The Battle of Manila Bay took place on May 1, 1898 in Manila Bay in the Philippines between the United States Asiatic Squadron led by Commodore George Dewey and the Spanish Pacific Squadron led by Admiral Patricio Montojo. The decisive American victory marked the first major engagement of the Spanish-American War and began the United States' colonialization of the Philippines. The United States suffered only 1 dead and 9 wounded, while Spain lost 77 dead and 271 wounded with several ships sunk.