Topic summary
Battle of Diamond Rock
France
Spain
United KingdomPierre-Charles VilleneuveJulien CosmaoFederico Gravina
James Maurice- 50–400 killed or wounded
- 5 gunboats sunk
- 2 killed
- 1 wounded
- 104 captured
- 1 stone frigate captured
The Battle of Diamond Rock (French: Bataille du rocher du Diamant, Spanish: Batalla de la roca del Diamante) took place between 31 May and 2 June 1805 during the War of the Third Coalition, when a Franco-Spanish force dispatched under Captain Julien Cosmao was able to retake Diamond Rock, on the approach to Fort-de-France, from the British forces that had occupied it over a year before.
The French in Martinique had been unable to oust the defenders from the strategically important rock, allowing the British garrison to restrict access to Fort-de-France Bay, firing on ships attempting to enter it by the quickest route with guns they had placed on the cliffs and thus forcing them to take a slower route, allowing interception by the blockading vessels. The arrival of a large combined Franco-Spanish fleet in May changed the strategic situation. The fleet's commander, French Vice-admiralPierre-Charles Villeneuve, had orders to attack British possessions in the Caribbean, but instead waited at Martinique for clearer instructions. He was finally persuaded to authorise an assault on the British position, and a Franco-Spanish flotilla was dispatched to storm the rock. Already short of water, the defenders held on in the summit for several days, while the French, with the lack of bringing scaling ladders, could make little headway.
The British, short of both water and ammunition, eventually negotiated their surrender after several days under fire. As Diamond Rock was legally considered a Royal Navy vessel, and the commander was legally "captain" of it, after repatriation, he was tried by court-martial (as the law dictated in any case where a captain loses his ship, regardless of the cause), but was honourably acquitted.