Rebellion simmered in Ireland, sparking fears that French troops might land to support a successful revolt. A rising star general named Napoleon Bonaparte led French forces deep into Italy. In the wake of the French alliances, Britain abandoned its Mediterranean holdings of Corsica and Elba. With its new allies, France added two major European navies to its own forces and made plans to launch an invasion of Great Britain. The Netherlands also threw in its lot with the French. In October, Spain declared war on Great Britain and Portugal. Vincent because of the August 19, 1796, Treaty of San Ildefonso, which allied Spain with the revolutionary regime of France. The fleets of Great Britain and Spain clashed off of Cape St. Valdes was determined to prevent a disastrous day for Spain’s navy from growing even gloomier. From his quarterdeck, Valdes shouted to his crew, “Muchachos! We save the Trinidad, or we all die!” His men shouted in unison, “Long live the king!” Guns leveled at the splintered hulk that loomed over his smaller vessel, Valdes warned the crew of the Santisima Trinidad that if they surrendered he would treat them as enemies and fire on them. Captain Cayetano Valdes of the Pelayo was appalled at the idea of surrendering the greatest ship in his navy. The first vessel to draw near through the smoke of battle, though, was another Spanish ship, the 74-gun Infante don Pelayo. After the Spanish ensign came down, the hated Union Jack flew as a symbol of surrender, and the survivors waited for a British prize crew. Vincent, Portugal, the four decks of the Santisima Trinidad by 5 pm were strewn with wrecked cannons and the blood of nearly 500 casualties. Battered by a pack of British ships in a fleet action off Cape St. On the morning of February 14, 1797, the four-decked, 136-gun Santisima Trinidad of Spain’s Armada Real claimed the title of the world’s most powerful warship.
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