Spanish cruiser Don Antonio de Ulloa
Encyclopedia
Don Antonio de Ulloa was a Velasco-class
Velasco class cruiser
The Velasco class of unprotected cruisers was a series of eight cruisers built during the 1880s for service with the Spanish Navy. They were named for famous Spaniards of the past.- Description :...
unprotected cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
of the Spanish Navy
Spanish Navy
The Spanish Navy is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces, one of the oldest active naval forces in the world. The Armada is responsible for notable achievements in world history such as the discovery of Americas, the first world circumnavigation, and the discovery of a maritime path...
that fought in the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
.
Technical Characteristics
Don Antonio de Ulloa was built at La Carraca shipyard, CadizCádiz
Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. Her keel was laid in 1883, she was launched on 23 January 1887, and she was completed in 1889. She had one rather tall funnel. She had an iron hull and was rigged as a barque
Barque
A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts.- History of the term :The word barque appears to have come from the Greek word baris, a term for an Egyptian boat. This entered Latin as barca, which gave rise to the Italian barca, Spanish barco, and the French barge and...
.
Operational history
Not long after her completion, Don Antonio de Ulloa was sent to the Caroline IslandsCaroline Islands
The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...
in 1890 to counter threats by the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
to those Spanish-owned islands. Later that year she was sent to the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and was based there to replace her sister ship Gravina
Spanish cruiser Gravina
Gravina was a Velasco-class unprotected cruiser of the Spanish Navy.-Technical Characteristics:Gravina was built by the Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Ltd. at Leamouth, London in the United Kingdom. Her keel was laid in 1881. She had one rather tall funnel. She had an iron hull...
, which had been lost in a typhoon in 1884.
Don Antonio de Ulloa took an active part in Spanish military action against Philippine insurgents during the Tagalog Revolt of 1896-1897. Among her more notable contributions was the transportation of Spanish Army
Spanish Army
The Spanish Army is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies - dating back to the 15th century.-Introduction:...
landing forces to Zamboanga
Zamboanga City
The City of Zamboanga : is a highly urbanized, independent and a chartered city located in Mindanao, Philippines....
in 1897.
Her machinery was in such bad condition by the spring of 1898 that it was removed to be overhauled. With her immobilized off Cavite
Cavite
Cavite is a province of the Philippines located on the southern shores of Manila Bay in the CALABARZON region in Luzon, just 30 kilometers south of Manila. Cavite is surrounded by Laguna to the east, Metro Manila to the northeast, and Batangas to the south...
in Manila Bay
Manila Bay
Manila Bay is a natural harbor which serves the Port of Manila , in the Philippines.The bay is considered to be one of the best natural harbors in Southeast Asia and one of the finest in the world...
, her port battery was also removed for use in reinforcing shore batteries. She was left with only her starboard battery aboard, and only about half of her crew, which was enough to man that battery.
Manila Bay
Manila Bay is a natural harbor which serves the Port of Manila , in the Philippines.The bay is considered to be one of the best natural harbors in Southeast Asia and one of the finest in the world...
. Her anchorage was behind Sangley Point, where the Spanish hoped that the low, sandy point would provide some protection to her hull if the U.S. Navy attacked the anchorage.
The U.S. Navy's Asiatic Squadron under Commodore George Dewey
George Dewey
George Dewey was an admiral of the United States Navy. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War...
did attack, early on the morning of 1 May 1898, making a series of slow firing passes at the Spanish squadron in the Battle of Manila Bay. During Dewey's first pass, Don Antonio de Ulloa took a few hits, the most destructive being a large shell that burst on the upper deck and killed nine men—among them her commanding officer—and wounded another ten, leaving almost no one aboard to man her remaining guns. There was also no one able to strike her colors; when Dewey's squadron reversed course and made a second firing pass, they assumed the still-flying battle ensign meant that Don Antonio de Ulloa was still in action. The U.S. squadron riddled the helpless ship, and she sank in shallow water; after the battle, her hull alone was found to have been holed by four 8-inch (203-mm), three 6-inch (152-mm), one 5-inch (127-mm), and 25 47-mm and 37-mm shells.
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:...
USS Petrel
USS Petrel (PG-2)
|-External links:* at navsource.org...
went aboard and set the wreck of Don Antonio de Ulloa on fire. Postwar, a U.S. Navy survey team found her to be beyond salvage, and her wreck was scrapped.