Capo Passero
All the ancient geographers correctly describe it as extending out towards the south and east so as to be the point of Sicily that was the most nearly opposite to Crete and the Peloponnese. It is at the time the southernmost point of the whole inland. This explains the expression of Nonnus, who speaks of the rock of the seagirt Pachynus. Lycophron has a similar phrase, ptolemy gives the name of Promontory of Ulysses to a point on the south coast of the island, a little to the west of Cape Pachynus. It is therefore probable that the Portus Pachyni was the one now called Porto di Palo, immediately adjoining the promontory, in 1718, the seas off the promontory were the site of a great naval battle between the British and Spanish fleets. List of lighthouses in Italy This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, William. Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography
Richard Paton
Richard Paton was a British marine painter. Paton spent his career in London, where he is said to have been born. He is said to have grown up in poverty, and he is described as self-taught, some critics have discerned an influence of Samuel Scotts works, and of Charles Brooking. Any such influence is hardly evident and he was assistant to the ship’s painter on Knowles ship, gaining knowledge in both painting and seamanship. In 1742, he started working at the Excise Office and his first exhibition was in 1758 on the premises of the London-based Society of Artists, where he continued to exhibit up to 1770. The Royal Academy hosted his works between 1762 and 1780, Patons specialities were marine and naval paintings. The paintings include many dramatic effects such as battles at night, the shooting of cannons, there are, less militant themes such as ships becalmed. His sublime depiction of the sky was considered especially noteworthy, prints of his works, made among others by Pierre-Charles Canot, made them widely known.
His work was judged uneven in quality, possibly reflecting his lack of proper training, like that song, Patons marine paintings both reflected the growth of British sea power throughout the 18th century and helped gain public support and backing for that process. The painting is at present in the museum of the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis
Avola
Avola is a city and comune in the province of Syracuse, Sicily. The foundation of the city in a previously inhabited by the Sicani. Hybla was the name of a divinity, identified with the Greek Aphrodite. The Greeks colonized there in the 8th century, an important hoard of Ancient Greek gold jewellery and over 300 coins was found in the vicinity of Avola in 1914. When the Romans conquered Sicily in 227 BC, the city of Syracuse maintained some autonomy in the control of the area, Hybla disappeared in the early Middle Ages, and the territory started to be repopulated during the Islamic domination of Sicily. However, the village near what is now Avola appeared only during the Norman or Hohenstaufen rule, in World War II the town was attacked and liberated by troops of the British 8th Army during the Allied invasion of Sicily on 11 July 1943. During the Hot Autumn of 1969, Avola was the scene of an infamous massacre, two were killed and many wounded. This scene was depicted in the film Il Grande Sogno, media related to Avola at Wikimedia Commons Official website Avola online
Kingdom of France
The Kingdom of France was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Western Europe. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe and a great power since the Late Middle Ages and it was an early colonial power, with possessions around the world. France originated as West Francia, the half of the Carolingian Empire. A branch of the Carolingian dynasty continued to rule until 987, the territory remained known as Francia and its ruler as rex Francorum well into the High Middle Ages. The first king calling himself Roi de France was Philip II, France continued to be ruled by the Capetians and their cadet lines—the Valois and Bourbon—until the monarchy was overthrown in 1792 during the French Revolution. France in the Middle Ages was a de-centralised, feudal monarchy, in Brittany and Catalonia the authority of the French king was barely felt. Lorraine and Provence were states of the Holy Roman Empire and not yet a part of France, during the Late Middle Ages, the Kings of England laid claim to the French throne, resulting in a series of conflicts known as the Hundred Years War.
Subsequently, France sought to extend its influence into Italy, but was defeated by Spain in the ensuing Italian Wars, religiously France became divided between the Catholic majority and a Protestant minority, the Huguenots, which led to a series of civil wars, the Wars of Religion. France laid claim to large stretches of North America, known collectively as New France, Wars with Great Britain led to the loss of much of this territory by 1763. French intervention in the American Revolutionary War helped secure the independence of the new United States of America, the Kingdom of France adopted a written constitution in 1791, but the Kingdom was abolished a year and replaced with the First French Republic. The monarchy was restored by the great powers in 1814. During the years of the elderly Charlemagnes rule, the Vikings made advances along the northern and western perimeters of the Kingdom of the Franks, after Charlemagnes death in 814 his heirs were incapable of maintaining political unity and the empire began to crumble.
The Treaty of Verdun of 843 divided the Carolingian Empire into three parts, with Charles the Bald ruling over West Francia, the nucleus of what would develop into the kingdom of France. Viking advances were allowed to increase, and their dreaded longboats were sailing up the Loire and Seine rivers and other waterways, wreaking havoc. During the reign of Charles the Simple, Normans under Rollo from Norway, were settled in an area on either side of the River Seine, downstream from Paris, that was to become Normandy. With its offshoots, the houses of Valois and Bourbon, it was to rule France for more than 800 years. Henry II inherited the Duchy of Normandy and the County of Anjou, and married Frances newly divorced ex-queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, after the French victory at the Battle of Bouvines in 1214, the English monarchs maintained power only in southwestern Duchy of Guyenne. The death of Charles IV of France in 1328 without male heirs ended the main Capetian line, under Salic law the crown could not pass through a woman, so the throne passed to Philip VI, son of Charles of Valois
Battle of Nassau (1720)
The Raid on Nassau took place in February 1720 when a Spanish force attempted to assault the British settlement of Nassau during the War of the Quadruple Alliance. The Spanish force of 1,200 was largely drawn from Cubans, the threat of Spanish invasion had bedeviled New Providence for the past year, halting settlement on the island and prompting the construction of Fort Nassau, with 50 guns and 250 defenders. Initial plans for an attack on the city from Nassau Harbour were forestalled by the discovery of two British warships in the harbour, the flagship and the frigate HMS Flamborough. Spains heavy ships of the line sat too deep for the shallow waters. The Spanish ships remained in the bay for some time before retiring, Cornejo eventually set sail relatively unharmed, with over 100 captured slaves. Rogers, unable to pay the garrison and his health failing, the governor had expended his personal fortune on Nassaus defenses, which had been the source of considerable anxiety and depression. Britain and Spain negotiated peace the following year, wars of the Americas, a chronology of armed conflict in the New World,1492 to the Present
Battle of Cape Passero (1940)
It took place in the aftermath of a British supply operation to Malta. In October 1940, the Mediterranean Fleet mounted an operation to Malta from Alexandria. The convoy had four ships escorted by two anti-aircraft cruisers and four destroyers. The screening force was led by Vice-Admiral Sir Andrew Cunninghams flagship, HMS Warspite, the only remarkable incident during the convoy was some damage to the destroyer HMS Imperial when she ran into a minefield. The merchantmen reached their destination on 11 October, until then, bad weather had prevented the intervention of the Italian Fleet. An aircraft spotted the ships shortly after they had left Malta. Meanwhile, HMS Ajax was detached from the other cruisers for a scouting mission, the Italian commander—Admiral Inigo Campioni—ordered a force of destroyers to Cape Bon, in case the British warships were going to Gibraltar. In Campionis view, it was too late for the Italian battleships, a flotilla of four destroyers and three torpedo boats was, at the same time, patrolling between 35° 45’ N and 35° 25′N, at about 3 nmi apart, in full moonlight.
The Italian destroyers—all Soldati-class—were the Artigliere, Camicia Nera, the torpedo boats were the Spica-class Ariel and Airone. At 01,37, Ajax was sighted by Alcione, steaming eastward,19,600 yd away on the port side, at 01,48, the three torpedo boats were closing the British cruiser at full speed. The cruiser was completely unaware of the enemy approach, at 01,57, Alcione fired two torpedoes from a range of 1,900 yd. Captain Banfi, commander of the Italian formation, ordered the flagship Airone to open fire on the enemy with her 100 mm guns, three rounds hit home, two on the bridge and the third 6 ft below the waterline. Ajax realised she was under attack and opened fire on the nearest torpedo boat—Ariel—while at full speed, Ariel was shattered by the salvos and sank 20 minutes later, although she may have been able to fire a torpedo. Captain Mario Ruta, his second in command, and most of the crew were killed, Airone was the next Italian ship to be hit. She managed to launch two torpedoes before being disabled, catching fire almost immediately, her bridge and upper deck machine-gunned by Ajax at short range and she sank a few hours later.
Then Alcione—the only Italian warship undamaged—broke contact at 02,03, after manoeuvering during the fighting, Ajax resumed her course to the eastward. At 02,15, her radar detected two Italian destroyers, whose commander—Captain Carlo Margottini—had sighted the firing from the south. A radio malfunction had prevented Margottini from attacking in full strength, Aviere was battered by a sudden broadside from the British cruiser, forestalling a torpedo attack, and was forced to withdraw southwards, heavily damaged
George I of Great Britain
George I was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 until his death, and ruler of the Duchy and Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire from 1698. George was born in Hanover and inherited the titles and lands of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg from his father, a succession of European wars expanded his German domains during his lifetime, and in 1708 he was ratified as prince-elector of Hanover. At the age of 54, after the death of his second cousin Queen Anne of Great Britain, in reaction, Jacobites attempted to depose George and replace him with Annes Catholic half-brother, James Francis Edward Stuart, but their attempts failed. During Georges reign, the powers of the monarchy diminished and Britain began a transition to the system of cabinet government led by a prime minister. Towards the end of his reign, actual power was held by Sir Robert Walpole. George died of a stroke on a trip to his native Hanover, George was born on 28 May 1660 in Hanover in the Holy Roman Empire.
He was the eldest son of Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Sophia was the granddaughter of King James I of England through her mother, Elizabeth of Bohemia. For the first year of his life, George was the heir to the German territories of his father. In 1661 Georges brother, Frederick Augustus, was born and the two boys were brought up together, after Sophias tour she bore Ernest Augustus another four sons and a daughter. In her letters, Sophia describes George as a responsible, conscientious child who set an example to his brothers and sisters. In 1679 another uncle died unexpectedly without sons and Ernest Augustus became reigning Duke of Calenberg-Göttingen, Georges surviving uncle, George William of Celle, had married his mistress in order to legitimise his only daughter, Sophia Dorothea of Celle, but looked unlikely to have any further children. Under Salic law, where inheritance of territory was restricted to the male line, in 1682, the family agreed to adopt the principle of primogeniture, meaning George would inherit all the territory and not have to share it with his brothers.
The same year, George married his first cousin, Sophia Dorothea of Celle, the marriage of state was arranged primarily as it ensured a healthy annual income and assisted the eventual unification of Hanover and Celle. His mother was at first against the marriage because she looked down on Sophia Dorotheas mother and she was eventually won over by the advantages inherent in the marriage. In 1683, George and his brother, Frederick Augustus, served in the Great Turkish War at the Battle of Vienna, and Sophia Dorothea bore George a son, George Augustus. The following year, Frederick Augustus was informed of the adoption of primogeniture and it led to a breach between father and son, and between the brothers, that lasted until Frederick Augustuss death in battle in 1690. With the imminent formation of a single Hanoverian state, and the Hanoverians continuing contributions to the Empires wars, Georges prospects were now better than ever as the sole heir to his fathers electorate and his uncles duchy.
Sophia Dorothea had a child, a daughter named after her, in 1687
Spanish conquest of Sardinia
The Spanish conquest of Sardinia, known as the Spanish expedition to Sardinia, took place between the months of August and November 1717. It was the first military action between the Kingdom of Spain and the Holy Roman Empire after the War of the Spanish Succession, after the War of the Spanish Succession, with the Treaty of Rastatt, Spain lost all its possessions in Sardinia and the Low Countries. The Kingdom of Sardinia, the Spanish Netherlands, the Duchy of Milan and these territories had been under Spanish rule for nearly two centuries, and their loss was perceived as a great blow to the country in both practical and prestige terms. With this background, and the arrest in Milan of Spanish Grand Inquisitor Jose Molina by the Austrians, in July, the King of Spain ordered the Spanish fleet, prepared in Barcelona, to conquer Sardinia, initiating hostilities with Austria. The bulk of the Spanish expedition sailed from the port of Barcelona on July 24, the fleet, under the command of the Marquis de Mari, consisted of nine ships of the line, six frigates, three galleys, two fireships and 80 transport and merchant ships.
The army was 8,500 infantry and 500 cavalry commanded by the Marquis of Lede, on 22 August, the Spanish forces landed in Sardinia, and in just two months reconquered the whole island, whose defenses were commanded by the Marquis of Rubi. Only the strongholds of Alghero and Castellaragonese and the important city of Cagliari resisted. But soon the Austrian troops in Cagliari commanded by Rubi, in the absence of reinforcements, decided to flee to the north of the island, and on 4 October, the Spanish took the city. A few days later, on 19 October, Spanish troops led by Lede and the Duke of Montemar laid siege to Alghero, Castellaragonese fell on 30 October, and the Spanish victory was complete. The Treaty of Passarowitz ended the war between the Ottoman Empire and Austria, and on 2 August, this led to the formation of the Quadruple Alliance, the Spanish forces captured Palermo on 7 July, and divided their army in two. De Lede followed the coast to besiege Messina between 18 July and 30 September, while the Duke of Montemar conquered the rest of the island, the French and British demanded that the Spanish withdraw from Sicily and Sardinia.
The attitude of Victor Amadeus II of Savoy was ambiguous, as he accepted negotiations with the Spanish Prime Minister, Cardinal Alberoni, armada Española desde la unión de los reinos de Castilla y Aragón. EDAF ISBN 978-84-414-2121-9 Alonso Aguilera, Miguel Ángel, La Conquista y el dominio español de Cerdeña 1717-1720. Historia General de España Madrid Chandler, David G, the Art of Warfare in the Age of Marlborough. Spellmount Limited ISBN 0-946771-42-1 Suárez Fernández, historia general de España y América, La España de las reformas, Hasta el final del reinado de Carlos IV. ISBN 84-321-2119-3 Isabella Farnese List of viceroys of Sardinia List of viceroys of Sicily Triple Alliance Quadruple Alliance
George Delaval
George Delaval was an English naval admiral and diplomat. He was of a branch of the Delaval family, the son of George Delaval of North Dissington. His father left him a legacy of only £100 but he went on to make a fortune from his naval. He joined the Royal Navy and by 1693 had achieved the rank of 3rd lieutenant aboard HMS Lenox and he commanded HMS Tilbury in the vanguard at the Battle of Málaga in the War of the Spanish Succession on 24 August 1704. He was promoted to Rear Admiral in 1718 and to Vice Admiral in 1722 and his diplomatic career took him in 1705 to Spain with Lord Peterborough, in 1707 as Envoy to Lisbon and Morocco, and in 1710 to Portugal as Envoy Extraordinary to the King of Portugal. He served as the member for West Looe, Cornwall in the first and second parliaments of George I from 1715 to 1723 and he retained the services of the architect Sir John Vanbrugh and began an ambitious rebuilding of Seaton Delaval Hall. He did not live to see the new house completed, in 1723, at the age of 55, he died as a result of falling off his horse.
The site of the accident was marked by the erection of an obelisk and he restored Bavington Hall to the Shaftos by bequeathing it to George Shafto, who had married his sister. He left Seaton Delaval Hall to his nephew Francis Blake Delaval, Delaval Family Papers and Delaval Hastings Manuscripts. Northumberland Record Office Ships of the Royal Navy Leigh Rayments Historical List of MPs
John Balchen
Admiral Sir John Balchen was an officer of the British Royal Navy with a long and distinguished career during the late 17th and early 18th centuries. In the course of his service at sea, Balchen saw action in numerous battles against the French and Spanish navies across 60 years and he was twice captured by the French in action, both times being exonerated and commended for the defence of his ships against overwhelming odds. Balchen was born in February 1670, the surviving child of the yeoman gentleman, John Balchen. Home educated, Balchen took a commission in the Royal Navy aged 15 and, seven years later, the high death rate led to rapid promotion for those who survived, and Balchen was made Post Captain at the relatively young age of 27 during the Nine Years War. As with the majority of the Royal Navy, Balchen was placed in reserve at the wars conclusion, whilst there, he married Susannah Apreece, daughter of an army colonel. The marriage produced six children, two of whom survived into adulthood, who married Temple West and George, in 1703, Balchen was transferred to the 44-gun frigate HMS Adventure in the North Sea.
This was an area of importance to the British war effort due to the convoys carrying naval supplies from Scandinavia. The commission, yielded few opportunities in the way of prize money, the next year, he was transferred to the 54-gun HMS Chester, with which he was dispatched to the West African Coast, a region considered almost as fatal as the West Indies. Surviving once again, Balchen remained in the Chester and was attached to the bound for Portugal. Balchen suffered his first defeat on 10 October 1707, leaving the safety of Portsmouth harbour, his convoy was ambushed by a French squadron under Forbin and Duguay-Trouin, in what became the Battle at the Lizard. Although the dozen French warships were larger and stronger than the convoy escorts and this action allowed the merchant convoy time to disperse and escape. One British warship escaped, but HMS Devonshire exploded with the loss of nearly 900 lives, the French captured just 15 merchant ships from the hundreds in the convoy, as most made English ports before their pursuers could catch them.
Briefly a prisoner in France, Balchen, as an officer, was allowed to return to England on parole, in 1709, he was formally exchanged for a French officer and returned to naval service, receiving command of the newly built 60-gun HMS Gloucester in August. Leaving Spithead on his first cruise in October, he had been at sea for just a few hours when Duguay-Trouin again appeared with a squadron of five ships of the line. Unable to outrun his opponents, Balchen engaged the 74-gun flagship Lis before being forced to surrender after being dismasted and threatened with boarding, Balchen was exchanged almost immediately and the court martial, once again, exonerated him from all blame for the loss of his ship. He was rewarded for his bravery with command of HMS Colchester in 1710, in which, on 9 November, Balchen secured his first prize, a 20-gun French privateer which he outran in a gale. In 1712 and 1713, Balchen was in the Mediterranean under Sir John Jennings and returned home in 1713 for a period of unemployment on shore.
With the end of the War of the Spanish Succession in 1715, Balchen was returned to sea in the 40-gun frigate HMS Diamond, the same year, he received the shore position commanding the guardship HMS Orford in the Medway
Menorca
Minorca or Menorca is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca, Minorca has a population of approximately 94,383. It is located 39°47 to 40°00N, 3°52 to 4°24E and its highest point, called El Toro or Monte Toro, is 358 metres above sea level. The island is known for its collection of stone monuments, navetes and talaiots. Some of the earliest culture on Minorca was influenced by other Mediterranean cultures, for example, the use of inverted plastered timber columns at Knossos is thought to have influenced early peoples of Minorca in imitating this practice. The end of the Punic wars saw an increase in piracy in the western Mediterranean, the Roman occupation of Hispania had meant a growth of maritime trade between the Iberian and Italian peninsulas. Pirates took advantage of the location of the Balearic Islands to raid Roman commerce. In reaction to this, the Romans invaded Minorca, by 121 BC both islands were fully under Roman control, being incorporated into the province of Hispania Citerior.
In 13 BC Roman emperor Augustus reorganised the system and the Balearic Islands became part of the Tarraconensis imperial province. The ancient town of Mago was transformed from a Carthaginian town to a Roman town, the island had a Jewish population. The Letter on the Conversion of the Jews by a 5th-century bishop named Severus tells of the conversion of the islands 540 Jewish men and women in AD418. Several Jews, including Theodore, a rich representative Jew who stood high in the estimation of his coreligionists and of Christians alike, many Jews remained within the Jewish faith while outwardly professing Christian faith. Some of these Jews form part of the Xueta community, when the Jewish community in Mahon requested the use of a room as a synagogue, their request was refused and they were denounced by the clergy. In 1781, when Louis des Balbes de Berton de Crillon, duc de Mahon invaded Minorca, at that time, the Jewish community consisted of about 500 people and they were transported from Minorca in four Spanish ships to the port of Marseilles.
The Vandals easily conquered the island in the 5th century, the Byzantine Empire recovered it in 534. Following the Moorish conquest of peninsular Spain, Minorca was annexed to the Caliphate of Córdoba in 903 and given the Arabicized name of Manûrqa, with many Moors emigrating to the island. In 1231, after Christian forces reconquered Majorca, Minorca chose to become an independent Islamic state, the island was ruled first by Abû Uthmân Saîd Hakam al Qurashi, and following his death by his son, Abû Umar ibn Saîd. An Aragonese invasion, led by Alfonso III, came on 17 January 1287, some of the Muslim inhabitants of the island were enslaved and sold in the slave markets of Ibiza and Barcelona, while others became Christians
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