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{{Английская Википедия/Панель перехода}}
{{distinguish|text=the [[Battle of La Guaira (1812)|Battle of La Guaira]] in 1812}}
{{more citations needed|date=September 2014}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| image= Engraving La Guaira 1743.jpg
| image_size = 300
|caption=Engraving of the attack by the British fleet on La Guayra (1743)
|conflict=Battle of La Guaira
|partof=the [[War of Jenkins' Ear]]
|date=2 March 1743
|place=[[La Guaira]], [[Viceroyalty of New Granada]] present-day [[Venezuela]]
|result=Spanish victory
|combatant1={{flagcountry|Kingdom of Great Britain}}
|combatant2={{flagicon|Spain|1701}} [[Spanish Empire|Spain]]
|commander1=[[Sir Charles Knowles, 1st Baronet|Charles Knowles]]<br>[[Chaloner Ogle]]
|commander2=[[:es:Gabriel José de Zuloaga Moyúa|Gabriel de Zuloaga]]<br>[[Mateo Gual]]<br>[[:es:José de Iturriaga|José de Iturriaga]]
|strength1='''Land:'''<br/>2,400<br>'''Sea:'''<br/>8 [[Ship of the line|ships of line]]<br> 9 [[frigate]]s, [[bomb vessel]]s and [[fireship]]s,<br> 2 transports<ref name="Duro">Fernández Duro p.283</ref>
|strength2=1,000
|casualties1= ~600 killed<br> ~1,300 total<ref name="Duro"/>
|casualties2=300 killed or wounded
}}

{{Campaignbox War of Jenkins' Ear}}
The '''Battle of La Guaira''' or '''La Guayra''', took place on 2 March 1743 in the Caribbean, off the coast of [[La Guaira]], present day [[Venezuela]]. La Guaira was a port of the [[Compañía Guipuzcoana de Caracas|Royal Gipuzkoan Company of Caracas]], whose ships had rendered great assistance to the Spanish navy during [[War of Jenkins' Ear]] in carrying troops, arms, stores and ammunition from Spain to her colonies, and its destruction would be a severe blow both to the Company and the Spanish Government. A British expeditionary fleet under [[Sir Charles Knowles, 1st Baronet|Sir Charles Knowles]] was defeated, and the expedition ended in failure. 600 men were killed, among whom was the captain of {{HMS|Burford|1722|6}}, and many of the ships were badly damaged or lost. Knowles was therefore unable to proceed to [[Battle of Puerto Cabello|Puerto Cabello]] until he had refitted.<ref>''The Navy In the War of 1739–48'', Cambridge University Press, p. 251</ref>

==Background==
The [[British Admiralty]] had decided to prosecute the Ear Jenkins war against the Spanish settlements, though on a different scale from that of the great expeditions of 1741 and 1742.<ref>''The Navy In the War of 1739–48'', Cambridge University Press, p. 244</ref>

Sir [[Chaloner Ogle]], who had replaced Admiral [[Edward Vernon]] after the defeat at the [[Battle of Cartagena de Indias]] in 1741, prepared an invasion of another important commercial port on the [[Spanish Main]]. Believing La Guaira to be not well defended, Sir Chaloner Ogle wanted to take advantage and attack. On 22 February 1743, Sir [[Sir Charles Knowles, 1st Baronet|Charles Knowles]] sailed from the island of [[Antigua]] with 19 ships.<ref>David Marley, ''Wars of the Americas; A Chronology of Armed Conflict in the New World, 1492 to the Present'', California, 1998, p.263</ref>

Knowles underestimated the defences of La Guaira, believing it to be less well defended than Cartagena de Indias had been. He arrived at [[La Tortuga Island|La Tortuga]] island on 27 February. It is said that the Spaniards had two months warning of the attack recruited extra defenders and obtained gunpowder from the Dutchs. Whether this be true or not cannot definitely be stated.<ref>''The Navy In the War of 1739–48'', Cambridge University Press, p. 250</ref>

==Battle==
[[File:Sir Charles Knowles governor.jpg|thumb|left|Knowles in armour, one hand gestures to fortifications and a burning ship.]]
At first light of the day, Knowles' squadron was {{convert|15|mi|km}} east of the port of La Guaira and ''Otter'' was sent ahead to reconnoitre the inner harbour. Spanish lookouts lit signal fires at 6:30 A.M., alerting the people at both [[La Guaira]] and [[Caracas]] and bringing Governor [[:es:Gabriel José de Zuloaga Moyúa|Gabriel de Zuloaga]] {{convert|25|mi|km}} down to the coast with a large body of militia that had been recruited from Colonel Dalzell's regiment in the [[West Indies]].
The commander of the Spanish garrison [[Mateo Gual]] and Captain [[:es:José de Iturriaga|José de Iturriaga]] prepared for an impending assault supplied with gunpowder by the Dutchs. About midday HMS ''Burford'' stood into the roadstead, followed by HMS ''Eltham'', ''Norwich'', ''Suffolk'', ''Advice'' and ''Assistance''. Despite the hail of rounds from six batteries the English [[man-of-war]] anchored in a double line by 1:00 P.M. and began a furious exchange. The Spanish counterfire proved unexpectedly heavy and accurate and this combined with a heavy swell prevented any British disembarkation. The Spanish had been forewarned of Knowles's intentions to capture La Guaira.

After three and a half hours, ''Burford'' cut the anchor cable and moved out of range; the frigate ''Eltham'' had also been damaged. Both accidentally ran afoul of ''Norwich'', and all three ships left the action, reducing Knowles's overall effort.

Shooting ceased at sundown, around 8:00 P.M, with the battered HMS ''Burford'' seeking shelter to [[leeward]], escorted by HMS ''Norwich'', ''Otter'', and ''Assistance'' which could not anchor. The English resumed a rather desultorily bombardment at dawn the following day with the bomb vessel ''Comet''. De Zuloaga was obliged to return to Caracas his capital on 4 March to reassure an uneasy populace that the enemy had not come ashore.
At 3:00 A.M on 5 March Knowles sent boat parties into La Guaira's roadstead, they boarded a French merchantman before being discovered and driven off.

==Aftermath==
Having suffered 97 killed and 308 wounded over three days, Knowles decided to retire to west before sunrise on 6 March and attack nearby [[Battle of Puerto Cabello|Puerto Cabello]]. Despite instructing his captains to rendezvous at [[Borburata]] Keys—{{convert|4|mi|km}} east of Puerto Cabello—the detached ''Burford'', ''Norwich'', ''Assistance'', and ''Otter'' proceeded to [[Curaçao]], compelling the commodore to angrily follow them in. On 28 March he sent his smaller ships to cruise off Puerto Cabello, and once his main body had been refitted, went to sea again on 31 March, only to then struggle against contrary winds and currents for two weeks before finally diverting to the eastern tip of [[Santo Domingo]] by 19 April.

==British order of battle==
{| class="wikitable"
|- 
!style="#ffffff;"|Ship
!style="#ffffff;"|Guns
!style="#ffffff;"|Commander
!style="#ffffff;"|Crew
!style="#ffffff;"|Killed
!style="#ffffff;"|Wounded
!style="#ffffff;"|Ref.
|-
|[[HMS Suffolk (1680)|''Suffolk'']]
|70
|Captain [[Sir Charles Knowles, 1st Baronet|Charles Knowles]]
|380
|30
|80
|rowspan=10|{{sfnp|Clowes|1898|p=86}}
|-
|[[HMS Burford (1722)|''Burford'']]
|70
|Captain [[Franklin Lushington (Royal Navy officer)|Franklin Lushington]]{{DOW}}
|380
|24
|50
|-
|[[HMS Norwich (1693)|''Norwich'']]
|50
|Captain [[Thomas Gregory (Royal Navy officer)|Thomas Gregory]]
|250
|1
|11
|-
|[[HMS Advice (1712)|''Advice'']]
|50
|Captain [[Elliot Smith (Royal Navy officer)|Elliot Smith]]
|250
|7
|15
|-
|[[HMS Assistance (1650)|''Assistance'']]
|50
|Captain [[Smith Callis]]
|250
|12
|71
|-
|[[HMS Eltham|''Eltham'']]
|40
|Captain [[Richard Watkins (Royal Navy officer)|Richard Watkins]]
|210
|14
|55
|-
|[[HMS Lively (1740)|''Lively'']]
|20
|Captain [[Henry Stewart (Royal Navy officer)|Henry Stewart]]
|120
|7
|24
|-
|[[HMS Scarborough (1740)|''Scarborough'']]
|20
|Commander [[Lachlin Leslie]]
|120
|0
|2
|-
|[[HMS Otter (1742)|''Otter'']]
|14
|Commander [[John Gage (Royal Navy officer)|John Gage]]
|45
|0
|0
|-
|[[HMS Comet (1742)|''Comet'']]
|8
|Commander [[Richard Tyrell]]
|40
|0
|0
|}

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
* {{cite book|last=Clowes|first=William Laird|author-link=William Laird Clowes|year=1898|title=The Royal Navy, a History from the Earliest Times to the Present|volume=3|location=London|publisher=Sampson Low, Marston and Company}}
* Marley, David E. (1998). ''Wars of the Americas: A Chronology of Armed Conflict in the New World, 1492 to the Present''. ABC-Clio Inc. {{ISBN|978-0-87436-837-6}}.
* Richmond, Herbert William. (1920).  ''The Navy In the War of 1739–48''; Cambridge University Press.
* Duro, Cesáreo Fernández (1900). ''Armada española desde la unión de los reinos de Castilla y de León, Vol. VI''. Madrid, Est. tipográfico "Sucesores de Rivadeneyra".

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110722002031/http://www.royal-navy.org/lib/index.php?title=C1701_-_1750  History of the Royal Navy: c. 1701–1750]

{{coord|10|36|00|N|66|55|59|W|region:VE_type:city(25259)|display=title}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}}

[[Category:Conflicts in 1743|La Guaira]]
[[Category:Battles involving Spain|Guaira]]
[[Category:Battles involving Great Britain|Guaira]]
[[Category:Amphibious operations involving the Great Britain|La Guaira]]
[[Category:Invasions by Great Britain|La Guaira]]
[[Category:Battles involving Venezuela|Guaira]]
[[Category:Battles of the War of Jenkins' Ear|Guaira]]
[[Category:1743 in Venezuela]]
[[Category:La Guaira]]
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