“Battle of São Vicente”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

The Battle of São Vicente was a minor naval engagement that took place off Sao Vincente, Portuguese Brazil on 3 February 1583 during the Anglo–Spanish War between three English ships (including two galleons), and three Spanish galleons.^[1] The English under Edward Fenton on an expedition having failed to enter the Pacific, then attempted to trade off Portuguese Brazil but were intercepted by a detached Spanish squadron under Commodore Andrés de Equino.{{sfn|Andrews|1984|pp=163-64}} After a moonlit battle briefly interrupted by a rainstorm the Spanish were defeated with one galleon sunk and another heavily damaged along with heavy losses.{{sfn|Bradley|2010|pp=377-79}}^[3] Fenton then attempted to resume trading but without much success and thus returned to England.^[4]^[5]

Background

In June 1582 after a troublesome delay, an English expedition had set off to reach the South China Sea via the Cape of Good Hope on a voyage of exploration.^[6] Their commander was Captain Edward Fenton with his 400-ton ﬂagship galleon Leicester (ex-galleon Bear) under second-in-command Sir William Hawkins Jr (the nephew of Sir John Hawkins).{{sfn|Marley|2008|pp=113-14}} Following Fenton was the 300-ton vice-ﬂagship Edward Bonaventure under Luke Warde; the 50-ton pinnace Elizabeth under Thomas Skevington and the 40-ton bark Francis under John Drake (Sir Francis Drake’s nephew).^[6] The fleet's chaplain Richard Madox recorded the events of the voyage in a diary.^[3]

On 11 December 1582 Fenton arrived off Portuguese Brazil, the original plan having been changed with the hope of going through the Straits of Magellan instead of the Cape.{{sfn|Bradley|2010|pp=374-76}} On 17 December, after having refreshed with victuals ashore the English sighted and then captured the 46-ton Spanish bark Nuestra Señora de Piedad.{{sfn|Dutra|1980|p=130}} The ship was bound from Brazil towards the River Plate with twenty one settlers under Francisco de Vera.^[3] From the Spaniard they had learned of Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa's departure from Rio de Janeiro to fortify the Strait of Magellan.{{sfn|Marley|2008|pp=113-14}} Three days later the English released their prize and by the 31st were unsure of being able to win past Sarmiento's new settlement in the Strait.{{sfn|Bradley|2010|pp=374-76}} Fenton after heated discussion with Hawkins reversed course the same evening, and headed north towards São Vicente hoping to do trade with the settlers there.{{sfn|Bicheno|2012|p=170}} The same night a storm dispersed the ships resulting in the loss of John Drake's eighteen-man Francis, never to be seen or heard of again.{{sfn|Andrews|1984|pp=163-64}}

On 30 January 1583 Fenton reached the bay of São Vicente with Leicester, Edward Bonaventure and Elizabeth, and were in talks with the Portuguese residents of nearby Santos.{{sfn|Marley|2008|pp=113-14}} Trade was refused on the account that Spain would react to this as hostile as they were now in Union; Fenton then went on to São Vicente itself hoping for better fortune.^[6]

Battle

On 3 February three Spanish galleons; the largest being the 500 ton San Juan Bautista, the 400 ton Santa María de Begona and the 300 ton Concepción, entered the bay of São Vicente.{{sfn|Martin & Wignall|1975|p=256}}^[7] They had been detached from the ﬂeet of Diego Flores Valdez (Sarmiento's second in command) at Santa Catarina Island to return to Rio de Janeiro.{{sfn|Marley|2008|pp=113-14}} Led by Commodore Andrés de Equino, they had some of the sick and injured from the Spanish expedition.^[2] They knew of the presence of the English ships by way having caught up with the Piedad that had been released by them.{{sfn|Marley|2008|pp=113-14}}

At 11 pm in the moonlight, Equino had cleared for battle, stood in and bore down upon the three English ships.{{sfn|Marley|2008|pp=113-14}} The English were surprised with many still on shore in the dark but as the Spanish approached, they placed and anchored themselves in seven fathoms of water just off a sandbar.{{sfn|Dean|2013|p=153}} Spanish combat tactics during this time was an attempt to grapple and then board.{{sfn|Bicheno|2012|p=170}} English tactics on the other hand was the heavy use of firepower to batter opponents into submission.^[3]

The Leicester being the main ship that stood the nearest as they approached opened a heavy fire.{{sfn|Bradley|2010|pp=377-79}} The Spanish ships were repelled and then tried to pass Leicester and move onto the next ship Edward Bonaventure.^[3] They were again repelled with heavy fire from the English cannons.{{sfn|Martin & Wignall|1975|p=256}} The moonlit exchange continued with the English ships standing their ground and repelling the Spanish until about 4 am, when a rainstorm interrupted the battle.{{sfn|Marley|2008|pp=113-14}} The Spanish ceased fire and moved off to effect repairs, with the English doing the same and collecting the rest of the men onshore.^[2]

Both sides had no idea what damage they had done to each other until dawn broke the next day; the English as a result of their firepower could then see that the Spanish ship Begonia had sunk^[7] revealing only her masts in the shallow water.{{sfn|Martin & Wignall|1975|p=256}} This time in daylight at 10 am Equino's two galleons attacked but were repelled again by the anchored English ships.{{sfn|Dean|2013|p=153}}{{sfn|Bradley|2010|pp=377-79}}

Finally the Spaniards with rising casualties and a lack of ammunition then broke off the fight then stood out to sea before retreating down the Santos river.{{sfn|Martin & Wignall|1975|p=256}}{{sfn|Andrews|1984|pp=163-64}} Fenton's ships also running low on ammunition had been victorious and stayed put on the bar for the time being.{{sfn|Bicheno|2012|p=170}}^[2]

Aftermath

The battle had only cost eight Englishmen killed and twenty injured and only moderate damage to their ships.{{sfn|Bradley|2010|pp=377-79}}^[8] An Indian who went aboard the Leicester told Fenton that the Spanish who had landed at Santos further down had suffered heavily.^[3] As well as Begonia sunk with the loss of thirty two men killed,^[7] the galleon Concepción was heavily damaged bringing the total to nearly a hundred dead and many more wounded.{{sfn|Bicheno|2012|p=170}} The Indian also said that the Spanish had carried the casualties to the shore in three small boats a number of times.^[2]

Fenton's ships stayed at São Vicente for only the rest of the day trying to at least to do some trade but the Portuguese answer was the same as before.{{sfn|Dutra|1980|p=130}} Fenton fearing more Spanish ships then moved off to Espirito Santo where news of the battle had been received but with mixed feelings with the populace; trade was again refused.{{sfn|Ebert|2008|p=142}} Disappointed; Fenton realized that trade with the Portuguese here was at an end.^[4] With supplies running low and quarrels with Hawkins decided to sail for England.{{sfn|Andrews|1984|pp=163-64}}

Warde's Edward Bonaventure got separated from its consorts on 8 February and sailed alone towards England.{{sfn|Marley|2008|pp=113-14}} After touching at Fernando de Noronha Island; Fenton then reached Salvador to refresh before returning to England.{{sfn|Bradley|2010|pp=377-79}} Richard Maddox died on the 27th but his diary proved invaluable and is now preserved at the British Museum.{{sfn|Boas|2013|p=160}}

References

1. ^¹{{cite book|last1=Wilgus|first1=Alva Curtis|title=The Development of Hispanic America|date=1941|publisher=Farrar & Rinehart, Incorporated|page=181|url=https://books.google.com/books?ei=oyFyVLeNEIfMPa66gegP&id=QnRnAAAAMAAJ&dq=Edward+Fenton+1583+sao+vicente&focus=searchwithinvolume&q=Edward+Fenton}}defeated a Spanish squadron at Sao Vincente
2. ^¹²³⁴{{cite book|last1=Taylor, Eva G. R.|first1=|title=The Troublesome Voyage of Captain Edward Fenton, 1582-1583: Narratives & Documents Volume 113 of Works issued by the Hakluyt Society|date=1959|publisher=Hakluyt Society|pages=129–30|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=581iAAAAMAAJ&q=}}
3. ^¹²³⁴⁵{{cite book|last1=Madoz, Richard|title=An Elizabethan in 1582: The Diary of Richard Madox, Fellow of All Souls Volume 147|date=1976|publisher=Hakluyt Society|location=University of Texas|page=xiii|url=https://books.google.com/books/about/An_Elizabethan_in_1582.html?id=dsAMAAAAYAAJ&redir_esc=y }}
4. ^¹Richard Hakluyt, Principal Navigations, iii. 757.
5. ^{{cite book|last1=Varnhagen, Francisco Adolfo de |author-link=Francisco Adolfo de Varnhagen, Viscount of Porto Seguro |title=História geral do Brasil: antes da sua separação e independência de Portugal|date=1981|publisher=Editora Itatiaia|page=378|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vjPVAAAAMAAJ&q=}} (Portuguese)
6. ^¹²Taylor, Eva G. R. (1959) [https://books.google.com/books?id=581iAAAAMAAJ&q= pp 50-59]
7. ^¹²Fernández Duro, Cesáreo: Armada española desde la unión de los reinos de Castilla y de Aragón. Vol. II. Instituto de Historia y Cultura Naval, p. 365 (Spanish)
8. ^{{cite book|title=Calendar of State Papers: Preserved in the State Paper Department of Her Majesty's Record Office. Colonial series, Volume 2|date=1862|publisher=H.M. Stationery Office|page=91|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-GgzAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA91&dq=}}