Description

The siege of Havana was the successful capture of the Spanish-held city of Havana, Cuba in 1762 as part of the war between the two nations which formed part of the larger Seven Years' War. After the Spanish abandoned their former policy of neutrality by signing the family compact with France, Britain declared war on Spain in January 1762. The British government decided to mount an attack on the important Spanish naval base of Havana, with the intention of weakening the Spanish West Indies and improving the security of its own American colonies. A Royal Navy force consisting of squadrons from Britain and the West Indies, escorting 160 troopships, were able to approach Havana from a direction that neither Governor Juan de Prado nor Admiral Gutierre de Hevia expected and were able to trap de Hevia's fleet in the Havana harbour and land their troops with relatively little resistance.