Action of 13 June 1898 Action of 13 June 1898 The Action of 13 June 1898 was a minor naval engagement of the Spanish–American War fought near Cienfuegos, Cuba, between the American auxiliary cruiser USS "Yankee" under Commander Willard Herbert Brownson and the Spanish gunboat "Diego Velázquez" under Teniente de Navío de 1ª clase Juan de Carranza y Reguera, which had exited the port to inspect a suspicious steamer which proved to be "Yankee". "Diego Velázquez", markedly inferior to "Yankee" in armament, managed to return to Cienfuegos, where it was joined by the small gunboats "Lince" and "Cometa". After the appearance of the latters, "Yankee"
Spanish cruiser Infanta Maria Teresa of the Kiel Canal. "Infanta María Teresa" was the flagship of Spanish Vice Admiral Pascual Cervera y Topete, commander of the Spanish Navy's 1st Squadron, when tensions with the United States were rising after the explosion and sinking of the US battleship "Maine" in the harbor at Havana, Cuba on 15 February 1898. The squadron concentrated at São Vicente in Portugal's Cape Verde Islands; departing Cadiz on 8 April 1898. "Infanta María Teresa", the armored cruiser , and three destroyers arrived at São Vicente on 14 April 1898, experiencing machinery problems and burning excessive amounts of coal during the voyage.