Bombardment of Algiers (1784)
Encyclopedia
The 2nd Bombardment of Algiers took place between 12 and 21 July 1784. A joint Spanish-Neapolitan-Maltese-Portuguese fleet commanded by the experienced Spanish Admiral Antonio Barceló
bombarded the city, which was the main base of the Barbary corsairs
, with the aim of forcing them to interrupt their activities. Massive damage and casualties were inflicted to the Algerians, while the loss aboard the allied fleet was low. The Dey of Algiers refused to start negotiations immediately but the fear of a third planned expedition under José de Mazarredo convinced him to negotiate a peace with the Spanish by which he was forced to cease large-scale piracy, signalling the effective end of the Barbary privateering until the outbreak of the Napoleonic Wars
.
for 8 days. The success of the attack,achieved at the cost of less than 50 casualties, caused joy in Spain and encouraged the Regency of Tripoli to make peace with Spain. Despite the heavy damage suffered, the Algerians did not surrender. Five Algerian privateers captured two Spanish merchant vessels near Palamós
in September 1783 as a gesture of defiance. The city's defenses were reinforced with a new 50-gun fortress, 4,000 Turkish
volunteer soldiers were recruited in Anatolia
, and European advisors were hired to assist in the building fortifications and batteries. In addition, at least 70 vessels were prepared to repel the Spanish, and a reward of one thousand gold pieces was offered by the Dey to anyone who captured a ship of the attacking fleet.
Meanwhile, in Cartagena
, Barceló had finished preparations for a new expedition. His fleet consisted of four 80-gun ships of line
, four frigates, 12 xebec
s, 3 brig
s, 9 small vessels, and an attacking force of 24 gunboat
s armed with pieces of 24 pounds, 8 more with 18 pounds' pieces, 7 lightly armed to board the Algerian vessels, 24 armed with mortars, and 8 bomb vessel
s with 8 pound pieces. The expedition was financed by Pope Pius VI
and supported by the Navy of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
, which provided two ships of the line, three frigates, two brigs and two xebecs under Admiral Bologna, by the Order of Malta, which provided a ship of line, two frigates and five galleys, and by that of Portugal, which provided two ships of line and two frigates under Admiral Ramirez Esquivel. These last joined the allied fleet later and actually arrived in middle of the bombardment.
, the Allied fleet sailed from Cartagena, arriving off Algiers on 10 July. Two days later at 8:30 AM, the bombardment began with the Spanish ships opening fire. It was kept up until 4:20 PM, during which timb about 600 bombs, 1,440 cannon ball
s and 260 shells
were fired over the city, compared to 202 bombs and 1,164 cannon balls fired by the Algerians. Major damage to the city and its fortifications and a large fire were observed. An attack by light vessels of the Algerian fleet, composed of 67 ships, was repulsed, four of them being destroyed. The Allied casualties were minimal: 6 killed and 9 wounded, most of them due to accidents with the fuses
of the bombs. Gunboat No. 27, commanded by the Neapolitan Alférez José Rodríguez, exploded accidentally, killing 25 sailors.
In the following eight days, seven additional attacks were ordered. The Algerians had placed a line of barge
s armed with artillery that largely prevented the Allied gunboats getting close to their objectives. A shot fired from the fortifications hit the felucca
from which Barceló were directing the bombing, sinking it. José Lorenzo de Goicoechea came to the aid of the admiral, who was rescued unscathed. Passing immediately to another boat, Barceló continued leading the attack, downplaying the importance of the incident. Finally, on 21 July, it was decided to end the attack. Contrary winds forced Barceló to give the order to return back to Cartagena. More than 20,000 cannon balls and grenades had been fired on the enemy, causing severe damage to the fortifications and the city, and sinking or destroying most of the Algerian vessels. The Allied casualties were 53 men killed and 64 wounded, most of them due to accidents.
also preferred to reach an agreement with Spain. As far as these nations were concerned, Barbary piracy and the Barbary Slave Trade
in the Mediterranean was ended. However, some years later the problem returned due to the turmoil caused by the Napoleonic Wars
.
Antonio Barceló
Don Antonio Barceló was a Spanish Balear mariner, lieutenant general of the Spanish Royal Armada.He is famous for his anti-Algerian privateer campaigns, bombardments of Algiers and use of Floating...
bombarded the city, which was the main base of the Barbary corsairs
Barbary corsairs
The Barbary Corsairs, sometimes called Ottoman Corsairs or Barbary Pirates, were pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Tunis, Tripoli and Algiers. This area was known in Europe as the Barbary Coast, a term derived from the name of its Berber...
, with the aim of forcing them to interrupt their activities. Massive damage and casualties were inflicted to the Algerians, while the loss aboard the allied fleet was low. The Dey of Algiers refused to start negotiations immediately but the fear of a third planned expedition under José de Mazarredo convinced him to negotiate a peace with the Spanish by which he was forced to cease large-scale piracy, signalling the effective end of the Barbary privateering until the outbreak of the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
.
Background
In August of 1783, as punishment for the acts of piracy undertaken by the city, a Spanish fleet with Maltese participation under Antonio Barceló bombarded AlgiersAlgiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
for 8 days. The success of the attack,achieved at the cost of less than 50 casualties, caused joy in Spain and encouraged the Regency of Tripoli to make peace with Spain. Despite the heavy damage suffered, the Algerians did not surrender. Five Algerian privateers captured two Spanish merchant vessels near Palamós
Palamós
Palamós is a town and municipality in the Mediterranean Costa Brava, located in the comarca of Baix Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain....
in September 1783 as a gesture of defiance. The city's defenses were reinforced with a new 50-gun fortress, 4,000 Turkish
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
volunteer soldiers were recruited in Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
, and European advisors were hired to assist in the building fortifications and batteries. In addition, at least 70 vessels were prepared to repel the Spanish, and a reward of one thousand gold pieces was offered by the Dey to anyone who captured a ship of the attacking fleet.
Meanwhile, in Cartagena
Cartagena, Spain
Cartagena is a Spanish city and a major naval station located in the Region of Murcia, by the Mediterranean coast, south-eastern Spain. As of January 2011, it has a population of 218,210 inhabitants being the Region’s second largest municipality and the country’s 6th non-Province capital...
, Barceló had finished preparations for a new expedition. His fleet consisted of four 80-gun ships of line
Ship of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
, four frigates, 12 xebec
Xebec
A xebec , also spelled zebec, was a Mediterranean sailing ship that was used mostly for trading. It would have a long overhanging bowsprit and protruding mizzen mast...
s, 3 brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
s, 9 small vessels, and an attacking force of 24 gunboat
Gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...
s armed with pieces of 24 pounds, 8 more with 18 pounds' pieces, 7 lightly armed to board the Algerian vessels, 24 armed with mortars, and 8 bomb vessel
Bomb vessel
A bomb vessel, bomb ship, bomb ketch, or simply bomb was a type of wooden sailing naval ship. Its primary armament was not cannon —although bomb vessels carried a few cannon for self-defence—but rather mortars mounted forward near the bow and elevated to a high angle, and projecting their fire in a...
s with 8 pound pieces. The expedition was financed by Pope Pius VI
Pope Pius VI
Pope Pius VI , born Count Giovanni Angelo Braschi, was Pope from 1775 to 1799.-Early years:Braschi was born in Cesena...
and supported by the Navy of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, commonly known as the Two Sicilies even before formally coming into being, was the largest and wealthiest of the Italian states before Italian unification...
, which provided two ships of the line, three frigates, two brigs and two xebecs under Admiral Bologna, by the Order of Malta, which provided a ship of line, two frigates and five galleys, and by that of Portugal, which provided two ships of line and two frigates under Admiral Ramirez Esquivel. These last joined the allied fleet later and actually arrived in middle of the bombardment.
Bombardment
On 28 June, having entrusted itself to the Virgen del CarmenOur Lady of Mount Carmel
Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order. The first Carmelites were Christian hermits living on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land during the late 12th and early to mid 13th centuries...
, the Allied fleet sailed from Cartagena, arriving off Algiers on 10 July. Two days later at 8:30 AM, the bombardment began with the Spanish ships opening fire. It was kept up until 4:20 PM, during which timb about 600 bombs, 1,440 cannon ball
Round shot
Round shot is a solid projectile without explosive charge, fired from a cannon. As the name implies, round shot is spherical; its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the gun it is fired from.Round shot was made in early times from dressed stone, but by the 17th century, from iron...
s and 260 shells
Shell (projectile)
A shell is a payload-carrying projectile, which, as opposed to shot, contains an explosive or other filling, though modern usage sometimes includes large solid projectiles properly termed shot . Solid shot may contain a pyrotechnic compound if a tracer or spotting charge is used...
were fired over the city, compared to 202 bombs and 1,164 cannon balls fired by the Algerians. Major damage to the city and its fortifications and a large fire were observed. An attack by light vessels of the Algerian fleet, composed of 67 ships, was repulsed, four of them being destroyed. The Allied casualties were minimal: 6 killed and 9 wounded, most of them due to accidents with the fuses
Fuse (explosives)
In an explosive, pyrotechnic device or military munition, a fuse is the part of the device that initiates function. In common usage, the word fuse is used indiscriminately...
of the bombs. Gunboat No. 27, commanded by the Neapolitan Alférez José Rodríguez, exploded accidentally, killing 25 sailors.
In the following eight days, seven additional attacks were ordered. The Algerians had placed a line of barge
Barge
A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
s armed with artillery that largely prevented the Allied gunboats getting close to their objectives. A shot fired from the fortifications hit the felucca
Felucca
A felucca is a traditional wooden sailing boat used in protected waters of the Red Sea and eastern Mediterranean including Malta, and particularly along the Nile in Egypt, Sudan, and also in Iraq. Its rig consists of one or two lateen sails....
from which Barceló were directing the bombing, sinking it. José Lorenzo de Goicoechea came to the aid of the admiral, who was rescued unscathed. Passing immediately to another boat, Barceló continued leading the attack, downplaying the importance of the incident. Finally, on 21 July, it was decided to end the attack. Contrary winds forced Barceló to give the order to return back to Cartagena. More than 20,000 cannon balls and grenades had been fired on the enemy, causing severe damage to the fortifications and the city, and sinking or destroying most of the Algerian vessels. The Allied casualties were 53 men killed and 64 wounded, most of them due to accidents.
Aftermath
The Dey of Algiers, under threat of a new expedition that was already being prepared by Barceló, who had promised attack Algiers every year until he accepted his conditions, agreed to open negotiations with Spain. These culminated in a treaty which was signed on 14 June of 1786 by the Dey himself and José de Mazarredo, who came to Algiers in command of a squadron of two ships of the line and two frigates. TunisiaHistory of Ottoman-era Tunisia
The History of Ottoman era Tunisia presents the Turkish presence in Ifriqiya during the course of three centuries. Eventually including all of the Maghrib except Morocco, the Ottoman Empire began with the takeover of Algiers in 1516 by a Turkish corsair and ally...
also preferred to reach an agreement with Spain. As far as these nations were concerned, Barbary piracy and the Barbary Slave Trade
Barbary Slave Trade
The Barbary Slave Trade refers to the slave markets which flourished on the Barbary Coast, or modern day Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and western Libya between the 16th and 19th centuries. These markets prospered while the states were nominally under Ottoman rule, but in reality were mostly autonomous...
in the Mediterranean was ended. However, some years later the problem returned due to the turmoil caused by the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
.