ISLAND OF MINORCA, 1812.

by Brigadier Don Vincent Tofino

This reproduction is taken from an original document, held within the Archives of the UK Hydrographic Office, Taunton, Somerset.

Don Vincent Tofino de San Miguel (1732 - 95) is probably the best known Spanish marine cartographer. This chart of Minorca is taken from Volume II of his `Atlas Maritimo De Espana', and was copied and published by William Faden in 1816. The high quality of Spanish draughtmanship and engraving that was achieved at this time is particularly evident in Tofino's published work, and this chart is no exception.

The Balearic Islands, due to their geographic location, were stategically very important during the European Wars of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Minorca, with its fortified naval base at Port Mahon, was significant in the struggle between the French and British navies for supremacy in the Mediterranean.