Vigo [key], city (1990 pop. 279,986), Pontevedra prov., NW Spain, in Galicia, on an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean. A naval base and one of the most active ports of Spain, it has the country's most important fishing fleet. It also has shipyards, canneries, petroleum and sugar refineries, and various light industries. In 1702 a Franco-Spanish fleet, escorting galleons loaded with American gold and precious stones, was destroyed in the Bay of Vigo by the British and the Dutch; several galleons were sunk, and it is believed that much of the treasure is still at the bottom of the bay. The port was captured by the British in 1719.
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