Imagine the United States of America in the 18th century:  the tenuous rebellion of farmers and tradesmen, fighting a grueling prolonged war against a powerful empire with an established army and navy that contended for much of the known world. The American Revolutionary War was decisively aided by foreign intervention, and the role of the French is well documented. Unknown to many Americans, the Spanish and Latin Americans throughout the Caribbean, Central and South America, and the regions of North America that are now the states of New Mexico, California, Louisiana, Texas and Florida, also played a significant part, by supplying critically needed materials and financing to the Continental Army throughout the Revolution and through military campaigns against the British.

Much of the aid was supplied through secret agents and shell companies established to confound the British, as well as indirectly through the export merchant trade supported by the Spanish and Latin Americans.  This trade provided the North American colonists with a means to earn the gold and silver that they required in the absence of a viable national currency.

The most crucial action was during the land and naval battles of Yorktown in 1781. The gold and silver currency that supplied and financed the Yorktown siege and the French fleet for the critical naval battle on the Chesapeake, which prevented Cornwallis from receiving British reinforcements or retreating safely with his army, was raised within 24 hours in Havana, Cuba, in an emergency collection from private citizens. The Spanish also assisted the Admiral of the French squadron in planning for the naval battle at the Chesapeake, enabling the French to engage all of their battleships for the crucial confrontation.   

The decisive assistance at Yorktown, and the overall contribution of the Spanish and Hispanic Americans, has been diminished in many accounts of the American Revolution or obfuscated in chimerical anecdotes, including a persistent urban myth of diamonds donated by the ladies of Havana. This web site reviews the scenario for the financing of the Battle of Yorktown (Background), including the dire straits of Continental currency and army, the importance of hard currency – gold and silver – to import critically needed supplies, and the crucial role of naval power.

This web site provides a broad overview of the assistance given by the Spanish leading to the final collection of gold and silver for Yorktown, reviewing the roles of key characters that have been unacknowledged in even today's 21st century recounting of events. Previous references are reviewed in the light of additional sources, including unpublished documents from the Archivo General de los Indies (Sevilla, Spain), the Domingo Del Monte Collection in the Library of Congress Manuscript Division (Washington DC), and El Fondo Saavedra (Granada, Spain). These documents reveal the extensive involvement of the Spanish and Latin Americans in the success of the Battle of Yorktown and clarify the urban legends.  

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