ABSTRACT
The Spanish forces which had taken Sardinia in August 1717 could easily have taken a totally unprepared Gibraltar instead; or, by withdrawing from Sardinia and Sicily in the latter part of 1718, Spain could have regained Gibraltar by treaty. The British reinforced and supplied Gibraltar from Minorca and the Spanish fleet sailed for the relief of Ceuta, then being besieged by the Moroccans. The British and Spanish Kings and Governments must share the blame equally for the misunderstanding. In 1787 Floridablanca prepared what Charles de Vergennes termed a Memorial, a document in which he presented his views concerning future Spanish policy with respect to the problems, domestic and foreign, which confronted the country. The Spanish Line was built despite the British protests that to do so was a hostile act and it was built where planned despite British insistence that it be moved back to a distance of 5000 yards from the walls of Gibraltar.
