Siege of Havana
6 June – 13 August 1762, Havana, Cuba
British victory; Havana and a fifth of the Spanish navy taken
When Spain entered the war, Britain sent an expedition against Havana, the strongest port in the Spanish Indies. Admiral Sir George Pocock, with Commodore Augustus Keppel as his second, brought more than 20 ships of the line and some 150 transports carrying the Earl of Albemarle's army through the narrow, uncharted Old Bahama Channel, and landed the troops east of the city in June. The Spanish admiral, Gutierre de Hevia, sank three ships of the line to block the harbour entrance and kept the rest inside. The siege turned on the Morro Castle, commanded by Captain Luis Vicente de Velasco. On 1 July four ships of the line closed in to bombard it, but the fort stood too high for their guns, and they were driven off with heavy losses. The army, wasting away with yellow fever, at last mined the walls, and stormed the Morro on 30 July; Velasco was mortally wounded. Havana surrendered on 13 August with nine Spanish ships of the line in the harbour, along with treasure and merchant ships worth millions. It was handed back to Spain at the peace, in exchange for Florida.
Royal Navy
6+ ships, none lost
Spanish Navy
14 ships, 14 lost
Map
Pocock takes the expedition through the Old Bahama Channel May – June 1762