Capture of the Rosily Squadron

Battle context

The capture of the Rosily Squadron in June 1808 at Cádiz delivered the Spanish a significant early naval prize at the outset of the Peninsular War. Five French ships of the line and a frigate, bottled up in port since the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 under British blockade, were surrendered along with roughly 4,000 French seamen after a five-day engagement. The action followed directly from the Second of May uprising in Madrid and reflected the rapid deterioration of the Franco-Spanish alliance across the Iberian Peninsula. The seizure removed a substantial French naval force from any potential operational use and handed Spain both material and symbolic momentum in the opening phase of the war.