4. Two Spanish ships destroyed each other during the Second Battle of Algeciras Bay
In 1801, French First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte ordered elements of the French and Spanish fleets to unite, under French control, at the Spanish port of Cadiz. French and Spanish ships from Mediterranean ports attempted to elude British fleets, leading to a series of naval battles in the Algeciras Campaign. During the night of July 12, a combined French and Spanish squadron sailed from Algeciras, encountering British ships under the overall command of James Saumarez. Several ship-to-ship actions occurred in the darkness, with flames of burning vessels lighting the scene and adding to the confusion. HMS Superb, the fastest of the British ships on the scene, attacked the rear ship of the escaping squadron, the Spanish Real Carlos, setting it afire. Superb then set off in pursuit of the next ship.
Real Carlos drifted in the direction of the Spanish San Hermenegildo, which mistook it for a British ship and fired into it. Real Carlos returned the fire. San Hermenegildo and Real Carlos collided in the confusion, their rigging became entangled, and fire soon spread across both ships. While the British pursued the rest of the squadron, the two Spanish ships fought the blaze which threatened to destroy them both. Shortly after midnight on the morning of July 13, both ships exploded as the fire reached one of their magazines. More than 1,700 Spanish sailors died as a result of their commanders’ mutual failure to recognize ships of their own navy. In addition, another Spanish ship, the frigate Perla, was damaged in the crossfire between the two larger ships before they became entangled, sinking the next day with heavy loss of life.
