This was approximately the Vigo, which were found the first Catalans that reached the then small population of just half a thousand inhabitants in the middle of the 18th century (Seoane & Prado Collection)

We are in the 18th century, that medieval village of Vigo that was beginning to develop after many years of obscurantism, was trying to reach half a thousand inhabitants... surely in the first centuries of our era, either in the culture of the castras or in conjunction with Roman domination, the region of Vigo had much more population, surely around the five thousand neighbors...

A historical event will change the development of the small "Vicus Spacorum," by Vigo... a group of Catalans under the command of Bonaventura Marcó del Pont and Bori, following the instructions of the Spanish monarch Charles III arrive to the south of Galicia with a clear objective: to develop the organized fleet of corsaries of this area of Spain.

The success of the Bonaventura campaigns, which was natural to Calella de Palafrugel, is well known... to the extent that it is repeatedly congratulated by Charles III, Charles IV... that it is linked to work in the living room in times of peace... cause Vigo to have several thousand workers who somehow work for Marcó del Pont or for other Catalan promoters. The part of the loot captured from the then enemy ships (basically British) has to be traded to transform it into currency and proceed to the "legal" deals... Vigo suddenly finds himself exporting to dozens of countries exotic goods, which causes widespread enrichment and a disproportionate growth of its population, to the point that it shows that in a few years it will become a city with several thousand inhabitants... Vigo becomes the corsary reference of the north and north-west of Spain... with ships like the "Prince of Peace" that become the terror of the English ships... the Viguese fleet to the corso, reaches two thousand tons...

1711
The first movements are recorded in Galicia to arm corso ships. These initiatives always have to be supported by French crews. The corso in our waters resurrects in the years 1718 to 1720, coinciding with the first Borbonic ordinances. In the 1930s they arrived in the Asturian bourgeois Vigo that gave a new dynamism to the corso.

1741
On March 27, 1741, the corsary ship "SACRA FAMILIA," armed in Marin and under the command of Captain Jerónimo Biquet, saw the English ship "HELLENE" of London, a 120-ton ship that carried to Porto loaded with different very valuable genera, with 16 canyons and that he was going to meet to put him on foot. Despite the inferiority of tonnage and means of combat, Biquet and his crew are not intimidated, folding the velamen and marching to meet the "Hellene."

The fight begins and has been for a few hours, when the Galician sailor decides to launch himself into the approach. He reacts the fire of the enemy and the "Sacra Familia" receives a few gunshots in water. The corsary begins to make water and everything indicates that it will not be long before it goes down. But Captain Biquet is able to take his boat to the gust, and to throw the hooks at the "Hellene," he encourages his men by example of their value, and jumps aboard the British ship.

And when the "Sacra Familia" sinks into the Ocean, as a result of the waterways opened by the projectiles and the damage caused by the shock, the Galician sailors are already on board the "Helene," whose stunned endowment when they see audacity, is not just defended and falls prisoner. Already the owner of the enemy ship, Captain Biquet pits for Vigo, and between triumphant in port, where he delivers to the authorities the prisoners: these were Captain Peter Raoul and 18 crew of the ship. The battle casualties were two mariners from the corsary and the "Hellene" pilot. In July of this year the first corsary ship is taken to Vigo.

Until 1748 they entered the Port of Vigo, no less than 61 dams, made by different corsary ships armed by the trade of this square. In the same time space, 31 dams entered the Port of Baiona, with four of them being valued, made by the bergatín "SAN TELMO AND ANIMAS," under the command of the baonese captain Barrera, in 90,000 hard. It ended that war and again the Viguese sailors, like those of the other Spanish ports, returned to their peaceful tasks of lawful trade and fishing.

Legacy with the wedding of number one of the corsaries based in Vigo, Marcó del Pont... to the right a passport of those times to be able to travel from Catalonia to Galicia (Seoane & Prado Collection)

1779
As a result of the family pact made by Charles III, the war between Spain and England was again declared, and the corsaries returned to walk their bravery and audacity through the seas. The Corso Ordinance is renewed in June. Such a good business became that of the corso, despite the dangers that such an office was carrying, which soon was seen to appear in these waters to French and American corsaries, to which they were forbidden to corsear on the Spanish coasts.

The first of the Vigo corsaries to be made to the sea at this new stage of their exploits was the "SAN CARLOS Atrevido," under the command of Captain Martin Pino. He sailed this ship on November 1, 1779, and in two months he made six dams of salt, wine, fruit, duels, wheat, pharry and coal. The "San Carlos," popularly known in Vigo as the "Atrevido," was a bergatin with 33 crew members and was armed with 12 peders, 2 guns of four, 25 rifles, 20 pairs of guns, 25 sables and 12 shots.

1780
This year too was very useful for the Vigo corsaries, but the following year they could little do, because of the important naval forces that England was forced to stand out in these waters, to defend its maritime trade. However, the brave sailors of the Vigo area were not discouraged, and in the months of June and July they were still able to make four dams, in charge of the bergantin "SANTISIMO CRISTO DE LA VICTORIA" commanded by Juan Antonio Martínez with 65 crew members and 10 cannons, of the Company of Marcó del Pont.

1781
From August 31 to September 2, 1781, the inhabitants of Vigo sailed from the river to the following corsaries: "RAYO," "CRISTO DE BUENAVISTA Segundo Oliva," "SAN CARLOS Atrevido" and "SAN ANTONIO AND ANIMAS Gallardo." These corsaries made nine dams of cod, salt, oranges and other goods. They also entered at that time in Vigo, two Coruñese corsaries with five dams.

Other ships armed by Marcó del Pont in these years were the Quechemarin "OUR SCIORA OF THE Magnificent CARMEN," of 40 tons, commanded by the Agustín del Toral asturian with a strength of 40 men and 8 guns of four. The skate "La PURISIMA CONCEPTION Galgo" of 57 tons, which was captain of Fernández del Villar and a total of 80 crew. The bergatines "SAN BUENAVENTURA The Prince of Asturias" of 50 tons and 14 cannons, commanded by Captain Sabarte and the "PRINCIPE OF THE PAZ" of 200 tons and 159 men commanded by Captain Estévez.

The research team of this work, in the Cathedral of Tui examining historical documentation of the Proprietary Disoesan archive (Photo Juan Marcet Miramontes)

1782
That the corso also had its setbacks, it is something out of doubt. A Vigo corsary and another sailor fell into the power of the enemy, meaning a major loss to our trade, but not irremediable. The Vigo corsary was the so-called "OUR PATROCINIO SCIER," armed with 20 cannons and 100 crew members, commanded by Captain Francisco Aube. He had been armed by Salvador Pastor and Cia's commercial house. The one in Marin was the "BRAVO," of 16 stone cannons and 60 crew. But against these setbacks, there were the number of prey that the other corsaries did, like the so-called "CRIST OF THE GOOD VICTORY Oliva" (a 34-ton cast led by Francisco Fernández del Villar with a strength of 44 men, armed with 12 canyons of six, 13 canyons, 14 emeriles, 30 rifles and 20 pairs of pistols), which came to count five catches in a very short time, armed by the house Marcó del Pont.

Other important ships of those years were the bergatin "VIRGEN DE PORTAL AND SAN BUENAVENTURA" known as "The Three Brothers" of 45 tons and with 57 men on their crew; and the base "PRINCESS OF ATURIES The" 20 ton hare, "commanded by Manuel de la Iglesia with 22 crew members and with 8 canyons of four.

1783
On 6 January 1783 the "VICTORIA" cutter, armed by Marcó del Pont, was made to sea with 10 cannons, 12 peders and 64 crew members, commanded by Captain Juan Martínez. And this new corsary of that house, he returned to port with two English bergantines he had taken, coming from Newfoundland and driving 2400 quintals of cod.

He left again on January 21, but on the same day he was attacked by two English corsaries and had to go to the Portuguese coast, not to be arrested. The Captain of the "Victoria" asked for help from some Portuguese boats, who denied it. And then, Juan Martínez, he had the wires chopped and the sticks cut, and he let himself be carried by the sea to the rocks, so that his enemies could not even use his ship's helmet. But he saved all his crew from the corsary, the velamen, the weapons and the food.

Far from being discouraged by this setback, the house Marcó del Pont, together with other merchants of the square, still assembled three more ships, to continue in the war of corso, which of such penguin results was for Vigo.In the period 1779-1783 the Casa Marcó del Pont charged a total of 13 dams, until the end of the fight for peace in Versailles:
- With British flag: 3 bergatines (Bedger, Escaley, Pearl), 2 frigates (Hopp, Lochart), 1 esca (Livel), 1 balandra (Peguy), 1 paquebote (Rodney)
- With Portuguese flag: 2 paquebotes (San Francisco de Assisi, San Juan Bautista), 1 escua (Our Lady of the Dolores), 1 bergatín (Our Lady of the Patrocino), 1 frigate (The Angel of the Lord).
Among other British vessels captured by various Viguese companies at the end of the contest were the bergatines "Rambler," "Hoppe Povle," "Octro" and "Mira"; the gulet "Los Amigos" and the frigate "Arjes."

1796
In Vigo a corso patent is granted this year, which is 10 the following year. In 1798, nine, six in 1799, sixteen in 1800 and three in 1801 were awarded. Vigo has a total tonnage of about one thousand five hundred tons, which represents more than sixty percent of that of the Corsarian fleet of southern Galicia. The second port is for the port of Baiona with just over 400 tons, followed by Pontevedra and Carril with about 150.
A dozen "quecharin," four "mystics," three "lugres" and "diatres," two "bergantines," "goletas," "vasas" and "cuters" and a "jabeque" and a "patache" formed the corsarian fleet based in Vigo in the period 1796-1801. The main shipowners were Pedro Abeleira, Bonaventura Marcó del Pont, Pedro Lapaire, Francisco Manuel Menéndez, Joaquín Jorge, Norberto Velázquez Moreno, Manuel Táboas, Juan Antonio Martínez, Francisco González, Lorenzo Llorente, José Antonio Cayro, Bernardo Luis Martínez, José Lluch, Manuel Pastor, José Caminada, Alonso Diez, Manuel de la Fuente, José Sarachaga, José Roura, Angel Rodríguez, Gaspar Martínez and Manuel Pascual.

Text: Manuel Pedro Seoane
Documents: Seoane & Prado Collection