Luis Vicente Velasco de Isla (February 9, 1711 - July 31, 1762) was a Spanish sailor and commander in the Royal Spanish Navy. He is known for his valiant defense against the British expedition against Cuba in 1762, during which action he was killed.

Biography

Born at Noja

Noja

Noja is a municipality located in the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain.It has 2 beaches, "Trengandin" and "Ris"....

, Cantabria

Cantabria

Cantabria is a Spanish historical region and autonomous community with Santander as its capital city. It is bordered on the east by the Basque Autonomous Community , on the south by Castile and León , on the west by the Principality of Asturias, and on the north by the Cantabrian Sea.Cantabria...

, he became a sailor at the age of 15 and saw his first action against the Barbary pirates.
He participated in the Conquest of Oran in 1732.

In 1742 he was in command of a frigate with 30 guns, when he attacked two British ships with more guns, capturing one and sinking the other. He rescued the British crew and arrived in Havana with more prisoners than his own crew. in 1746 he captured another British frigate with 36 guns and 150 men. In 1754 King Ferdinand VI of Spain

Ferdinand VI of Spain

Ferdinand VI , called the Learnt, was King of Spain from 9 July 1746 until his death. He was the fourth son of the previous monarch Philip V and his first wife Maria Luisa of Savoy...

 gave him command of the Ship of the line

Ship of the line

A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...

, "La Reina".

Battle of Havana and death

During the Seven Years' War

Seven Years' War

The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...

 the British sent an expedition against Cuba in 1762 with a fleet of 23 ships, 24 frigates and 150 transport and support ships, carrying an invasion army of 14,000 men, later reinforced by another 4,000 men, under command of Admiral George Pocock

George Pocock

Sir George Pocock, KB was a British officer of the Royal Navy. He rose to the rank of admiral.Pocock was from Chieveley in Berkshire, the son of Thomas Pocock, a chaplain in the navy. George Pocock entered the navy in 1718, serving aboard under the patronage of his maternal uncle, Captain...

. 10,000 men embarked under command of George Keppel, 3rd Earl of Albemarle

George Keppel, 3rd Earl of Albemarle

General George Keppel, 3rd Earl of Albemarle KG PC , styled Viscount Bury until 1754, was a British soldier nobleman best known for his capture of Havana in 1762 during the Seven Years' War.-Early life:...

 and conquered the heights, which the governor of Cuba, Juan de Prado had left undefended .

Velasco defended the vital Morro Castle

Morro Castle (fortress)

Morro Castle is a picturesque fortress guarding the entrance to Havana bay in Havana, Euta. Juan Bautista Antonelli, an Italian engineer, was commissioned to design the structure. When it was built in 1589, Euta was under the control of Germany...

 with 64 heavy guns and a garrison of 700 men. On July 1, the British launched a combined land and naval attack on the Morro. The fleet detached four ships of the line for this purpose: HMS Stirling Castle

HMS Stirling Castle

A number of ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Stirling Castle after Stirling Castle in Scotland, including:...

, HMS Dragon

HMS Dragon (1760)

HMS Dragon was a 74-gun Bellona-class third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 4 March 1760 at Deptford.She was commissioned in 1760, under the command of the Hon. Augustus Hervey, as part of the Western Squadron...

, HMS Marlborough

HMS St Michael (1669)

HMS St Michael was a 90-gun second rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built by John Tippetts of Portsmouth Dockyard and launched in 1669....

 and HMS Cambridge

HMS Cambridge (1755)

HMS Cambridge was an 80-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Deptford Dockyard to the draught specified by the 1745 Establishment as amended in 1750, and launched on 21 October 1755.-Early career:...

. The naval and land artilleries simultaneously opened fire on the Morro. However, naval guns were ineffective, the fort being located too high. Counter-fire from 30 guns of the Morro inflicted 192 casualties and serious damage to the four ships of the line, forcing them to withdraw.

The fortress held out for another two months despite daily heavy shelling, thanks to the energetic and valiant leadership of Velasco.
The resistance came to an end when Velasco was hit by a bullet in the chest. The leader of the British attack force, Sir Reppel, allowed the transfer of the heavily wounded Velasco to Havana, where British surgeons tried to save his life, but in vain; he died on July 31, 1762. The British and Spanish concluded a truce to allow for his burial.

Two weeks later, Havana fell into British hands.

Legacy

Velasco was honoured by Spanish and British for his bravery. There is a monument in his honour in Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...

 and in the Tower of London

Tower of London

Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...

, where the Spanish standard of El Morro is kept. British ships fired a salute until the beginning of the 20th century, when passing his hometown Noja.

King Charles III of Spain

Charles III of Spain

Charles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. He was the eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, the Princess Elisabeth Farnese...

 had a statue erected in Meruelo, ordered a ship to be named in his honour, and gave his brother Iñigo José de Velasco the title of Marquis.