spanish armada Flashcards
what were some of the reasons for philip wanting to invade england
-when mary tudorbdied he tried to marry elizabeth but she refused (revenge)
-the religious settlement meant that england was a protestant country which concerned him
-excecution of mary was the last straw
why was philip reluctant to sour relations with England?
the english channel was a very convinient trade route
what caused philip to send troops to the Netherlands?
How many troops were there?
who were they led by?
-a protestant revolt
-10,000
-Duke of Alba
how many Dutch protestants did philip arrest?
over 18,000
what did Elizabeth sign that made her the protector of the Dutch protestants?
how many troops did elizabeth send?
what did this mean for spain and england?
-the treaty of nonsuch
-5,000
-undeclared war
what would we call men like Francis Drake?
privateers (legal pirates)
when did Drake attack Spanish silver ships in the Caribbean?
1572
how did Philip and Elizabeth react to Drake’s behaviour in the Carribean?
-philip was furious and demanded his excecution
-Elizabeth was delighted and personally knighted him in 1581
what was step 1 of philips plan for the armada?
sail north from Lisbon along the coast of spain and france into the english channel, destroying the english fleet
what was step 2 of philips plan for the armada?
advance through the english channel and anchor the spanish fleet of Calais
what was step 3 of philips plan for the armada?
a force of 17,000 spanish soldiers would gather at Dunkirk ready to invade england - they would be led by the Duke of Parma
what was step 4 of philips plan for the armada?
the armada would guide Parma’s soldiers as they crossed the channel in flat-bottomed barges
what was step 5 of philips plan for the armada?
parmas army would land at Margate, Kent and travel up the Thames and overthrow Elizabeth making england catholic again
what was step 6 of philips plan for the armada?
as sooon as the spanish army landed on the south coast english rebels would rise in rebellion
what were flaws with Phillips plan?
-the admiral in charge of the armada died before they launched so the inexperienced Duke of Medina Sidonia had to take over (sea sick!)
-shorty after setting sail from Lisbon, a dreadful storm blew them off course
-no harbours in the netherlands were deep enough for their ships
-the Duke of Parmas army had to travel in barrages built on the spot: if weather was rough they might sink
why was Drake burning timber supplies a significant setback?
-delayed the armada by a year
-meant when they did set sail many of the barrels were split because of using unseasoned wood
what were the strengths of the armada?
-good supplies of food and drink
-64 battleships (22 huge gallions)
-well equipped with cannonballs, guns, powder, bullets, swords
-30,000 men altogether
-17,000 well trained soldiers
how did the english and spanish armies compare?
spain had a larger, better trained army while england had the larger navy with experienced captains
how did england prepare for the invasion?
-a line of warning beacons were set up along the coast to be lit when the armada was sighted
-elizabeth raised a force of 20,000 men which was organised into three armies in Kent, Tilbury and Essex
who was the english navy led by?
who did he appoint to help him?
Lord Charles Howard, Duke of Effingham
Francis Drake and John Hawkins
how many English battleships were there?
how many merchant ships turned into battleships were there?
54
140 (so there were aprox. 200 in total)
what happened when the spanish got to the channel?
-they sailed through the channel in the crescent formation
-despite the english sailing out of Plymouth and trying to break the crescent, they were unsuccessful
when did the armada dock off calais?
6th August 1588
what year was the spanish armada?
1588
why did the armada face a delay while docked off calais?
Parmas army would not be arriving for another week due to attacks from Dutch forces
when did Howard attack the docked fleet in calais and how?
-7 august
-he sent eight unmanned ships filled with gunpowder and set them alight sending them towards the enemy ships
what did spain do in response to the fireship attack from Howard?
they panicked and headed out to sea in all directions, breaking the crescent
when was the battle of gravelines?
8th August
what happened at the battle of gravelines?
-english warships attacked the scattered armada at Gravelines near Dunkirk
-after 8 hours of fighting, 3 ships had sunk, 1000 spanish killed but only 50 english killed
-the english had prevented the armada from joining with Parmas army
when did elizabeth give her speech at tilbury? why?
9th August
despite victory at gravelines england still faces a possible invasion - wanted to motivate forces
when did the wind change direction and allow the spanish to sail home?
9th August
how many ships did spain lose while sailing back home in:
-ireland
-scotland
-25
-2
what about the armadas tactics meant that it failed?
-the use of fireships broke up the crescent formation
-this made the spanish ships out gunned and easier targets
what features of the english strengths led to the armada failing?
-the english had heavier firepower and were fitted with long range cannons
-english ships were smaller and faster
what spanish weaknesses led to the armadas demise?
-duke of medina sidonia was inexperienced
-spanish cannons were ineffective
-the duke of parma didnt arrive on time allowing the english to attack at calais
why did the weather cause the armada to fail?
-it blew the scattered spanish fleet northwards
-they didnt have maps of scotland and ireland
-they didnt have enough food for this extended voyage
when was the protestant revolt in the netherlands?
1572
When did Protestants in Antwerp and other Dutch cities rise in rebellion against catholic rule?
1566
When was a second rebellion in the Netherlands, what was the country split into? What did Elizabeth do?
-1575
-southern provinces = made peace with Spain
-northern provinces = led by William of orange and rejected Spanish rule
-Elizabeth funded resistance against Parma who was attempting to recover rebels land and later signed the treaty of nonsuch
When did Drake embark on a three year journey and how much Spanish treasure did he steal?
-1577
-launched surprise attacks on spanish treasure ships capturing £140,000 worth of treasure
How did drake set back the armada?
-the building of the armada in Cadiz was almost complete in 1587
-drake sailed English warships into the harbour destroying 37 ships
-he also burned important timber supplies so when they set sail, many barrels were leaky bc they were unseasoned wood
Why was the success of the armada not completely good news?
-war against Spain dragged on for another decade
-for a short time, Philip constructed a new armada of 100 ships and on two occasions sent them to England but both times they were driven back by storms
-English continued to support Dutch Protestants
-English sailors continue to attack Spanish ships
