Battle of Getaria 1638
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 22 August 1638 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1638 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | Early modern (1500–1799) | derived from year |
| Location | Spain | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Europe | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Franco-Spanish War | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Hispanic Monarchy, Kingdom of France | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 43.3000, -2.2000 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Getaria was fought on 22 August 1638 during the Franco-Spanish War (1635–59), at Getaria, in northern Spain. A French naval force commanded by Henri de Sourdis attacked and destroyed a Spanish squadron under Lope de Hoces, who survived but was killed at the Battle of the Downs in 1639.
The French fleet was being used to support the siege of Fuenterrabía, a vital Spanish port. By early August, the blockade meant the town was close to starvation. To provide time for a relief force to reach the defenders, de Hoces was ordered to draw their ships away; despite the near total destruction of his force, the siege was lifted in September 1638.
Although ultimately Getaria had little strategic impact, it was the first significant victory for the newly formed French Navy; Cardinal Richelieu viewed it as vindication of the decision taken in 1624 to invest large sums in its expansion.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Getaria (revision 1370110853), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Battle of Andoain 1837 · 17 km
- Siege of San Sebastián 1813 · 18 km
- Siege of the Loyola barracks 1936 · 19 km
- Battle of Oriamendi 1837 · 19 km
- Battle of Tolosa (1813) 1813 · 21 km
- Siege of Fuenterrabía (1638) 1638 · 33 km
Other battles of the Franco-Spanish War
- Siege of Le Catelet (1595) 1595
- Siege of Amiens (1597) 1597
- Siege of Leucate 1637
- Siege of Fuenterrabía (1638) 1638
- Battle of Cádiz (1640) 1640
- Battle of La Marfée 1641
- Battle of Barcelona 1642
- Battle of Honnecourt 1642
- Battle of Montmeló 1642
- Battle of Cartagena (1643) 1643
All 23 battles of the Franco-Spanish War →
Browse more: battles in Spain · Europe · Early modern battles