The Action of 17 February 1783 was a minor naval engagement fought in between Jamaica & Cuba in the Caribbean sea between a Royal Navy frigate HMS Fox and a Spanish Navy frigate Santa Catalina. By the end of 1782 the Spanish and French had been on the defensive since the Battle of the Saintes, which signaled British domination of the seas in the Caribbean. Soon after the Royal navy were conducting a blockade off Cap Francois and Fort Royal as well as keeping a watch off Havana. At the same time British frigates were intercepting both Spanish and French privateers.