- Date:
- July 10, 1690
- Location:
- Beachy Head
- English Channel
- United Kingdom
- England
- Participants:
- Dutch Republic
- France
- England
Battle of Beachy Head
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What was the Battle of Beachy Head?
The Battle of Beachy Head occurred on July 10, 1690, during the Nine Years War. The French navy, backing the deposed King James II, triumphed over an Anglo-Dutch fleet supporting William III. This victory granted France temporary control of the English Channel.
French Admiral Count of Tourville, commanding 77 ships, aimed to destroy the Anglo-Dutch fleet, which was reduced to 57 ships. The fleets clashed near Beachy Head, where the Dutch bore the brunt of the French attack, while the English were unable to provide support. After hours of fighting, the English retreated, abandoning the damaged Dutch ships.
Although the English admiral was later acquitted, he lost his position. Despite the French victory, they failed to capitalize on it, and the Anglo-Dutch regained naval superiority by autumn.
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Which countries were involved in the Battle of Beachy Head?
The Battle of Beachy Head in 1690 involved the French navy, which supported the deposed King James II, against an allied Anglo-Dutch fleet, which supported William III. The French defeated the Anglo-Dutch fleet off Beachy Head in southern England. The allied fleet consisted of 57 ships, while the French had 77. The battle resulted in the loss of 13 Dutch ships and 1 British ship, while the French lost none.
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Where did the Battle of Beachy Head take place?
The Battle of Beachy Head took place off Beachy Head in southern England, roughly midway between the Isle of Wight and the Strait of Dover. On July 10, 1690, the French navy, which was supporting the deposed King James II, defeated an allied Anglo-Dutch fleet that was supporting William III. The victory gave France brief control of the English Channel.
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Why did the Battle of Beachy Head happen?
The Battle of Beachy Head occurred because the French navy, in support of the deposed King James II, aimed to defeat the Anglo-Dutch fleet backing William III. On June 23, 1690, French Admiral Count of Tourville sailed from Brest with a large fleet, outnumbering the allied forces in the English Channel.
Queen Mary II ordered the English to engage the French, leading to the battle near Beachy Head on July 10, 1690. The French victory gave them temporary control of the English Channel.
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What happened during the battle and who won?
The Battle of Beachy Head occurred on July 10, 1690, during the Nine Years War. The French navy, backing the deposed King James II, defeated an Anglo-Dutch fleet that supported William III.
Admiral Anne-Hilarion de Contentin, Count of Tourville, led the French fleet of 77 ships, outnumbering the allied fleet of 57 ships. The Dutch vanguard failed to penetrate the French line, leading to their encirclement and battering. Arthur Herbert, Earl of Torrington, then retreated to the Thames, leaving behind damaged Dutch ships. The French gained control of the English Channel but did not capitalize on their victory, which led to criticism of Tourville.
The French won, but the English admiral, Arthur Herbert, Earl of Torrington, was imprisoned in the Tower of London.
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How did the outcome of the Battle of Beachy Head affect European history?
The Battle of Beachy Head in 1690 resulted in a French naval victory over an Anglo-Dutch fleet, giving France temporary control of the English Channel during the Nine Years War. Though supporting the deposed King James II, France's Admiral Tourville did not capitalize on this triumph, only briefly raiding Teignmouth before retreating to Le Havre.
The English admiral, Arthur Herbert, Earl of Torrington, was imprisoned in the Tower of London. The victory's impact was softened by William III's victory against James's forces in the Battle of the Boyne in Ireland. By autumn, the Anglo-Dutch had regained naval superiority, and in 1692, they decisively defeated the French at the Battle of Barflour/La Hougue.
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After besting the English at Bantry Bay, Ireland, in the first major naval engagement of the Nine Years War, the French navy, supporting the deposed King James II, defeated an allied Anglo-Dutch fleet supporting William III off Beachy Head, in southern England, on July 10 (June 30 OS), 1690. The victory briefly gave France control of the English Channel and led to the imprisonment of the English admiral, Arthur Herbert, Earl of Torrington, in the Tower of London.
On June 23, 1690, the French admiral, Anne-Hilarion de Contentin, Count of Tourville, sailed the combined Atlantic and Mediterranean fleets out of Brest with orders to destroy the Anglo-Dutch fleet. His force of seventy-seven ships of the line outnumbered the allied fleet in the Channel, which had thinned to fifty-seven ships of the line because many had been sent elsewhere to protect commercial shipping.
On July 2, the fleets met near the Isle of Wight and sailed up the Channel without engaging. Seeing that the French outnumbered him significantly, Torrington wanted to withdraw to protect his fleet, but on July 9 Queen Mary II ordered him to engage the French. The next day, near Beachy Head, roughly midway between the Isle of Wight and the Strait of Dover, he sailed toward the French with the Dutch in the vanguard. The Dutch failed to reach the front of the French line, so the leading French ships were able to cut across them while the French center completed an encirclement from the rear. The surrounded Dutch ships were battered mercilessly, the English unable to help them. After hours of fighting, Torrington broke off the fight by ordering his fleet to drop anchor, so the tide carried the French out of range. He then sailed for the Thames, abandoning Dutch ships too damaged to follow.
Imprisoned and court-martialed, Torrington was cleared of failing to support the Dutch but lost his post. Despite his supremacy, Tourville did not exploit his victory apart from briefly landing near Teignmouth in Devon and setting the town afire, then sailing to Le Havre to rest and repair his fleet. Like Torrington, Tourville was criticized for leaving the field of battle.
On July 11 (July 1 OS), the day after Beachy Head, William’s army decisively defeated James’s at the Battle of the Boyne in Ireland, taking some of the sting out of the naval defeat. By autumn, the Anglo-Dutch had ninety ships in the Channel, and the brief French superiority there was over. Two years later, in May 1692, a vastly superior Anglo-Dutch fleet destroyed Tourville’s at the Battle of Barflour/La Hougue, off the eastern tip of the Cherbourg Peninsula.
Losses: Anglo-Dutch allied, 13 Dutch ships and 1 British ship of a combined fleet of 57; French, no ships of 77.
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