In this dramatic hour-by-hour, blow-by-blow account of the Spanish Armada's attempt to destroy Elizabeth's England, Robert Hutchinson spins a compelling and unbelievable narrative. After the accession of Elizabeth I in 1558, Protestant England was beset by the hostile Catholic powers of Europe, including Spain. In October 1585, King Philip II of Spain declared his intention to destroy Protestant England and began preparing invasion plans, leading to an intense intelligence war between the two countries and culminating in the dramatic sea battles of 1588. Popular history dictates that the defeat of the Spanish Armada was a David versus Goliath victory, snatched by plucky and outnumbered English forces. In this tightly written and fascinating new history, Robert Hutchinson explodes this myth, revealing the true destroyers of the Spanish Armada—inclement weather and bad luck. Of the 125 Spanish ships that set sail against England, only 60 limped home, the rest wrecked or sank with barely a shot fired from their main armament. Using everything from contemporary eyewitness accounts to papers held by the national archives in Spain and the United Kingdom, Hutchinson re-creates one of history's most famous episodes in an entirely new way.

The political machinations, the strategies, and the hour-by-hour accounts of the war that locked Elizabeth I and Philip II in a battle for naval supremacy. The defeat of the Spanish Armada is one of the turning points in English history, and it was perhaps the defining episode in the long reigns of Elizabeth I of England and Philip II of Spain. The running battle along the Channel between the nimble English ships and the lumbering Spanish galleons has achieved almost legendary status. In this compelling new account John Barratt reconstructs the battle against the Armada in the concise, clear Campaign Chronicles format, which records the action in vivid detail, day by day, hour by hour. He questions common assumptions about the battle and looks again at aspects of the action that have been debated or misunderstood. Included are full orders of battle showing the chains of command and the effective strengths and fighting capabilities of the opposing fleets.There is also an in-depth analysis of the far-reaching consequences of the wreck of Philip II’s great enterprise.

The Spanish Armada challenges that view. On the 400th anniversary of the famous sea battle, it offers a more balanced account of the confrontation between the Spanish and British naval powers than has previously been presented. According to Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, the British did not "defeat" the Spaniards; rather, the event should be seen as a "failure" of the Armada to invade British territory. Miles from home, with many of its crew sick, and fighting in stormy waters, the Spanish fleet did well, Fernandez argues, not to be completely routed. Further, he says, it reflects badly on the British not to have inflicted more damage on such a disadvantaged opponent.

In this title in the Battle for Britain series, well-known historical illustrator Peter Dennis takes the battle out to sea, supplying all the artwork needed to create the navies which clashed in the English channel at a moment of supreme danger for the realm. Artwork is also suppled for a printable squared sea surface, coastline and islands. Here, the galleons, Nao and galleasses of the Spanish invader can clash again with the sea dogs of Elizabeth I using simple rules from veteran wargamer Andy Callan. This source book shows you how to copy and make any number of simple and colourful ship cut-out models using traditional skills with glue and scissors. To play the game you will need a tabletop playing surface and a handful of dice.

With the launch of the Spanish Armada in 1588, England suffered its greatest threat since the Norman invasion some 500 years before. This book details the background to the campaign, the opposing fleets, and the whole campaign, including the Armada's disastrous return voyage around Scotland and Ireland.

"The Armada campaign pitted Europe's mightiest military power against Christendom's most powerful navy in a battle for different ideals of civilisation. Both protagonists expected the clash to be decisive; neither, as it soon became apparent, knew how to fight a battle whose scale and character were beyond the experience of anyone in the two fleets. What ensued was not the heroic encounter of legend, but an inconclusive affair, redeemed - for England - by atrocious weather and poor Spanish understanding of the coastlines of western Scotland and Ireland."--BOOK JACKET.