Editing War of Jenkins' Ear (section)

===Third attack on Cartagena de Indias (13 March–20 May 1741)===
{{Main|Battle of Cartagena de Indias}}
{{More citations needed|section|date=November 2015}}
[[File:Cartagena - Fortaleza San Felipe de Barajas - 20050430bis.jpg|300px|thumb|[[Castillo San Felipe de Barajas]] ([[Cartagena, Colombia|Cartagena]]). This fortress, though incomplete during the war, was integral to Spain's effort to maintain the link with its colonies via the Atlantic [[sea lane]]s.]]
[[File:Guerra de la oreja de Jenkins.png|thumb|250px|British operations in the Caribbean Sea during the War of Jenkins' Ear]]

The largest action of the war was a major [[amphibious warfare|amphibious attack]] launched by the British under Admiral Edward Vernon in March 1741 against Cartagena de Indias, one of Spain's principal gold-trading ports in their colony of New Granada (today [[Colombia]]). Vernon's expedition was hampered by inefficient organisation, his rivalry with the commander of his land forces, and the logistical problems of mounting and maintaining a major trans-Atlantic expedition. The strong fortifications in Cartagena and the able strategy of Spanish Commander [[Blas de Lezo]] were decisive in repelling the attack. Heavy losses on the British side were due in large part to virulent tropical diseases, primarily an outbreak of [[yellow fever]], which took more lives than were lost in battle.{{sfn|Webb|2013|pp=396–398}}

The extreme ease with which the British destroyed Porto Bello led to a change in British plans. Instead of Vernon concentrating his next attack on Havana as expected, in order to conquer Cuba, he planned to attack [[Cartagena de Indias]]. Located in Colombia, it was the main port of the Viceroyalty and main point of the [[Spanish treasure fleet|West Indian fleet]] for sailing to the [[Iberian Peninsula]]. In preparation the British gathered in [[Jamaica]] one of the largest fleets ever assembled. It consisted of 186 ships (60 more than the famous [[Spanish Armada]] of [[Philip II of Spain|Philip II]]), bearing 2,620 artillery pieces and more than 27,000 men. Of that number, 10,000 were soldiers responsible for initiating the assault. There were also 12,600 sailors, 1,000 Jamaican slaves and macheteros, and 4,000 recruits from [[Virginia]]. The latter were led by [[Lawrence Washington (1718–1752)|Lawrence Washington]], the older half-brother of [[George Washington]], future President of the United States.<ref>{{cite web |date=9 June 1740 |title= Commission of Lawrence Washington as captain in provincial forces serving under Admiral Vernon in the Cartegena Campaign |website=The Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington at Mount Vernon (Lyrasis) |url=https://archives.mountvernon.org/repositories/3/archival_objects/16752 }}</ref>

Colonial officials assigned Admiral Blas de Lezo to defend the fortified city. He was a marine veteran hardened by numerous naval battles in Europe, beginning with the [[War of the Spanish Succession]], and by confrontations with European pirates in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, and [[Barbary pirates]] in the Mediterranean Sea. Assisting in that effort were Melchor de Navarrete and Carlos Desnaux, with a squadron of six ships of the line (the flagship vessel ''Galicia'' together with the ''San Felipe,'' ''San Carlos,'' ''África,'' ''Dragón,'' and ''Conquistador'') and a force of 3,000 soldiers, 600 militia and a group of native Indian archers.

Vernon ordered his forces to clear the port of all [[scuttling|scuttled]] ships. On 13 March 1741, he landed a contingent of troops under command of Major General [[Thomas Wentworth (British Army officer)|Thomas Wentworth]] and artillery to take Fort de San Luis de Bocachica. In support of that action, the British ships simultaneously opened with cannon fire, at a rate of 62 shots per hour. In turn, Lezo ordered four of the Spanish ships to aid 500 of his troops defending Desnaux's position, but the Spanish eventually had to retire to the city. Civilians were already evacuating it. After leaving Fort Bocagrande, the Spanish regrouped at [[Castillo San Felipe de Barajas|Fort San Felipe de Barajas]], while Washington's Virginians took up positions in the nearby hill of La Popa. Vernon, believing the victory at hand, sent a message to Jamaica stating that he had taken the city. The report was subsequently forwarded to London, where there was much celebration. Commemorative medals were minted, depicting the defeated Spanish defenders kneeling before Vernon.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/2848/figura082ak.jpg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110818111011/http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/2848/figura082ak.jpg|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 August 2011|title=ImageShack}}</ref> The robust image of the enemy depicted in the British medals bore little resemblance to Admiral Lezo. Maimed by years of battle, he was one-eyed with limited use of one hand.

[[File:A View of Cartagena (Isaac Basire) 1741.jpg|thumb|British and American colonial troops led by Admiral Vernon failed to take Cartagena de Indias in 1741]]
On the evening of 19 April, the British mounted an assault in force upon [[Castillo San Felipe de Barajas]]. Three columns of [[grenadiers]], supported by Jamaicans and several British companies, moved under cover of darkness, with the aid of an intense [[naval bombardment]]. The British fought their way to the base of the fort's [[defensive walls|ramparts]] where they discovered that the Spanish had dug deep trenches. This effectively rendered the British [[Escalade|scaling equipment]] too short for the task. The British advance was stymied since the fort's walls had not been breached, and the ramparts could not be topped. Neither could the British easily withdraw in the face of intense Spanish fire and under the weight of their own equipment. The Spanish seized on this opportunity, with devastating effect.

Reversing the tide of battle, the Spanish initiated a [[fixed bayonet]] charge at first light, inflicting heavy casualties on the British.{{citation needed|date=March 2024}} The surviving British forces retreated to the safety of their ships. The British maintained a naval bombardment, sinking what remained of the small Spanish squadron (after Lezo's decision to [[scuttling|scuttle]] some of his ships in an effort to block the harbour entrance). The Spanish thwarted any British attempt to land another ground assault force. The British troops were forced to remain aboard ship for a month, without sufficient reserves. With supplies running low, and with the outbreak of disease (primarily [[yellow fever]]), which took the lives of many on the crowded ships,<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RXgg4cbWhsUC&dq=61st+Foot+Gooch+American+Regiment&pg=PT6|title=Chartrand, Rene. '' Colonial American Troops, 1610–1774'', Vol. 1, pp. 18–19 Osprey Men-at-Arms #366, Osprey Publishing 2002|isbn=9781841763248 |last1=Chartrand |first1=René |date=25 April 2002 |publisher=Bloomsbury USA }}</ref> Vernon was forced to raise the [[siege]] on 9 May and return to Jamaica. Six thousand British died while only one thousand Spanish perished.{{citation needed|date=March 2024}}

Vernon carried on, successfully attacking the Spanish at [[Guantánamo Bay]], Cuba. On 5 March 1742, with the help of reinforcements from Europe, he launched an assault on [[Panama City]], [[Panama]]. In 1742, Vernon was replaced by [[Rear admiral|Rear-Admiral]] [[Chaloner Ogle]] and returned to England, where he gave an accounting to the [[British Admiralty|Admiralty]]. He learned that he had been elected [[Member of Parliament|MP]] for [[Ipswich]]. Vernon maintained his naval career for another four years before retiring in 1746. In an active parliamentary career, Vernon advocated for improvements in naval procedures. He continued to hold an interest in naval affairs until his death in 1757.

News of the defeat at Cartagena was a significant factor in the downfall of the British Prime Minister [[Robert Walpole]].{{sfn|Browning|1993|pp=109–113}} Walpole's anti-war views were considered by the Opposition to have contributed to his poor prosecution of the war effort.

The new government under [[Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington|Lord Wilmington]] wanted to shift the focus of Britain's war effort away from the Americas and into the Mediterranean. Spanish policy, dictated by the queen [[Elisabeth Farnese]] of Parma, also shifted to a European focus, to recover lost [[Spanish possessions in Italy]] from the Austrians. In 1742, a large British fleet under [[Nicholas Haddock]] was sent to try and intercept a Spanish army being transported from [[Barcelona]] to Italy, which he failed to do having only 10 ships.{{sfn|Rodger|2005|p=239}} With the arrival of additional ships from Britain in February 1742, Haddock successfully blockaded the Spanish coast{{sfn|Browning|1975|p=97}} failing to force the Spanish fleet into an action.

[[Lawrence Washington (1718–1752)|Lawrence Washington]] survived the yellow fever outbreak, and eventually retired to [[Virginia]]. He named his estate [[Mount Vernon]], in honour of his former commander.