Battle of Punta Colares

The naval Battle of Punta Colares, also known as the Battle of Corales, was the first major naval engagement of the Cisplatine War. It took place between a fleet of the Empire of Brazil, commanded by admiral Rodrigo José Ferreira Lobo, and a squadron of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata under the command of admiral William Brown. The confrontations began at around 10 o'clock on 9 February 1826 and lasted for seven hours.^[5]

Battle of Punta Colares
Part of the Cisplatine War
Combate de Punta Colares, by José Murature, 1865
Date 9 February 1826 Location Río de la Plata, Argentina 34°34′00″S 58°00′00″W Result Inconclusive[1]
Belligerents
Empire of Brazil	United Provinces
Commanders and leaders
Rodrigo Lobo	William Brown
Strength
Ships:[2] 3 corvettes 5 brigs 2 brigantines 2 schooners 2 gunboats Total guns: ~155	Ships:[2] 1 corvette 4 brigs 2 schooners 12 gunboats Total guns: ~126
Casualties and losses
8:[3] 3 killed 5 wounded No ships lost	21:[3][4] 6 killed 15 wounded No ships lost

Background

After war broke out between the Empire of Brazil and the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata on 10 December 1825,^[6] the Brazilian government responded by imposing a naval blockade on the port of Buenos Aires on 31 December 1825, aiming to cripple Argentine finances.^[6] Since then there had been no major naval engagements between both belligerent states.^[7] In the early morning of 9 February 1826 the Argentine squadron left the port of Buenos Aires and made its first attempt to break the blockade.^[2]

Order of battle

Empire of Brazil

Ships[2]	Type	Guns
Liberal	Corvette	22
Itaparica	Corvette	22
Maceió	Corvette	18
29 de Agosto	Brig	18
Caboclo	Brig	18
Real Pedro	Brig	18
Dona Januária	Brig	14
Rio da Prata	Brig	10
Pará	Brigantine	8
Leal Paulistana	Brigantine	6
Liberdade do Sul	Schooner	Unknown
Conceição	Schooner	Unknown
N° 8	Gunboat	1
Montevideana	Gunboat	Unknown

United Provinces of the Río de la Plata

Ships[2]	Type	Guns
25 de Mayo	Corvette	28
Congreso Nacional	Brig	18
Republica Argentina	Brig	18
General Belgrano	Brig	16
General Balcarce	Brig	16
Sarandí	Schooner	3
Pepa	Schooner	3
12 Gunboats	Gunboat	At least 2 guns each

Battle

The Argentine squadron was spotted leaving the port of Buenos Aires in the early morning of 9 February 1826. Admiral Rodrigo Lobo gave orders to the Brazilians to lift the anchors and set sail. Only at 10 o'clock admiral Lobo ordered the ships to turn to their sides and start the confrontations. Both squadrons approached each other and the Brazilians took the offensive. At 14:45 the Brazilians spotted more Argentine ships. The corvettes Liberal and Itaparica opened fire against the 25 de Mayo and the Argentine brigs. The Argentine brigs abandoned the combat and were soon followed by the gunboats. Isolated and sustaining the enemy fire alone, the corvette 25 de Mayo also fled.^[8]

At 5 o'clock the Brazilians once again managed to approach the Argentine squadron. The corvette Liberal and the brig 29 de Agosto opened fire against the 25 de Mayo and the Congreso Nacional, firing at them for one and a half hour.^[3]

Aftermath

It was the first time that admiral William Brown had tried to face the Brazilian fleet. The result was not favourable to Brown and the Argentine squadron, although the Brazilian admiral did not take advantage of the situation to further attack them. After the battle, at night, the Brazilians anchored between the Ortiz and the Chico sandbanks. Admiral William Brown then planned a combined attack against the city of Colonia del Sacramento, which was controlled by the Brazilians and was under siege by troops on land, on 25 February 1826.^[9]

Ortiz sandbank (in the center)

References

Citations

1. Carneiro 1946, pp.183-184: "Era a primeira vez que a esquadra argentina do Almirante Brown ousava enfrentar a nossa. O resultado não lhe foi favorável. Todavia o Almirante Rodrigo Lobo não soube tirar partido da situação, porque lhe faltava iniciativa e lhe sobejava indecisão".
2. Carneiro 1946, p. 181.
3. Carneiro 1946, p. 183.
4. Donato 1987, p. 272.
5. Carneiro 1946, pp. 182–183.
6. Bento 2003, p. 24.
7. Carneiro 1946, pp. 180–181.
8. Carneiro 1946, pp. 181–183.
9. Carneiro 1946, pp. 183–184.

Bibliography

• Carneiro, David (1946). História da Guerra Cisplatina (PDF) (in Portuguese). São Paulo: Companhia Editora Nacional.
• Donato, Hernâni (1987). Dicionário das Batalhas Brasileiras (in Portuguese). São Paulo: Editora Ibrasa.
• Bento, Cláudio Moreira (2003). 2002: 175 Anos da batalha do Passo do Rosário (PDF) (in Portuguese). Porto Alegre: Genesis. ISBN 85-87578-07-3.