4.The Spanish Armada (1588) 

 
                        Queen Elizabeth the first was dubbed the 'Virgin Queen of England', for she never got married. When she was raised to the throne after the death of her sister, Queen Mary, or the more dubious, 'Bloody Mary' for she executed a high number of Christian Protestants during her reign. She died on the 17th of November 1558, on which Elizabeth her half sister, who was imprisoned for a long period during Mary's reign.

the map of the route the attack

                       The succession of Queen Elizabeth the first to the throne, did not sit well with Spain who was a country of stout Catholic. Phillip of Spain (at one time was the husband of Mary), claimed he was a pious man, and seeing a Protestant queen on the English throne, does not bode well with him, nor with the pope, who was in Rome. Many attempt or plot against her was foiled, mostly by one of the most feared man in England, the Principle Secretary of the Queen Elizabeth, Sir Francis Walsingham. Walsingham was feared even before he returned to England from exiled, he was exiled for a reason, because Queen Mary's administration feared of him. He was smart, cunning and most of all, he is loyal. He is the most loyal man in the queen's court, and Queen Elizabeth, trust him the most.

Queen Elizabeth II

                        Though in 1587, the enemy of England, had a planned. A planned that was so cleaver, that it fooled the great Walsingham himself. They used Mary the Queen of Scots (Elizabeth's cousin, not the same as bloody Mary). She was next in-line for the throne. They told her of a plot to kill Elizabeth, and put her on the throne. letters from Spain was written to her to prepare herself, as a great spy master, Walsingham knew of this but let it continue to see what happens, and surely enough an attempt was made, but it failed. Having intercepted the letters of Mary, the Queen of Scots he asked permission from the Queen of England to execute, Mary. She grudgingly allowed. The scheme however was not over, for that was only the first part of it. They knew all along that Walsingham would intercept the letters for it was in their plan to do so, and as the Queen of England, a heretic in the eyes of Spain and the Pope, had ordered and execution of an appointed Queen of God, the Pope, had ordered King Phillip and Spain to send a large army to be rid of her, no other Catholic kingdom can appose the word of the Pope.

The Massive Armada

                            King Phillip of Spain, had planned this all along, for at the time of orders from the Pope, came out his newly built fleet had been at the ready, a number of 151 ships (largest number in history at the time) bearing of 26,000 men, the Grande y Felicísima Armada (the Great and Most Fortunate Navy) or the Armada Invencible (the Invincible Armada) set sailed from Lisbon on the 25th of April 1588. It was so massive that it took them 2 days just to get out of the port. Led by Duke of Medina Sidonia (whose appointment was one of the reasons why it failed), they head for England to be joined by the ground troops of 30,000 led by the Duke of Parma at the English Channel.

The engage of the English fleet against the armada

                           Queen Elizabeth knew of the dangers, she herself personally oversee the planning of the defense. She knew that the English force could not fight both Spain and the Duke of Parma in the soils of England. So her best bet is to stop the armada at see. The English navy was not a well built navy. Many of the ship was run down, but their captains are brave and experienced. Plus they were boost by a number of English pirate ships who returned home from the 'New World', notably Sir Francis Drake, a great one of the great captains of the sea. On the 21st of July the first engagement began. Since the English ships were smaller and lighter, they were easy to maneuver. Harassment towards the armada, was done successfully. The Admiral of the armada, Duke of Medina Sidonia had never sailed a ship before, let alone led an armada, for his inexperience, was one of the reasons of their failure.

the defeat of the Armada to the English fleet

                           Back in England, Queen Elizabeth herself, despite the protest of her advisers, armored up and waited at Tilbury, with her army in case if the Spanish were successful of landing in the channel. She gave a speech saying' "but being resolved, in the midst and heat of battle, to live or die amongst you all..." which lifted the spirit of the English soldiers, but fight they do not have to, because in the early of September, in a battled known as the 'Battle of the Gravelines'. With the help of an English storm and the unrest of her seas, the English ships had defeated the Spanish Armada. 74 Spanish ship were destroyed, and they return home to Spain in shame. King Phillip of Spain upon hearing the news sank on his knees in tears and shouted, "I've sent the armada against men, not God's winds and waves!" Which showed us the vital part the whether played for the English victory. It was in this moment, that England became a super power nation that everybody feared, led by a queen that the English loved, so dearly. Queen Elizabeth the First.