Robert Jenkins

Who is Robert Jenkins?

Robert Jenkins was a British master mariner, famous as the protagonist of the "Jenkins's ear" incident, which became a contributory cause of the War of Jenkins' Ear between Britain and Spain in 1739.

Returning home from the West Indies in command of the brig Rebecca in April 1731, Jenkins' ship was stopped and boarded by the Spanish guarda-costa La Isabela on suspicion of smuggling. Her commander, Captain Julio León Fandiño, had Jenkins bound to a mast, then sliced off one of his ears with his sword and told him to say to his King "same will happen to him (the king) if caught doing the same".

On arriving in England on 11 June, Jenkins addressed his grievances to the king, and gave a deposition which was passed to the Duke of Newcastle in his capacity as Secretary for the Southern Colonies. In his deposition of 18 June 1731, Jenkins stated that the Spanish captain, "took hold of his left Ear and with his Cutlass slit it down, and then another of the Spaniards took hold of it and tore it off, but gave him the Piece of his Ear again." This report was then forwarded to the Commander-in-Chief in the West Indies, who then complained of Jenkins' treatment to the Governor of Havana.