The son of a Menorcan émigré, Jorge Farragut Mezquida, who sailed from Ciutadella in 1776 in search of a better life on the other side of the Atlantic, was honoured by the American Naval League last week in ceremonies held in Ciutadella and Maó.
David Glasgow Farragut was born in the U.S. in 1801 and enrolled in the U.S. Navy at an early age, becoming a midshipman at the age of nine. During the American Civil War he commanded a squadron for the northern states and as a result of his success he was promoted to Rear Admiral, the first American to hold the rank. His victory at the Battle of Mobile Bay the following year earned him the rank of Vice Admiral and four years later, when the South surrendered, he was made up to Admiral, a rank created by Congress especially for him.
Memorial Day celebrations in his honour were held last Friday in Ciutadella in the square which bears his name and is dominated by a statue of this 'adopted son of Ciutadella'. Sailors from the frigate USS Taylor and the Spanish corvette Diana formed a guard of honour at the ceremony which was attended by numerous civilian and military dignitaries, as well as representatives from the American Naval League, including the president of the Madrid Council, Eva Garcia, who laid a wreath at the foot of the monument.
The celebrations then moved to Maó where a plaque was unveiled in the Naval Base in memory of the American Naval Fleet which was stationed in the Mediterranean between 1815 and 1840. The authorities were then taken by sea to the English American Cemetery in the harbour where homage was paid to the fallen.