The Spanish commander Bernardo de Gálvez planned an attack against Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas which served as a major British privateering base.

Gálvez authorised an expedition against the islands in late 1781, but this was postponed during the Yorktown Campaign, which led to the surrender of a British army in October 1781.

In spite of receiving orders from Gálvez to abandon the previously planned expedition so his forces could be used for an invasion of Jamaica, Cagigal pressed ahead with his scheme and sailed from Havana on 18 April 1782.

One of his associates, Francisco de Miranda, was also charged with a similar offence, which may have motivated his later career as an advocate of independence for Spain's American colonies.

[11] An American Loyalist named Andrew Deveaux set forth to recapture Nassau, which he achieved on 17 April 1783, with only 220 men and 150 muskets to face a force of 600 trained soldiers.