Atlas of Battles

naval engagement, notable, early modern

Battle of Elmina

Battle of Elmina was a naval engagement fought on 25 October 1625 at Elmina, in what is now Ghana. It was part of the Dutch–Portuguese War, which ran from 1601 to 1661. The recorded result: Portuguese victory. Recorded strength: 1,200 soldiers; 15 ships against 56 Portuguese; 200 African allies.

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View of Elmina Castle in 1668, with European shipping in foreground and African houses/town shown in left hand corner and in various areas around the fort.
View of Elmina Castle in 1668, with European shipping in foreground and African houses/town shown in left hand corner and in various areas around the fort.. http://hitchcock.itc.virginia.edu/ en:Elmina, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought25 October 1625
WhereElmina, Ghana5.083N, 1.347W
OutcomePortuguese victory
BelligerentsDutch West India CompanyagainstPortugal
Casualties and lossesAll killed except 45and27 killed
Part ofDutch–Portuguese War1601 to 1661

Where it sits in the Dutch–Portuguese War

Battle of Príncipe, 1598Battle of Bantam, 1601Capture of Amboina, 1605Siege of Malacca, 1606Battle of Cape Rachado, 1606Battle of Pulo Buton, 1606Siege of Mozambique, 1607Siege of Mozambique, 1608Battle of Swally, 1612Dutch invasions of Brazil, 1624Filips van Zuylen's campaign against Luanda, 1624Battle of Elmina, 1625Battle of Jambi, 1630Campaign of Porto Calvo, 1637Battle of Elmina, 1637Battle of Goa, 1638Second Battle of Salvador, 1638First Battle of Salvador, 1638Action of 30 September 1639, 1639Action of 12–17 January 1640, 1640Siege of Malacca, 1640Capture of Luanda, 1641Battle of Tabocas, 1645Action at Tamanana, 9 September 1645, 1645South Atlantic campaign, 1647First Battle of Guararapes, 1648Recapture of Angola, 1648Action of 23 March 1654, 1654Action of 2 May 1654, 1654Battle of Mannar, 165815981658Battle of Elmina, 1625
30 placed engagements of the Dutch–Portuguese War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date25 October 1625
PlaceElmina, Ghana
5.083N, 1.347W
KindNaval engagement, early modern
Strength1,200 soldiers; 15 ships56 Portuguese; 200 African allies
Casualties and lossesAll killed except 4527 killed
Commanders
  • Jan Dircksz Lam
  • Fernando de Sottomayor
Battle of ElminaBattle of ElminaBattle of ElminaBattle of ElminaCapture of CarolusborgAssault on OsuBattle of ElminaAssault on OsuTemaObuasiKoforiduaWinneba100 km5.083N, 1.347W
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 3 times between 1625 and 1781.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1625

Battle of Elmina is one of 1,553 engagements of the 17th century in the atlas and one of 16 in present-day Ghana.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q1140266, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Elmina (1625), revision 1375871907, 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.