May 1719 during the

War of the Quadruple Alliance The War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720) was caused by Spanish attempts to recover territories in Italy ceded in the 1713 Peace of Utrecht. Largely focused on Sicily, it included minor engagements in North America and Northern Europe as we ...

when a French force led by

Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville (; ; February 23, 1680 – March 7, 1767), also known as Sieur de Bienville, was a French colonial administrator in New France. Born in Montreal, he was an early governor of French Louisiana, appointed four ...

took and occupied the settlement of

Pensacola Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ci ...

in the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

colony of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. The French occupied Pensacola until August 1719, when a large Spanish force arrived and compelled the small French garrison to surrender.Bense p.14Marley p.242 This Spanish occupation only lasted until September 1, when a French fleet arrived to reassert French control. The war ended ''status quo ante bellum'' and Pensacola was officially returned to Spanish control, though the French garrison did not withdraw until 1726.

References

Bibliography

* Bense, Judith A. ''Archaeology of colonial Pensacola''. University Press of Florida, 1999. * Claiborne, John
''Mississippi, as a province, territory, and state''
Contains a somewhat detailed account of the affair. * Marley, David. ''Wars of the Americas: a chronology of armed conflict in the New World, 1492 to the Present''. ABC-Clio, 1998. Conflicts in 1719 Battles in Florida Battles involving France Battles involving Spain Battles of the War of the Quadruple Alliance Battles and conflicts without fatalities Capture 1719 in North America {{Pensacola-stub