Battle of Syracuse (1710)
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Syracuse was a naval engagement of the War of the Spanish Succession
fought on 9 November 1710, outside the Sicilian
port of Syracuse. A French
fleet of four ships under the command of Jacques Cassard
came to relieve a heavily-laden French merchant fleet that had been blockaded in the Syracuse harbour by a British
fleet. Cassard arrived off Syracuse when most of the blockading fleet had left to resupply at Port Mahon
; he successfully captured Falcon and Pembroke, the two ships left to maintain the blockade, and escorted the fleet to Marseilles.
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was fought among several European powers, including a divided Spain, over the possible unification of the Kingdoms of Spain and France under one Bourbon monarch. As France and Spain were among the most powerful states of Europe, such a unification would have...
fought on 9 November 1710, outside the Sicilian
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
port of Syracuse. A French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
fleet of four ships under the command of Jacques Cassard
Jacques Cassard
Jacques Cassard was a French naval officer and privateer.- Biography :Born on 30 September 1679 to a family of merchants of Nantes, Cassard began a career as a sailor at age 14 on the merchantmen owned by his family. In January 1697, he joined the French Navy on bombship Éclatante.In 1700,...
came to relieve a heavily-laden French merchant fleet that had been blockaded in the Syracuse harbour by a British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
fleet. Cassard arrived off Syracuse when most of the blockading fleet had left to resupply at Port Mahon
Mahon
Mahón is a municipality and the capital city of the Balearic Island of Minorca , located in the eastern part of the island. Mahon has the second deepest natural harbor in the world: 5 km long and up to 900m. wide...
; he successfully captured Falcon and Pembroke, the two ships left to maintain the blockade, and escorted the fleet to Marseilles.