American ships fired 5,859 shells for roughly 145 hits on the seven engaged Spanish vessels, a low proportion that still produced overwhelming results. The badly outmatched Spanish crews absorbed remarkable punishment, including thirty-three hits on the small Don Antonio de Ulloa, before their vessels were destroyed. Olympia alone approached the displacement of Spain's two largest ships combined, and her protected deck contrasted sharply with the unprotected hulls carrying most of Montojo's weight. The four leading American protected cruisers gave Dewey nearly seventeen thousand tons of effective cruiser force against roughly ten thousand tons of Spanish ships, many already immobilized or partially disarmed.
Notable Point · 46:02-50:22
Protected cruisers overwhelm unprotected cruisers at Manila
Hit rates were low, but American protected cruisers brought decisive displacement, protection, and sustained fire against smaller and largely unprotected Spanish vessels.