The Spanish Armada was a large invasion set up by Philip II in 1588, set to invade England and conquer it as another country to be owned by the Spanish- the world's most powerful empire at this point.
Above: The Spanish Empire at the end of the 16th Century
Red- Spanish Blue- Portuguese Philip's plan was to invade England using a fleet of boats, now known as the Spanish Armada. His plan was to sail 130 ships to England and join forces with the Netherlands on the way and gather 30,000 troops from there.
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Philip didn't just want to make his empire bigger, he also didn't like England as they had become a Protestant country under Elizabeth I's rule.
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Before the battle begun, Sir Francis Drake, an English sailor you may know for circumnavigating the globe, destroyed most of the ships of the Spanish by sneaking into their harbour in 1587. He also destroyed their seasoned wood, meaning when a new fleet had to be built, the barrels with vital supplies were made out of unseasoned wood and leaked the vital supplies that were being held.
The Spanish were unable to make any plans with the Netherlands' leader, the Duke of Parma and didn't manage to join forces. They Spanish then continued to make their way to England but got spotted very quickly, giving the English time to prepare. The Armada sailed in the crescent formation. This meant they all made the shape of a semicircle, making it harder for the English to attack. This had disadvantages and was eventually broken, giving the English an advantage and letting them win.
The Spanish were unable to make any plans with the Netherlands' leader, the Duke of Parma and didn't manage to join forces. They Spanish then continued to make their way to England but got spotted very quickly, giving the English time to prepare. The Armada sailed in the crescent formation. This meant they all made the shape of a semicircle, making it harder for the English to attack. This had disadvantages and was eventually broken, giving the English an advantage and letting them win.
The Armada did fail and it was for a few reasons. These reasons can be categorized into these 4 categories:
See if you can sort the following into those categories:
Can you spot any similarities between the Spanish Armada and the battle of Hastings?
- Leadership
- Ships
- Tactics
- Chance (Luck)
See if you can sort the following into those categories:
- Sir Francis Drake broke into the harbour and destroyed the ships.
- When the Armada was sailing to England they had bad luck with the weather causing delays which used up more resources.
- The poor communication of the Spanish caused them to not be able to meet up with the Duke of Parma and gain more soldiers.
- The English were more strategical with their choice of boats. The English generally used smaller, faster boats that meant they could have a longer range of firepower while the Spanish boats were bigger and not as quick.
- The English ships were low in the water and small which made them harder to hit
- The English had the wind behind them but the Spanish had it against them
- The Spanish would normally be led by Santa Cruz but he had died recently so the seasick and less experienced Duke of Medina Sidonia took his place
- Francis Drake (the English leader) sent hell-burners (old ships on fire which were actually harmless) into the Spanish fleet so the Spanish sailed away and scattered, breaking their formation
Can you spot any similarities between the Spanish Armada and the battle of Hastings?