Fantastic War

Spanish–Portuguese War (1762–1763)
Part of the Seven Years' War
Date 1762–1763 Location Portugal, Spain, South America Result Decisive Anglo-Portuguese victory in Europe Stalemate in South America: Portugal defeats Spain in Mato Grosso,Rio Negro, and S. Bárbara; Spain defeats Portugal in Uruguay, and Rio Grande do Sul (later reconquered by the Portuguese). Treaty of Paris (1763)
Belligerents
Portugal  Great Britain	Spain  France
Commanders and leaders
Count of Lippe Earl of Loudoun George Townshend John Burgoyne Vicente da Silva	Marquis of Sarria Count of Aranda Pedro Antonio de Cevallos
Strength
7-8,000 Portuguese 7,104 British	45,000 Spanish 12,000 French
Casualties and losses
very low: (14 British soldiers killed in combat and 804 by disease or accidents; Portuguese losses low.)	25,000 men (killed by hunger, combat or disease; desertion and prisoners)

Portugal defeats Spain in Mato Grosso,Rio Negro, and S. Bárbara;
Spain defeats Portugal in Uruguay, and Rio Grande do Sul (later reconquered by the Portuguese).

The Spanish–Portuguese War between 1762 and 1763 was fought as part of the Seven Years' War. Because no major battles were fought, even though there were numerous movements of troops and huge losses among the invaders—utterly defeated in the end—the war is known in the Portuguese historiography as the Fantastic War (Portuguese and Spanish: Guerra Fantástica).

When the Seven Years' War between France and Great Britain started in 1756, Spain and Portugal remained neutral. Their differences in South America had been settled by the Treaty of Madrid (1750). King Ferdinand VI of Spain's prime minister Ricardo Wall opposed the French party who wanted to enter the war on the side of France.

Everything changed when Ferdinand VI died in 1759 and was succeeded by his younger half-brother Charles III of Spain. Charles was more ambitious than his melancholic brother. One of the main objects of Charles's policy was the survival of Spain as a colonial power and, therefore, as a power to be reckoned with in Europe.

By 1761 France looked like losing the war against Great Britain. Furthermore, Spain suffered from attacks by English privateers in Spanish waters, and claimed compensation. Fearing that a British victory over France in the Seven Years' War would upset the balance of colonial power, he signed the Family Compact with France (both countries were ruled by branches of the Bourbon family) in August 1761. This brought war with Great Britain in January 1762.

After Portugal had been struck by the disastrous 1755 Lisbon earthquake, Prime Minister Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, Marquis of Pombal directed all efforts towards the reconstruction of the country, and neglected the armed forces, for which he had little interest anyhow. By the Treaty of El Pardo (1761) between Spain and Portugal, all aspects of the Treaty of Madrid were null and void.

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