We'd like to use additional cookies to remember your settings and understand how you use our services. This information will help us make improvements to the website. Potential activities: Draw and label a map to show what happened during the conflict with Spain; Make a timeline to show the sequence of events.
Tasks Background Teachers' notes External links Connections to curriculum In , King Philip II of Spain sent an armada a fleet of ships to collect his army from the Netherlands, where they were fighting, and take them to invade England. This was done in the name of religion, because England had become Protestant and no longer accepted the Pope as the head of the Church; Spain was Catholic and the Pope had encouraged Philip to try to make England become Catholic again.
He also had a political reason to go to war with England because Spain ruled the Netherlands, but the people there were rebelling against Spanish control and England had been helping them. The English were worried about the threat of invasion and they attacked the Spanish ships as they sailed along the Channel, but the Armada was so strong that most of the ships reached Calais safely.
While the Armada tried to get in touch with the Spanish army, the English ships attacked fiercely. However, an important reason why the English were able to defeat the Armada was that the wind blew the Spanish ships northwards. To many English people this proved that God wanted them to win and there were pictures and medals made to celebrate this fact. Use this lesson to work with original documents which tell the story of England and the invasion of the Spanish Armada.
As the war ended, Philip II of Spain wanted to stay on good terms with the new queen, Elizabeth I, and even suggested that they marry but Elizabeth politely refused. However, Elizabeth also wanted to stay friends with Spain because there was an alliance between Scotland and France — a situation which was very dangerous for her. Until Elizabeth married and had children, the next in line for the throne was her relative, Mary Stuart, the Queen of Scotland.
To make matters worse, Mary was going to marry the French prince, so it was possible that French and Scottish armies would invade England to make Mary queen. Luckily for Elizabeth, Philip did not want to see France becoming so powerful and he was willing to protect her, even though she made England Protestant again. When Philip had to deal with a rebellion in the Netherlands, it was even more important to him to be on good terms with England because his ships had to sail along the English Channel.
However, England felt some sympathy with the people in the Netherlands because one of the reasons they were rebelling against Spain was that some of them wanted to be Protestant. On top of this, there was a lot of anger among English sailors and traders because Philip would not let other countries share in the wealth that had been found in the areas Spain controlled in Central and South America.
Also, two groups in France were fighting for control, which meant there was far less danger to England. By the s, the two countries were clearly enemies and Spain was supporting attempts to make England Catholic again. Plans for an invasion began in but had to be delayed when Francis Drake burned some ships and destroyed lots of water barrels. Students are introduced to a range of different original documents. With no support from the Duke of Parma and their anchorage lost, Medina Sidonia's main aim was to bring the remains of the Armada back to Spain.
Many ships were wrecked off the rocky coasts of Scotland and Ireland. Of the ships that set out, only 65 returned to Lisbon. The following year, Philip sent another smaller fleet of about ships. This too ran into stormy weather off Cornwall and was blown back to Spain. It was not until the reign of James I ruler of Scotland and England — that peace was finally made between the two countries. Howard was the commander of the English forces, with Francis Drake second in command.
The Spaniards reach Portland Bill, where they gain the weather advantage, meaning they are able to turn and attack the pursuing English ships. The English send in fireships that night. However, the prevailing south-west winds prevent them from doing so. Howard is forced to wait for his ships to re-join him.
Both fleets turn east. However, still no fighting takes place, and the Spanish ships are ordered to sail north. Stormy weather plagues them for the rest of the voyage. October : The remaining Armada ships manage to return home. Understand the context, creation and significance of the Armada Portrait in our concise guide.
Indulge in gifts inspired by its Elizabethan symbolism. Visit us. Queen's House. Plan your visit. Top things to do. Shop for gifts inspired by an iconic Queen Understand the context, creation and significance of the Armada Portrait in our concise guide.
Philip's plan was that an armada of ships would sail to the Netherlands, pick up 30, Spanish troops and invade England. However, the Armada was delayed by an English attack on Cadiz harbour in where Drake made off with gold treaures and destroyed over Spanish ships.
In , Philip's Armada finally set sail. When the Armada anchored at Calais, the English used fireships to scatter the Spanish fleet and then attack it at the Battle of Gravelines in July The Armada was forced to abandon its invasion attempt and was destroyed by storms, which Philip I called the Protestant Wind , whilst trying to sail home round the north of Scotland.
0コメント