English Occupation of Jamaica

Timeline

1. 1654–1655Portsmouth · EnglandCromwell pursued the Western Design, aiming to strike the Spanish Caribbean empire and seize strategic islands. In late 1654, an expedition of about 38 warships under Admiral William Penn and some 6,000 soldiers under General Robert Venables departed Portsmouth, targeting Spanish Hispaniola.
2. 1655Caribbean Sea (route from Hispaniola to Jamaica) · Caribbean SeaThe English expedition twice attacked Santo Domingo on Hispaniola and was repulsed with heavy losses. Penn and Venables decided to attack the relatively poorly defended Jamaica, hoping to bring some 'spoils' back to Cromwell. The fleet sailed toward northwestern Jamaica in early May.
3. 1655Santiago de la Vega (capital of Spanish Jamaica) · JamaicaOn May 10, 1655, English troops landed on Jamaica's south coast; outnumbered, the Spanish garrison withdrew inland under Governor Juan Ramírez with about 1,500 Spanish settlers for guerrilla resistance, later fleeing to Cuba. The English occupied the capital Santiago de la Vega, renaming it Santiago (later Spanish Town). Jamaica thus became an English colony, formally confirmed by the Treaty of Madrid in 1670.