Battle of the Downs (1639)

Timeline

1. c. 1639Downs anchorage · English ChannelIn September 1639, a Spanish fleet of about seventy warships under Admiral Antonio de Oquendo, carrying large reinforcements for Flanders, sailed north and, after being intercepted off the English coast by Tromp's Dutch fleet, withdrew into the Downs anchorage. Since the Downs were waters claimed as neutral by Britain, the Spanish side hoped for British diplomatic mediation to obtain protection.
2. c. 1639Approaches to the Downs anchorage · English ChannelTromp reinforced to about a hundred warships and imposed a tight blockade on the Spanish fleet off the English coast. Although King Charles I protested the Dutch provocation in British waters, he was in fact powerless to intervene. The Dutch continuously brought in reinforcements from home, waiting for the right moment to launch a decisive attack.
3. 1639Downs anchorage · English ChannelAt dawn on 21 October, Tromp launched a general attack with the Dutch fleet, combining fireships and cannon fire. The Spanish fleet fled in chaos; about 40 warships were sunk or captured, and thousands to over ten thousand Spanish soldiers and sailors were killed or captured, the remainder fleeing back to the Iberian Peninsula. Oquendo barely withdrew with the remnant fleet. Spanish sea power suffered a devastating blow, and Dutch maritime dominance was thereby established.