On this day in 1653 a mighty naval battle broke out during the First Anglo-Dutch War. On June 2, 1653 the Battle of the Gabbard began when the full force of the English and Dutch fleets sighted each other near the Gabbard sandbank off the coast of Suffolk. Both sides appeared evenly matched, the English with 100 men-of-war and five fireships and the Dutch with 98 men-of-war and six fireships. The English, though, had larger ships with more firepower and the advantage of a northeasterly wind, with the Dutch sailing away from them.
In fierce fighting the Dutch lost two ships and the Dutch leader, Admiral Tromp, almost lost his flagship, Brederode. By early evening, when the fighting ended, the Dutch fleet was battered. Worse still for Tromp, the English fleet was reinforced with another 18 ships during the night.
The Dutch were not only demoralised, but also running short of ammunition, and the next morning Tromp ordered his fleet to escape. He almost succeeded, but at about 11am, with the fleets off the coast of Ostend, the wind fell and the Dutch fleet was left marooned and sitting ducks for the heavy guns of the English. In a bombardment lasting four hours the Dutch were routed. Several ships collided in the rush to escape and the surviving ships just managed to retreat to the safety of the shallow waters off the Flemish coast, where the English ships were too large to follow.
It was a resounding English victory, with the capture of 11 ships, eight others sunk or blown up, 1,350 prisoners taken, including six captains, and unknown numbers of casualties. The English lost no ships and suffered relatively few casualties for a significant battle — 126 dead and 236 wounded. The English fleet went on to blockade the Dutch ports while peace negotiations to end the war took place. The Dutch fleet prepared to fight again, however, and only after another sea battle ended in another Dutch defeat did the war finally end.
