The Battle of Cartagena was a naval battle fought on 3 September 1643, during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

off Cabo de Gata near Cartagena, Spain. After a series of victories in 1641 and 1642 the French Navy dominated the Western

Mediterranean Sea 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 ...

. France was also in control of most of Catalonia after the Catalan Revolt.
At that time, the Spanish Navy did not dare to show itself off the Catalan coast. In 1643 the French admiral

Jean Armand de Maillé-Brézé Jean Armand de Maillé, Duke of Fronsac, Marquis of Brézé (18 October 1619 – 14 June 1646) was a French admiral. He was born in Milly-le-Meugon, in one of the most powerful French families of the time; his father was Urbain de Maillé, Mar ...

sailed south, to search for and destroy the Spanish fleet to extend the dominance of the French Navy in the Mediterranean.
He found a fleet of

Dunkirkers During the Dutch Revolt (1568–1648), the Dunkirkers or Dunkirk Privateers were commerce raiders in the service of the Spanish monarchy. They were also part of the ''Dunkirk fleet'', which consequently was a part of the Spanish monarchy's ''Fl ...

under Joos Petersen, ships from Naples and a squadron from the ''Mar Oceano fleet'' under Martín Carlos de Mencos. On 3 September at 7:00 AM Maillé-Brézé attacked with favorable winds and dispersed the enemy fleet. He sank 2 galleons and captured 2 others, while the rest of the Spanish fleet retreated into the

port of Cartagena The port of Cartagena ( es, Puerto de Cartagena) is the port located in Cartagena, Spain. It is the fourth nationwide port in freight traffic behind Algeciras, Valencia and Barcelona. It occupies the eighth place in relation to the number of crui ...

. Here 8 more ships were beyond repair and sank. The port was closed by the Duke of Fernandina and no Spanish ship left the harbour for more than a year. All commerce between Spain and Italy was thus made impossible. The victory was short-lived for the French, however, as Spanish dominance in the region returned when the French fleet declined after the death of Cardinal Richelieu.

References

* Henri Martin, ''Histoire de France, depuis les temps les plus reculés jusqu'en 1789'', 1858 * Léon Guérin, ''Histoire maritime de France'', 1851 {{DEFAULTSORT:Cartagena, Battle of Battles of the Thirty Years' War

Battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

Naval battles involving Spain Naval battles involving France Battles in the Region of Murcia Cartagena, Battle of