Cape Spartel (; ; ) is a promontory in

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

about above sea level at the entrance to the

Strait of Gibraltar The Strait of Gibraltar is a narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Europe from Africa. The two continents are separated by 7.7 nautical miles (14.2 kilometers, 8.9 miles) at its narrowest point. Fe ...

, 12 km west of

Tangier Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...

. It is the northwesternmost point of the African continent. Below the cape are the Caves of Hercules.

Description

Cape Spartel is frequently but incorrectly referred to as the northernmost point of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, which is instead

Ras ben Sakka Ras ben Sakka (), the tip of Cape Angela in northern Tunisia, was considered the northernmost point of the African continent until 2014, when this was replaced by Cape Angela. It is located from Bizerte and to the northeast of Ichkeul Lak ...

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

; it is the most northwestern point. The cape rises to a height of 326 m at the top of Jebel Quebir, where a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

built by Sultan Muhammad IV in 1864 is situated at the end of a cliff. Below the cape are the Caves of Hercules. These are open to the public and they are accessible from Robinson Plage. The caves have shown evidence of Neolithic occupation. Before they were a tourist attraction they were brothels. Historically the rock was mined and this is one important cause of the caves' creation. Near Cape Spartel is Spartel Bank, a sunken island hypothesized by some as the location of the legendary island of

Atlantis Atlantis () is a fictional island mentioned in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and ''Critias'' as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations. In the story, Atlantis is described as a naval empire that ruled all Western parts of the known world ...

. Renovation of the whole Cape Spartel site was started in 2020 and completed in 2021. It is now open to the public and includes a maritime museum, restaurant,

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is ...

and an event space. Visitors can also access the top of the lighthouse to enjoy the stunning view of the strait of Gibraltar. Cape Spartel is accessible from the National Road S701.

Historical events

On 17 August 1670, a joint force of the English

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

under Commodore Richard Beach and the Dutch States Navy under Willem Joseph van Ghent destroyed six ships of the

Barbary pirates The Barbary corsairs, Barbary pirates, Ottoman corsairs, or naval mujahideen (in Muslim sources) were mainly Muslim corsairs and privateers who operated from the largely independent Barbary states. This area was known in Europe as the Barba ...

near Cape Spartel. During the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...

, two Spanish 60-gun ships – the ''Porta Coeli'' and ''Santa Teresa'' – were intercepted on 23 March 1704 by an English squadron under Vice-Admiral Thomas Dilkes off Cape Spartel, comprising the 70-gun ships ''Kent'' and ''Bedford'' and the 50-gun ''Antelope''. The two Spanish warships, newly built at Orio, were laden with ordnance and military stores and were accompanied by a 24-gun merchantman, the ''San Nicolas''. After a seven hours battle, both warships were captured; they were taken to Lisbon, but the ''Santa Teresa'' sank en route. On 20 October 1782, during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, an inconclusive battle took place between a British and Franco-Spanish fleet about 18 miles off the coast, the Battle of Cape Spartel, between ships under Admiral

Luis de Córdova y Córdova Admiral Luis de Córdova y Córdova (8 February 1706 – 29 July 1796) was a Spanish Navy officer. He is best known for his service in the Navy during the Anglo-Spanish War. His best remembered actions were the capture of two merchant convo ...

and a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

fleet under Admiral Richard Howe. The battle was required to maintain British supplies to the besieged

Rock of Gibraltar The Rock of Gibraltar (from the Arabic name Jabal Ṭāriq , meaning "Mountain of Tariq ibn Ziyad, Tariq") is a monolithic limestone mountain high dominating the western entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. It is situated near the end of a nar ...

. In December 1911, the P&O liner, ''

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

'' ran aground near to Cape Spartel. All passengers were rescued by

and

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

warships, but three French rescuers were lost. Cape Spartel lighthouse panorama

The Battle of Cape Spartel was a naval battle on 29 September 1936 during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

. The engagement took place between two Nationalist

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several operational roles from search-and-destroy to ocean escort to sea ...

s and two Republican

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...

s, and broke the Republican

blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are ...

of the

, securing the naval supply route to Spanish Morocco for the Nationalists early in the war.

References

Bibliography

* F. Tamburini, Il faro di Capo Spartel (1865–1958), un esempio di cooperazione internazionale in Africa attraverso i secoli XIX e XX, in “Africana, Rivista di studi extraeuropei”, n. IX, 2003 * S. L. Bensusan, ''Morocco'', A. and C. Black, 1904 {{DEFAULTSORT:Cape Spartel Spartel Tangier Geography of Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima Tourist attractions in Tangier

Description

Historical events

See also

References

Bibliography