battle, notable, early modern

Capture of Mers-el-Kébir

Name: Capture of Mers-el-Kébir
Start: 1505-09-13
Location: Mers El Kebir, Algeria

Capture of Mers-el-Kébir was a battle fought on 13 September 1505 at Mers El Kebir, in what is now Algeria. It was part of Zayyanid–Iberian conflicts, which ran from 1415 to 1543. The recorded result: Spanish victory. Recorded strength: 7,000 soldiers; 170 sailing vessels against 1,500 soldiers; 30 horsemen.

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Relief from the base of the tomb of Ramon Folc de Cardona-Anglesola showing the representation of the Massalquivir Dam of 1505. Montesita, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Fought13 September 1505

WhereMers El Kebir, Algeria35.733N, 0.717W

OutcomeSpanish victory

BelligerentsKingdom of SpainagainstKingdom of Tlemcen

Casualties and lossesUnknownandUnknown

Part ofZayyanid–Iberian conflicts1415 to 1543

Where it sits in Zayyanid–Iberian conflicts

3 placed engagements of Zayyanid–Iberian conflicts in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date	13 September 1505
Place	Mers El Kebir, Algeria 35.733N, 0.717W
Kind	Battle, early modern
Territorial change	Mers-el-Kébir captured by Spain
Strength	7,000 soldiers; 170 sailing vessels	1,500 soldiers; 30 horsemen
Casualties and losses	Unknown	Unknown
Commanders	Ramón de Cardona Diego Fernández de Córdoba y Arellano, 1st Marquis of Comares	Abu Abdallah V

The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

Attack on Mers-El-Kebir 1940, 2.9 km SE
Battle of l'Habrah 1835, 7.0 km SE
Capture of Oran 1831, 7.0 km SE
Siege of Oran 1556, 8.6 km SE
Sieges of Oran and Mers El Kébir 1563, 8.6 km SE

Contested ground: this site was fought over 9 times between 1505 and 1940.

In the same war

Before: Battle of Mers el-Kebir 1501
After: Battle of Mers-el-Kébir 1507
All 3 engagements of Zayyanid–Iberian conflicts

Elsewhere in 1505

Capture of Mers-el-Kébir is one of 1,390 engagements of the 16th century in the atlas and one of 130 in present-day Algeria.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q603279, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Capture of Mers-el-Kébir (1505), revision 1373842260, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.