56-519: Spragge may refer to: People [ edit ] Edward Spragge or Spragg or Sprague (c. 1620 – 1673), admiral in the Royal Navy John Godfrey Spragge (1806–1884), Canadian lawyer and judge Shirley Spragge (1929 - 1995), Canadian archivist and academic Other uses [ edit ] Spragge, Ontario , Canada, a village now part of The North Shore township HMS Spragge ,
112-611: A Member of Parliament for Dover , after two ballots, but did not live to be able to sit. On 16 January 1674, it was resolved by Parliament that Spragge had failed to be elected because he had illegally influenced the election; he had in fact ordered an old and infirm pilot, who he knew intended to vote for his rival, aboard one of his ships, to prevent him from voting. Spragge was buried in the North Choir Aisle of Westminster Abbey , but without any memorial visible today. His grave had this inscription: He had no issue by his wife, but
168-470: A Spanish treasure fleet and captured or sank all but two of its ships. The loss of the cargoes of the ships captured or sunk by the English was a serious blow to the economy of Spain with an estimated loss of £ 2,000,000. For the first time in naval history, Blake kept the fleet at sea throughout an entire winter in order to maintain the blockade against Spain. In February 1657, Blake received intelligence that
224-497: A coward for his conduct by his enemy Robert Holmes – that he became a personal enemy of Tromp, vowing to kill him. His attitude was also influenced by the rumour that Tromp had remarked that Spragge had in future better let his wife command his squadron, who no doubt were well qualified for it, given her background. But Tromp was fired from the Dutch navy in August 1666. After the disaster of
280-575: A fleet of around forty warships, fireships and supply vessels sailed to blockade the Spanish port of Cadiz which continued throughout the summer. The Spanish remained on the defensive and took no aggressive action against the English fleet. In mid-June, Captain Edward Blagg sailed with eight ships to raid ports in northern Spain. On 24 June, Blagg raided Vigo , where a number of ships in the harbour were destroyed. While Blake replenished his water supplies on
336-613: A new treasure was becoming ever more important – sugar. This meant occupation of territory, a step beyond the piracy pursued in Elizabethan days. During the first year of the Protectorate, Cromwell conducted negotiations with the French statesman Cardinal Mazarin , resulting in the drafting of an Anglo-French alliance against Spain in October 1655. The alliance had an added benefit: France, which
392-502: A return to a policy of commercial opportunism pursued in the days of Elizabeth I and subsequently abandoned by her Stuart successors . Cromwell's attack on Spanish trade and treasure routes immediately recalled the exploits of Francis Drake and Walter Raleigh ; and it is not by accident that printed accounts of their activities began to circulate in England at this time. There was, however, one important difference: alongside silver and gold
448-630: A week after war had ended Charles annulled the Brussels treaty and allowed English parliament to annex England's holdings (Jamaica, Dunkirk and Mardyck) despite Spanish protests. At the same time Charles sought a treaty with Spain so that England's holdings could be recognised but the terms for Spain were too harsh and there was hope that the latter would recapture Jamaica in a military campaign. In order to increase his finances Charles sold Dunkirk to Louis XIV of France in November 1662 – though less than £300,000 of
504-676: Is said to have been a slave in Algiers before serving in the English Civil War from 1648 in Prince Rupert 's royalist naval squadron. He remained loyal to the Stuarts after the war. When the royalist fleet had been dispersed in 1651, he began to work for the Dutch as a privateer in the First Anglo-Dutch War , which explains why some of his later colleagues had mixed feelings about him. He
560-532: The Revenge . In the spring of 1671, he sailed with a fleet to Bougie Bay , near Algiers , where on 8 May, after a sharp fight, he burnt and destroyed ten corsair ships. In 1672, the Third Anglo-Dutch War broke out, which gave Spragge the chance to deal with his old rival Tromp. At this time, Rupert and Spragge became rivals, the latter becoming jealous for not having been appointed supreme commander. Spragge
616-678: The Battle of the Dunes . The Commonwealth contingent in Turenne's army fought with distinction and impressed their French allies with a successful assault up a strongly defended sandhill 150 feet high during the battle. When Dunkirk surrendered to Turenne on 14 June, Cardinal Mazarin honoured the terms of the treaty with Cromwell and handed the port over to the Commonwealth, despite the protests of Louis XIV . The Commonwealth also honoured its obligations in respecting
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#1733086308130672-595: The Comeetstar . On the second occasion, whilst passing from the St George to the Royal Charles , Spragge's sloop was hit by cannon fire, a cannonball passing through the hull of the St George hitting the boat. The Admiral was injured but perhaps died by drowning as his vessel sank, just before reaching the ropes of the St George to which it had been rowed back as quickly as possible. The sloop remained partially floating and
728-644: The First Anglo-Dutch War came to an end, Cromwell turned his attention to the conflict between France and Spain , both traditional rivals of England. France and Spain were both of the Roman Catholic faith, anathema to Cromwell, who believed it is God's will that Protestantism should prevail in Europe. However, he considered Spain to be the greater threat to the Protestant cause, and thus pragmatically allied his nation with France. By going to war with Spain, he also sought
784-669: The Raid on the Medway , where Spragge was present, but unable to organize efficient resistance against the Dutch raiders, England had to conclude peace with the United Provinces and the Second Anglo-Dutch War came to an end. Spragge was thus satirized by Andrew Marvell for his failure to defend Sheerness fort: In 1670 and 1671, Vice Admiral Sir Edward Spragge fought the Barbary pirates on
840-562: The Spanish Netherlands . Although the war was terminated after The Restoration of King Charles II of England in 1660, tensions in the Caribbean with regards to the English possession of Jamaica kept the conflict going intermittently for over ten years. This included raids on Spanish territory by notable Privateer Henry Morgan . The war officially ended with two peace treaties, which were signed at Madrid in 1667 and 1670 . When
896-624: The buccaneers was his suspicion that Jamaica would never be secure until the Spanish government acknowledged England's possession of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands and having it named in a treaty. The resulting privateer raids on the Spanish Main over the next ten years were devastating. Christopher Myngs raided Santiago de Cuba in 1662 and Campeche the following year. Henry Morgan later took over - his most notable attacks were at Puerto del Príncipe and at Porto bello, both in 1668 and
952-490: The defeat of a Spanish squadron on Lake Maracaibo the following year. The Spanish meanwhile could do little to protect themselves. In response Mariana, the Queen Regent of Spain , issued letters of marque for privateer attacks on English shipping in the Caribbean. One of these privateers was the famed Portuguese pirate Manuel Ribeiro Pardal . Charles II ordered the same – so Modyford commissioned Morgan once again to raid
1008-615: The 1655 Siege of Santo Domingo failed because the Spanish had improved their defences in the face of Dutch attacks earlier in the century. Cromwell, on the other hand, saw the Hispaniola defeat as God's judgement. Despite various subsequent successes, the defeat made the whole operation against the Spanish West Indies a general failure. Venables and Penn were imprisoned therefore in the Tower of London on their arrival on England. Jamaica
1064-499: The African coast, a detachment of five frigates under a Captain Smith raided Malaga in southern Spain on 19 July. Smith sank nine Spanish ships, spiked the harbour guns and bombarded the town. A similar raid on Alicante was unsuccessful, but the threat of attack disrupted trade all along the coasts of Spain. On the evening of 8 September, one of Blake's captains, Richard Stayner, intercepted
1120-721: The Dutch as a result of Dunkirker privateering. The war between France and Spain ended with the signing of the Peace of the Pyrenees on 28 October 1659. Cromwell's death in 1658 left England in political turmoil that would result in the return of the Stuarts to the throne of England. After the Restoration of Charles II, the Anglo-Spanish War was formally terminated in September 1660 but no treaty
1176-669: The Dutch was the Battle of Lowestoft in 1665, after which he was knighted on board of HMS Royal Charles for his gallant conduct as captain of the Lion (52), under Prince Rupert of the Rhine , who greatly favoured his career. Spragge was then given command of the Triumph (72). The next year he was rear-admiral of the Green Squadron, on the Dreadnought (58), under Prince Rupert and fought only in
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#17330863081301232-579: The English fleet in a campaign against the Flemish coastal fortresses of Gravelines , Dunkirk and Mardyck . It was agreed that Gravelines would be ceded to France, Dunkirk and Mardyck to England. Dunkirk, in particular, was on the Commonwealth's mind mainly because of the privateers that were causing damage to the mercantile fleet. For Cromwell and the Commonwealth, the question of possession of Dunkirk thus passed from regional diplomatic possibility to urgent political necessity. The combined Anglo-French army for
1288-571: The Spanish government placed the care of Spanish trade in the hands of neutral Dutch merchantmen. An Anglo-French alliance against Spain was established when the Treaty of Paris was signed in March 1657. Based on the terms of the treaty, the English would join with France in her continuing war against Spain in Flanders . France would contribute an army of 20,000 men, England would contribute both 6,000 troops and
1344-488: The Spanish main in order to preserve Jamaica once and for all. In December 1670 Morgan seized the islands of Old Providence and Santa Catalina forcing the garrisons to surrender. From there his fleet sailed to Chagres and seized the fort there too – Morgan hoped to cross the Isthmus of Panama but at this time he was unaware of events in Europe. Spain during this time was politically, economically and militarily weakened by
1400-408: The Spanish. By using the tactic of attacking instead of defending, he sent out Christopher Myngs to raid Spanish colonial cities and bases. Tolú and Santa Marta were among them in 1658 and the following year Cumana , Puerto Caballos and Coro were plundered and devastated and Myngs returned to Jamaica with a vast amount of plunder and treasure. In April 1656 English Admiral Robert Blake with
1456-513: The body of Spragge was recovered with the head and shoulders still out of the water and his arms so cramped around the wood that much force had to be applied to free them. Contemporaneous Dutch naval historian Gerard Brandt wrote in his biography of Michiel de Ruyter : "This was the sad ending of Knight Edward Spragge, bravest of all English Admirals, who was praised by his friends and enemies for his courage and honesty and commiserated from compassion". On 1 February 1673, Spragge had been elected as
1512-602: The bullion before the battle. Blake was unable to seize it, but it was also unavailable to the government in Madrid. The short-term effect of Blake's blockade of Spain and his victory at Santa Cruz was the disruption of the Spanish economy, which depended upon silver and gold from the Americas and thereby damaged Spain's capacity for waging war. The English lost 1,500 to 2,000 merchant ships to Spanish privateers and instead of using captured English ships to replace their destroyed convoys,
1568-461: The crucial battle of Ameixial the Portuguese and British inflicted a crushing defeat. In 1664 England through Sir Richard Fanshawe sought to adjust a peace between the Portuguese and Spanish crowns and then between England and Spain but to no avail. At the Battle of Montes Claros a year later another Spanish invasion was decisively defeated so much so that it ended major combat operations during
1624-500: The decades of war and infighting. Charles II saw ideal opportunities for two eventual peace treaties signed at Madrid , both of which were favourable to England. Firstly the 1667 treaty was received with great satisfaction by English statesmen and merchants in terms of trade. With Portugal's restoration secure the British Brigade was subsequently disbanded but England's holdings in the Caribbean were left unsettled. Nevertheless, it
1680-469: The difficulties of Philip's IV's overstretched armies, who for years had been campaigning simultaneously in Italy, the Pyrenees, Flanders and Portugal. The Spanish answered with a privateering campaign that all but wiped out English shipping trade. Consequently, the Dutch enjoyed a recovery from the losses they had suffered in the first Anglo-Dutch war and took much trade from the English. Nevertheless, with
1736-647: The famous privateer Jacob Collaert , the Governor of Dunkirk. He often clashed with Commonwealth vessels when employed by the Spanish as a privateer in the Anglo-Spanish War (1654) . After the English Restoration , Charles II pardoned Spragge and rewarded his loyalty by making him captain of HMS Drake . Whenever Charles had need to send an envoy to the Spanish Netherlands , he often employed Spragge because of his good contacts there. His first sea-fight with
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1792-510: The founder of Pennsylvania , and General Robert Venables invaded Spanish territory in the West Indies with the objective of capturing Hispaniola . It was one of the strongest ever to sail from England, with some 3,000 marines under the command of General Robert Venables , further reinforced in Barbados , Montserrat , and St. Kitts and Nevis . Although Cromwell had previously been interested in
1848-509: The fourth Battle of Texel on 21 August 1673, Spragge and Tromp, commanding their respective rear divisions, again clashed repeatedly, each having their ships so damaged as to need to shift their flags to fresh ships twice. First the Prince Royal duelled the Gulden Leeuw ; when the former ship was dismasted and half of her crew dead or wounded, Spragge shifted to HMS St George and Tromp to
1904-610: The fourth day of the Four Days Battle . He was vice-admiral of the Blue Squadron, subcommander of the rear, on the Victory (82), under Jeremiah Smith in the St. James's Day Battle . Although an overall English victory, the English rear was defeated and routed by Lieutenant-Admiral Cornelis Tromp . Spragge felt so humiliated by this course of events – also because he was publicly denounced as
1960-424: The intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spragge&oldid=1180841041 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Edward Spragge Sir Edward Spragge ( c. 1620 – 21 August 1673) was a Royal Navy officer. He
2016-573: The invasion of Flanders was commanded by the great French Marshal Turenne . The Spanish Army of Flanders was commanded by Don Juan-José , an illegitimate son of the Spanish King Philip . The Spanish army of 15,000 troops was augmented by a force of 3,000 English Royalists—formed as the nucleus of potential army for the invasion of England by Charles II , with Charles's brother James, Duke of York , among its commanders. The Commonwealth fleet blockaded Flemish ports but, to Cromwell's annoyance,
2072-509: The military campaign started late in the year and was subject to many delays. Marshal Turenne spent the summer of 1657 campaigning against the Spanish in Luxembourg and made no move to attack Flanders until September. Mardyck was captured on 22 September and garrisoned by Commonwealth troops. Dunkirk was besieged in May 1658. A Spanish relief force attempted to lift the siege but was defeated on 4 June at
2128-469: The name of several ships of the Royal Navy See also [ edit ] Spragg (disambiguation) Sprague (disambiguation) All pages with titles containing Spragge Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Spragge . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to
2184-587: The plate fleet from New Spain was on its way across the Atlantic. Leaving two ships to watch Cadiz, Blake sailed from there to attack the plate fleet, which had docked at Santa Cruz on Tenerife in the Canary Islands to await an escort to Spain. In April in the Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Blake completely destroyed the Spanish merchant convoy—the West Indian Fleet—however, the fleet had landed
2240-400: The possible acquisition of Hispaniola island, the expedition's commanders were given the freedom to determine their own priorities in the circumstances they faced on arrival. Several options were considered, including a landing on the coast of Guatemala or on Cuba . Both were discounted, as Penn and Venables decided to attempt to repeat Drake's attack on Santo Domingo on Hispaniola. However,
2296-504: The promised half million was ever paid. In 1662, Charles made a dynastic marriage with Catharine of Braganza ; Tangier and Bombay were ceded to the British Crown and a military alliance was agreed to help Portugal who had been fighting to regain her independence since 1640. British troops under Frederick Schomberg were raised to serve to help fight the Spanish. Within a year the Spanish army attempted to overrun Portugal but at
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2352-556: The rights of the Catholic populations of Mardyck and Dunkirk. A contingent of Commonwealth troops remained with Turenne's army and were instrumental in the capture of Gravelines and other Flemish towns by the French. With the privateering threat of Dunkirk out of the way, England's mercantile fleet suffered far fewer losses; not only because the Dunkirkers had lost their largest base but also because English trade had already been largely lost to
2408-507: The two countries, with each side attacking the other's commercial and colonial interests in various ways, such as privateering and naval expeditions. In 1655, an English amphibious expedition invaded Spanish territory in the Caribbean, eventually capturing the island of Jamaica . In 1657, England formed an alliance with France , merging the Anglo-Spanish war with the larger Franco-Spanish War , with major land actions that took place in
2464-400: The victory of the first Anglo-Dutch war and the successes in the war against Spain, England had done enough to establish itself as one of Europe's leading naval powers. Spain demanded the return of possessions taken by Cromwell's republic, to which Charles had been willing to agree. This soon changed however as Charles had become frustrated with Philip's failure to aid in his restoration. Only
2520-543: The war which definitively secured Portuguese independence from Spain. The war's Caribbean component raged on much longer. With Jamaica annexed the purpose of the Western Design (although failed in its primary objective of capturing the island of Hispaniola ) survived the Protectorate itself, later to be revived in the raids ordered under the behest of the Jamaican governor Thomas Modyford . Modyford's pretexts for licensing
2576-726: Was a big step for peace between the two kingdoms. Three years later at the next Madrid treaty , Spain finally ceded Jamaica and the Cayman Islands to Britain which was a major concession and a humiliation for Spain. English ships were also able to roam the Caribbean Sea without hindrance and for the first time were not seen in the West Indies as intruders or as pirates. Controversially the news did not arrive in time to prevent Henry Morgan's Panama expedition from plundering and burning Panama in 1671 . Despite Spanish protests and his arrest, Morgan went unpunished claiming he had not known about
2632-567: Was a fiery, brilliantly accomplished seaman who fought in many great actions after the Stuart Restoration of King Charles II of England in 1660. Spragge was son of Lichfield Spragge of Roscommon , Ireland, by his wife Mary Legge (sister of William Legge ), and grandson of John Spragge, who came to Ireland in the Elizabethan period. His father was killed in about 1645 during the Civil War when Royalist Governor of Roscommon. Edward Spragge
2688-469: Was a frigate in commission from 1944 to 1946 which saw service during World War II . Anglo-Spanish War (1654) [REDACTED] King Philip IV [REDACTED] Oliver Cromwell [REDACTED] King Louis XIV The Anglo-Spanish War was a conflict between the English Protectorate and Spain between 1654 and 1660. It was driven by the economic and religious rivalry between
2744-534: Was currently offering refuge to the Stuarts, would now be disinclined to assist them in reclaiming the English throne. Meanwhile, Cromwell had already launched the Western Design against Spain's colonies in the Spanish West Indies . The fleet left Portsmouth in late December 1654 and arrived in the West Indies in January. In May 1655, an English amphibious expedition led by General at Sea William Penn , father of
2800-476: Was determined that the presence should remain, sending reinforcements and supplies. New Spanish troops, sailing from Cuba, lost the Battle of Ocho Rios in 1657 and the Battle of Rio Nuevo in 1658, failing in their attempts to retake Jamaica. Nevertheless, the fear of another invasion meant that the English Governor of Jamaica Edward D'Oyley felt his new duty was to organize the defence of the island against
2856-586: Was in command of the Red Squadron on the London in the Battle of Solebay in 1672 and of the Blue Squadron on the new Prince Royal of 100 cannon in the double Battle of Schooneveld of 1673. In these last Schooneveld battles he sought out and fought Tromp, readmitted to the navy in 1673, with great fury, but without result. Spragge publicly swore an oath in front of King Charles that the next time, he would either kill or capture his old enemy Tromp or die trying. In
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#17330863081302912-402: Was reinforced by troops sent from Spain and New Spain (México). In 1657 the English Governor invited the Buccaneers to base themselves at Port Royal on Santiago, to deter the Spanish from recapturing the island. For England, Jamaica was to be the "dagger pointed at the heart of the Spanish Empire", although in fact it was a possession of little value then. Cromwell, despite all difficulties,
2968-415: Was signed between the two nations. Charles had been allied to Spain through the Treaty of Brussels . England and Spain had both suffered heavy economic losses; the latter suffered mainly from Blake's blockade of Cadiz. The effect of this, particularly with the action off Cadiz and at Santa Cruz, was the disruption of the Spanish economy, which depended upon silver and gold from the Americas. This added to
3024-420: Was the casus belli that resulted in the actual Anglo-Spanish War in 1655. Weakened by fever, the English force then sailed west for the Colony of Santiago (present-day Jamaica ), the only Spanish West Indies island that did not have new defensive works. They landed in May 1655 at a place called Santiago de la Vega, now Spanish Town . They came, and they stayed, in the face of prolonged local resistance that
3080-465: Was the father of two illegitimate sons and one daughter by a mistress, Dorothy Dennis. Edward Spragge was the cousin of the later admiral George Legge . The Royal Navy has named four ships after Spragge. The first two, HMS Spragge of 1673 (renamed HMS Young Spragge in 1677) and HMS Spragge of 1677 were fireships . The third HMS Spragge was a destroyer leader cancelled in 1919. The fourth, HMS Spragge (K572) ,
3136-421: Was very popular with the common sailors though because of his ebullient character; as Samuel Pepys put it, "he was a merry man, singing a pleasant song pleasantly". After 1653, he became a pirate associating himself with the Flemish Collaert family, a group of Dunkirkers that after the French conquest of Dunkirk in 1646, had likewise been forced to seek employment elsewhere. Spragge married Clara, daughter of
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