Raid on La Goulette (1615)

The raid on La Goulette of 1615 was a naval attack by Spanish privateer Francisco de Ribera on La Goulette, the main port of Ottoman Tunisia. After chasing Barbary pirates from Sicily to La Goulette, Ribera approached their harbor and captured several ships before escaping.

Background

While the Spanish court focused their Italian resources on the concurrent War of the Montferrat Succession, Osuna received the task of keep a watch on Muslim navies. In December, his ships discovered that the Ottoman Empire had concentrated 70 galleys in Navarino, near Morea, leading Osuna to mobilize the squad of galleys of Sicily, commanded by Pedro de Gamboa y Leyva. While his spy ships captured two Barbary privateers and sank four in the African coasts, Osuna sent Leyva in combination with fleets of the Knights Hospitaller and the Grand Duchy of Tuscany to carry supply for the Christian rebels against Ottoman rule in Morea.

In the way to Morea, Leyva captured eleven Turkish caramoussals and the flagship of corsair Azan Mariol, who was known for harassing Calabria. He rescued 150 Christian galley slaves and made 200 Muslim prisoners. However, upon being alerted of the activity of new Barbary pirates, Osuna sent in Ensign Francisco de Ribera, who had been recently given command of the 36-gun galleon San Juan Bautista, the first in a private fleet of sailing ships Osuna had started building that year. He also took with him a tartane, carrying 100 soldiers of the Spanish marine infantry and 80 sailors between them.

Battle

Ribera found a suspicious African vessel and, after stopping it, had 60 soldiers to board it with the tartane and search it.