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Battle of San Fernando de Omoa Part of the American Revolutionary War Exterior view of the fort at San Fernando de Omoa, taken in 2006 Date October 16 – November 29, 1779 Location San Fernando de Omoa, Captaincy General of Guatemala, present-day Honduras Result Indecisive Belligerents Spain Great Britain Commanders Matías de Gálvez, Simón Desnaux, Juan Dastiex William Dalrymple John Luttrell Strength 365 regulars and militia 885 regulars, marines, militia, and natives[1]

Gulf Coast campaigns Fort Bute – Lake Pontchartrain – Baton Rouge – San Fernando – Fort Charlotte – Fort San Juan – Mobile – Pensacola – Roatán

The Battle of San Fernando de Omoa was a short siege and battle between British and Spanish forces fought not long after Spain entered the American Revolutionary War on the American side. On October 16, 1779, following a brief attempt at siege, a force of 150 British soldiers and seamen assaulted and captured the fortifications at San Fernando de Omoa in the Captaincy General of Guatemala (now Honduras) on the Yucatan Peninsula.

The British forces managed to overwhelm and capture the Spanish garrison, consisting of 365 men. The fort was only held by the British until November 1779, when the garrison, reduced by tropical diseases and threatened by a Spanish counterattack, was withdrawn.

Background

When Spain entered the American Revolutionary War in June 1779, both Great Britain and Spain had been planning for the possibility of hostilities for some time. The Spanish opted to attack in North America, where they rapidly captured the British outpost at Baton Rouge in September 1779, before the British were able to marshal significant defensive forces in the area. The British sought to gain control over Spanish colonies in Central America, and their first target was Omoa, a site that Matías de Gálvez, the Captain General of Spanish Guatemala, called "the key and outer wall of the kingdom".^[2]

However, the Spanish struck first, capturing the British fort at St. George's Caye near Belize in September. Anticipating a British attack against the nearby port of Santo Tomás de Castilla, Gálvez also withdrew the garrison there to Omoa.

British forces

The decision by Gálvez to withdraw to Omoa upset British plans. Commodore John Luttrell, in command of three ships and 250 men, had intended an attack on the Santo Tómas, and his force was too small to attack the Spanish position at Omoa, so he went for reinforcements. When he and Captain William Dalrymple arrived at Omoa on September 25 with 500 men, they again retreated after a brief exchange of cannonfire. The British returned with a force of more than 1,200 men and twelve ships in early October.^[3]

Battle

The British emplaced some gun batteries, with which they opened fire on the fort, with supporting fire from three ships. Simón Desnaux, the fort's commander, returned fire, damaging one of the ships, but he was badly outnumbered. He refused an offer for surrender, hoping that Gálvez would be able to send additional support.^[3]

On the night of October 20, a few British men snuck into the fort and opened one of the gates. After a brief gunfight, Desnaux surrendered.^[3] Among the spoils the British won when they gained control of Omoa were two Spanish ships anchored in the harbor. They carried more than three million Spanish dollars of silver.^[4]

Counterattack

Gálvez immediately began planning a counterattack. On November 25, his forces began besieging the fort, now under Dalrymple's control, engaging in regular exchanges of cannonfire. Gálvez, whose force was smaller than Dalrymple's, magnified its size by setting extra campfires around the fort. He then attempted an assault on November 29, but difficulties with his artillery caused him to call it off. Dalrymple, whose forces were significantly reduced by tropical diseases, were evacuated from the fort by the Royal Navy on that day.^[4]

Aftermath

The British continued to make attacks on the Central American coast, but were never successful in their goal of dividing the Spanish colonies and gaining access to the Pacific Ocean.

Notes

References

• Chávez, Thomas E (2004). Spain and the Independence of the United States: An Intrinsic Gift. UNM Press. ISBN 9780826327949. OCLC 149117944.  
• Fortescue, John William (1902). A History of the British Army, Volume 3. Macmillan. http://books.google.com/books?id=BC48AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA303&dq=omoa+1779#PPA303,M1.  
• Beatson, Robert (1804). Naval and Military Memoirs of Great Britain, from 1727 to 1783, Volume 6 (2nd edition ed.). Longman, Hurst, Rees and Orme. http://books.google.com/books?id=btEHAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA165&dq=omoa+1779&as_brr=3#PPA163,M1.   Contains surrender agreement (pp. 163ff).