On This Day In History: British Fleet Attacked The Spanish ‘Invincible Armada’ – On July 21, 1588

AncientPages.com - On July 21, 1588, an English Naval Force under the command of Lord Charles Howard defeated the “Invincible Armada” of Spain.

The Spanish Armada and English ships in August 1588, (unknown, 16th-century, English School). Image credit: anonymous - Public Domain

This impressive Spanish naval force consisted of 20,000 soldiers and 10,000 more support personnel, arrayed over 130 ships with 2,500 cannons.

In the late 1580s, English raids against Spanish commerce troubled Spain. The Dutch rebels in the Spanish Netherlands supported by Queen Elizabeth I was yet another reason that King Philip II of Spain began to plan the conquest of England. The plans of Catholic Spain were blessed by Pope Sixtus V.

In May, the ships set sail to conquer England, but the Armada did not reach the southern coast of England until July 19 due to severe storms that delayed the departure of the ships. By that time, the British knew about the advance of the Spanish long before they approached the Channel, and they were ready.

"Treasures from the Girona" permanent exhibit -- Ulster Museum, Stranmillis Road, Botanic Gardens, Belfast BT9 5AB, Northern Ireland. Image credit: Bbaldwin7  - CC BY-SA 4.0

Longer-range British cannons fired the first salvos at the approaching Spanish Armada.

On July 21, the English navy began bombarding the seven-mile-long line of Spanish ships from a safe distance, taking full advantage of their long-range heavy guns.

While the Spanish fleet docked in Calais, France, the British sent small “hell-burner” boats set on fire to ram the Spanish ships, loaded with highly explosive ammunition.

The Spanish Armada continued to advance during the next few days, but its force was weakened by the English assault and mass confusion in the Spanish lines, which gave Britain all the advantage they expected.

Seeing further attacks on the English coast impossible, Spain had no choice but to turn back to Spain around Scotland and Ireland.

Approximately 15,000 men had perished, and only half of the “Invincible Armada” ships that left Spain in May returned.

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