The Spanish Armada Flashcards
Personal reasons for the Armada
Philip had once been co ruler of England when married to Mary but lost this when she died
He proposed to Elizabeth but she rejected him
Holy Crusade = wanted to stop spread of Protestantism
What events in the Netherlands lead to the armada?
Netherlands under Catholic Spain control
Dutch Protestants led by William of orange began rebelling = William shot
Elizabeth funded their rebellions to keep Spain preoccupied
Caused tensions
What actions of English pirates led to the armada?
Spanish treasure ships carrying gold back to Spain attacked by English pirates
Then attacked Spanish ports and settlements in Central America
A year before = golden hind where Francis drake went around stealing from Spanish ships and was knighted
Original plan for the Armada
Ships from Lisbon to Calais
Foot soldiers from Netherlands to north France led by Duke of Parma
The ships would protect the foot soldiers as the crossed from Dunkirk to England
They would go up the Thames to London and overthrow Elizabeth
Why was the armada delayed?
Drake attacked a port at northern Spain and destroyed ships and supplies
Then, even after it set sail, was hit by storms and had to stop to undertake repairs in north Spain
Strategic problems with the armada
Netherlands didn’t have harbours deep enough for ships to dock and transport foot soldiers to England
The transportation would require barges that had to be built on the spot, weather could make them sink
Commanding problems with the armada
Duke of medina sidonia appointed the admiral as he had a noble status as a ground warrior
But he gets sea sick
When and where did the armada set sail from?
Lisbon, Portugal 1588
What happened immediately after the armada set sail?
Was hit by storms
Had to dock in north Spain (La Corunna) to undergo repairs
Where was the armada spotted?
Cornwall
How did the armada sail through the channel?
In a crescent formation
Where slow unarmed ships in middle + armed ships on outer edges
So difficult for England to attack
How did England respond to the armada?
Lord Howard set out from Plymouth to fight them but didn’t break the crescent formation
What went wrong when the foot soldiers and armada were meant to meet?
Duke of Parma’s soldiers were delayed by a week
So english took advantage of this to break the crescent formation
By sailing fire ships so the armada drove away
Battle of Gravelines
England attacked the scattered armada
Lost 3 Spanish ships, no English ships
Prevented Duke of Parma joining as armada began to head north
England had some breathing space
Where did the armada escape to?
Had to keep going around Scotland and Ireland
But poor weather forced them to sail that way
Poor map reading caused ships to be lost there
