Henry Morgan sacks Portobello and Panama City
- When
- 1668
- Where
- Portobello
- Episodes
- 1
In 1668, Welsh privateer Henry Morgan attacked Portobello with 450 men, overcoming its fortifications. Morgan anchored near the port on 11 July 1668. The provided passages do not confirm a 1668 attack on Panama City; they record a separate 1671 raid that destroyed the city.
Episodes
Background and detail
Background. Henry Morgan, a Welsh privateer, operated under a letter of marque issued by Governor Thomas Modyford in 1667. This license permitted attacks on Spanish vessels, though land raids were not explicitly authorized. In January 1668, Morgan assembled 10 ships and 500 men, later joined by 2 ships and 200 men from Tortuga.
The Attack on Portobello. In 1668, Morgan led a force of 450 privateers to Portobello, successfully overcoming its strong Spanish fortifications. On 11 July 1668, he anchored short of the port and transported his men in canoes to within three miles of the target. This action is distinct from later raids on other locations.
Distinction from the 1671 Panama Raid. The legacy claim that Panama City was sacked in 1668 is not supported by the provided passages. Sources indicate that Morgan attacked and looted Panama City in 1671 with 1,400 men, leading to its destruction by fire. The historic district was built and settled in 1671 after this destruction, conceived as a walled city to protect against future attacks.
People involved
- Henry Morgan · Welsh privateer and leader of the expedition
- Thomas Modyford · Governor of Jamaica who issued the letter of marque
Sources
- Portobelo Wikipedia, revision of 2025-09-08
- Henry Morgan Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-22
- Panama City Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-16
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.