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==Background==
In the sixteenth century, Europe was divided into two mutually hostile religious groups. The North of Europe was dominated by Protestantism and the south was mainly Catholic. England had become a Protestant realm by the mid-sixteenth century, but this was opposed by many Catholics. Contrary to popular belief, Catholicism had been popular in England before the Reformation and many people still sympathized with what they called the ‘old religion’ <ref> Duffy, E. Stripping of the Altars (Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2000), p. 113</reref>. Queen Elizabeth, I initially pursued a moderate religious policy to minimize religious conflict between Catholic and Protestant. However, Elizabeth soon found herself under pressure from the great Catholic power of the time, Spain. It was the dominant Catholic power in Europe because of its vast territories in Europe and the Americas. The Spanish King Phillip II was an ardent Catholic and he had two ambitions, the first was to return the Protestants to the Catholic faith and to expand the power of Spain. The Spanish King had been married to Mary I of England and it seemed that for a time that England would become part of the Spanish dominions. However, the coronation of Elizabeth I had changed all of this and she was determined on a policy of independence from Spain. Spain wanted to force the English back into the Catholic fold and to end the attacks of English pirates on their shipping and colonies in the Americas. Elizabeth, I had encouraged English privateers, such as Sir Francis Drake to mount attacks on Spanish targets. Elizabeth sought to limit the power of Spain and to secure some of the riches ‘of the America colonies for her subjects’ <ref> Holmes, Richard. The Oxford Companion to Military History (Oxford, Oxford University Press. 2001), p. 214</ref>. The English Queen also supported the Dutch in their revolt against Phillip II. Relations between Spain and England began to deteriorate and by the mid-1580s the two countries were in an undeclared war, that was to last the rest of Elizabeth’s reign. Spain was the richest and the most powerful Empire in Europe and Phillip decided that he would invade England, believing that if he was successful it would help him to secure many of his strategic objectivesin Europe. The Spanish presented the Armada as a Catholic crusade and it was partially funded by the Papacy.Armada 3.jpg
[[File: Armada 3.jpg|200px|thumb|left|King Phillip II of Spain-mortal enemy of Elizabeth I]]
==The Spanish Armada==
The launch of the Armada had been delayed several times, including once because of a raid by the English on Cadiz. The Spanish Armada was a fleet of 130 ships and it first left the port of Coruna in August 1588, under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia, the most powerful noble in Spain<ref> Holmes, p. 215</ref>. The fleet was ordered to sail to the English Channel and transport a large army in Flanders into England. The aim of the invasion was to depose Elizabeth I and to reimpose Catholicism on the English people. The fleet was an impressive one and the Spanish were experienced, sailors and navigators. However, the commander Medina-Sidonia was old and relatively inexperienced and he was to commit mistake after mistake. The Spanish fleet despite its numerical advantage did not attack the English fleet based at Portsmouth and instead sailed to Calais. The Spanish army under the Duke of Parma was advancing to Calais to be transported to England. However, the English navy under Drake and Howard attacked the Armada with fireships, and this was the start of what became known as the Battle of Grave lines. The English tactic of using fire-ships, created panic among the Spaniards and the fleet was broken up into small groups of ships. The battle was to last over a week with both sides launching attacks. However, Medina-Sidonia decided to withdraw and this was decisive as it meant that the Spanish army was unable to rendezvous with the invasion army. Drake and the other English commanders were happy to let the Armada sail away from the invasion force. Then a strong wind from the southwest forced the fleet to sail to the north and into the North Sea. Medina-Sidonia could regroup his ships and decided to withdraw to Spain and the attempt to invade England was over. Now the Armada sought only to survive and return to Spain. The inclement weather and a strong south-western meant that the Spanish could not return via the English Channel and this wind became known in England as a ‘Protestant Wind’ <ref>McDermott, James. England and the Spanish Armada: The Necessary Quarrel. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2005), P. 215</ref>. The Spanish Command, which could not communicate with Madrid decided to round the British Isles. The Armada sailed around Scotland but all the while was harried by the English fleet. The weather was very unseasonable for that time of years and the fleet of Phillip II was battered by gales and storms. As the Armada made their way around Scotland the suffered many losses. Many more ships were wrecked on the west coast of Ireland and the survivors were hunted down and killed by natives loyal to the English crown <ref>T. P. Kilfeather Ireland: Graveyard of the Spanish Armada (Anvil Books, 1967), p. 167</ref>. By the time that the remnants of the Spanish invasion fleet made it to Spain over two-thirds of the original Armada had been lost. The undeclared Anglo-Spanish War did not end with the defeat of the Armada but was to continue until 1604 and ended in a stalemate.
