Free Essay

Why Did the Spanish Armada Fail>

In: Historical Events

Submitted By osheaaway
Words 332
Pages 2
he Armada could have succeeded the plan was simple and could have been effective. The Spanish had the strongest army in Europe and the English defences were not exactly good. All the Spanish had to do was get to the Low Countries pick up the armies, take them to Kent, March to London and dismiss Queen Elizabeth I of her throne. This plan was very simple, but could have been deadly if it had worked. The main reasons for it not working out were the communication problems. The messenger ships travelled the same speed, as the Armada so they were nearly useless and the communication between Parma’s army and the Armada were not good. On top of all of this the Armada had received message that Parma’s army was not ready when they were at Calais, however modern research shows that the army would have been ready in just 5 hours but the Armada didn't know this because of Parma's plan to keep it a secret that the invasion army was ready to give the English a surprise attack... unfortunately it didn't just fool the English, it fooled the Spanish as well.

Communication was not the only problem the planning was put together so quickly, King Philip hadn't thought of the area at all. The coast where Parma's army were waiting the coast was very shallow and not a very steep gradient at all. The sand was less than 20 metres deep for up to a mile out to sea and the Armada’s ships needed at least 20 metres. This meant that the ships couldn't pick up the army. That problem was soon solved when the army managed to get lightweight barges to transport the army across. A new problem arose, how did they get across to the Armada without the Dutch fleet seeing them and attacking them. If they were spotted the Dutch could kill them all and the Armada couldn't do anything about it because of the shallow water.

Similar Documents

Free Essay

Why Did the Spanish Armada Fail?

...are many reasons why the Spanish Armada failed but one of the most important reasons is simply because they were not organized and prepared. They came into battle being arrogant. The Spanish were not prepared for the worst thing that could happen. The English planned what they were going to do step by step. They surprised the Spanish by waiting for them at sea instead of having a land battle with them. All of this history is very significant because it shaped how England is today because if the Spanish Armada had won, England would be totally different to how it is today and this essay is going to be telling you exactly what happened and why the Spanish Armada failed. One of the main reasons of why the Spanish Armada failed was because of their planning and preparation. The English were fully prepared because they had 16,000 experienced sailors on board and 76,000 soldiers waiting on land. The English fleet consisted of 177 ships which were small and less than 100 tons. Also 34 of them were Royal Warships so they were ready for anything. On the other hand the Spanish armada was equipped with enough ammunition, food, water for 4 weeks. This was quite a big problem because this was much longer than they expected to be at sea. The Spanish Armada had 16,000 sailors and 34,000 soldiers at sea. Philip believed that God was on the side of the Roman Catholics so he has 180 priest monks on board so they could have daily masses. Another reason why the Spanish Armada failed was because...

Words: 804 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Spanish Armada Research Paper

...The Spanish Armada How does a so called “invincible” navy fail to destroy the inferior British Navy? The Spanish Armada was said to be the “invincible” navy that fell in the late 1500s. They were called invincible because of their ocean experience due to exploration, which ironically a newer smaller British military defeated. Philip II, King of Spain and controller of much land was behind the Armada while Queen Elizabeth, Queen of England was the one who had angered Philip II. The old ways of the Armada was why they were so easily defeated. From June to September, 1588, war raged between the Spanish and British navies. Most of the action took place in the English Channel, and areas close to Scotland and Ireland were being battled upon as well. At this time in the sixteenth century, new military tactics were being introduced. The British capitalized on using them, but the old and mighty Spanish Armada was using their old faithful yet outdated tactics. The Spanish used their traditional style ships rather than the smaller, nimbler ships of the British. The battle took place on the...

Words: 1458 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

The Spanish Armada of 1588

...“Lizzie v. Phil” The Spanish Armada of 1588, (and other Anglo-Spanish Conflict during the Elizabethan era). Objectives: 1. After completing this work you should understand why the Armada was sent, and why it failed to invade England. You should be in a position to understand the period better as a whole and how the period contributed towards “The Making of the United Kingdom”. 2. Because of 1., above, you should be able to do well in your exams if you have a question on this topic. 3. You should have opportunity to hone and improve your research, study and presentational skills. These skills will benefit you in the future in History and in other subjects. 4. The project mark will form an important part of your next History grade. 2nd Year History project Guidelines 1. The project is down to your own research. It is “your” project. You can organise it however you feel is appropriate, but you must cover each of the different sections listed below. 2. Information can be drawn from all or none of the following sources: a) History text book issued. (This is only a very basic amount.) b) History books about the Elizabethan Navy can be consulted during lessons only (these books cannot be removed from the classroom as other sets may need to use them during the week). c) Printed material supplied by your teacher. d) The Internet (useful for information about the Spanish Raid on Mounts Bay in 1595 for example). e) Library books, encyclopaedias etc. 3. At...

Words: 687 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Explain Why Did Roanoke Fail?

...Roanoke was not a successful attempt to me by the British colonization, even though Roanoke is still here today. In this essay I will talk about why the first attempt was a major fail and explain why. I will discuss ways that they could have done better, and different theories about The Lost Colony. The first attempt to Roanoke was made by Ralph Lane in 1585, his crew consisted of only men. Ralph Lanes voyage was unsuccessful for many reason. He ran the colony like a tight ship, Lane also looked at every situation around him as a military one. He was very violent he killed a native all because of a misunderstanding about a silver cup. The natives name Wingina which cause friction between the natives and Ralph Lanes crew. Another reason why...

Words: 437 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Catholics and Elizabeth 1

...Using These four passages and our on knowledge, assess the view that the Roman Catholics were a serious threat to Elizabeth I and the church she had established. Elizabeth had inherited the throne of England in 1558 from a Catholic queen Mary who had attempted to re-convert England back to Catholicism and to allow the country to take part in the Catholic reformation of Europe. The accession of Elizabeth was met with anxiety and tension as to discover what she was to do in response to religion and how the Catholic powers of Europe as well as the Catholics within England at the time would treat any changes. The immediate rise to power was met with little hostility as Elizabeth had made very cautious changes to start with as she thought it wise not to provoke hostility from abroad considering the position of England at the time as a small, weak protestant nation. The start of Elizabeth’s reign was fairly peaceful however tensions rose and a Catholic threat seemed more imminent as her reign drew to the end. In order to find out if the Roman Catholics were in fact a serious threat to Elizabeth and her church the essay must be split down into two main sub-sections, one to discover whether Catholics were a threat to Elizabeth herself and the other to decide whether they were a prominent threat to Elizabeth’s Church, however there is a very fine difference between the two as the majority of the rule of Elizabeth and her threats such as that from Spain were dominated by religion...

Words: 2682 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

Architect

...Rumelt (2011) “The perils of bad strategy” McKinsey Quarterly June 2011, pp1-10. Bad strategy abounds, says UCLA management professor Richard Rumelt. Senior executives who can spot it stand a much better chance of creating good strategies Horatio Nelson had a problem. The British admiral's fleet was outnumbered at Trafalgar by an armada of French and Spanish ships that Napoleon had ordered to disrupt Britain's commerce and prepare for a cross-channel invasion. The prevailing tactics in 1805 were for the two opposing fleets to stay in line, firing broadsides at each other. But Nelson had a strategic insight into how to deal with being outnumbered. He broke the British fleet into two columns and drove them at the Franco-Spanish fleet, hitting its line perpendicularly. The lead British ships took a great risk, but Nelson judged that the less-trained Franco-Spanish gunners would not be able to compensate for the heavy swell that day and that the enemy fleet, with its coherence lost, would be no match for the more experienced British captains and gunners in the ensuing melee. He was proved right: the French and Spanish lost 22 ships, two-thirds of their fleet. The British lost none.1 Nelson's victory is a classic example of good strategy, which almost always looks this simple and obvious in retrospect. It does not pop out of some strategic-management tool, matrix, triangle, or fill-in-the-blanks scheme. Instead, a talented leader has identified the one or two critical issues...

Words: 3203 - Pages: 13

Free Essay

Hello

...GCE History |Contents |Page | | | | |Unit A2 1: Option 1, Anglo–Spanish Relations 1509–1609 |5 | |Unit A2 1: Option 2, Crown and Parliament in England 1600–1702 The Changing Role and |17 | |Status of Parliament | | | |37 | |Unit A2 1: Option 3, Liberalism and Nationalism 1815–1914 | | |Unit A2 1: Option 4, Nationalism and Unionism in Ireland 1800–1900 |51 | |Unit A2 1: Option 5, The Clash of Ideologies in Europe 1900–2000 |67 | Introduction CCEA has developed new GCE specifications for first teaching from September 2008. This scheme of work has been designed to support...

Words: 15150 - Pages: 61

Free Essay

The Tudors

...The Tudors: A Very Short Introduction VERY SHORT INTRODUCTIONS are for anyone wanting a stimulating and accessible way in to a new subject. They are written by experts, and have been published in more than 25 languages worldwide. The series began in 1995, and now represents a wide variety of topics in history, philosophy, religion, science, and the humanities. Over the next few years it will grow to a library of around 200 volumes- a Very Short Introduction to everything from ancient Egypt and Indian philosophy to conceptual art and cosmology. Very Short Introductions available now: ANCIENT P H I L O S O P H Y Julia Annas THE ANGLO-SAXON AGE John Blair ANIMAL RIGHTS David DeGrazia ARCHAEOLOGY Paul Bahn ARCHITECTURE Andrew Ballantyne ARISTOTLE Jonathan Barnes ART HISTORY Dana Arnold ARTTHEORY Cynthia Freeland THE HISTORYOF ASTRONOMY Michael Hoskin ATHEISM Julian Baggini AUGUSTINE HenryChadwick BARTHES Jonathan Culler THE B I B L E John Riches BRITISH POLITICS Anthony Wright BUDDHA Michael Carrithers BUDDHISM DamienKeown CAPITALISM James Fulcher THE CELTS Barry Cunliffe CHOICETHEORY Michael Allingham CHRISTIAN ART Beth Williamson CLASSICS Mary Beard and John Henderson CLAUSEWITZ Michael Howard THE COLD WAR Robert McMahon CONTINENTAL PHILOSOPHY Simon Critchley COSMOLOGY Peter Coles CRYPTOGRAPHY Fred Piper and Sean Murphy DADAAND SURREALISM David Hopkins DARWIN Jonathan Howard DEMOCRACY Bernard Crick DESCARTES TomSorell DRUGS Leslie Iversen TH E EARTH Martin Redfern EGYPTIAN...

Words: 34946 - Pages: 140

Premium Essay

A2 Coursework

...undertone of drama allowing for 'cliffhanger' endings, which when portrayed in the theater is positively reviewed by the audience. For example the first known performance in November 1604 at Whitehall Palace, which then created widespread delight causing the play to move across England. Perhaps the play was so greatly beloved due to the time in which it was written, as it came into the Jacobean period (when King James I ruled England) as the period of delight during Elizabethan times (due to War Victory) was over and so the tone of the play will be keeping well with the tone of the time between the reigns. It will also be coinciding with the theme of War as the play is set in the backdrop of Wars between Venice and Turkey when in reality the Spanish Armada will be fresh in people's minds. Similarly for Tess being divided into phases to allow paramount endings and show progress of the plot with the heroine i.e. morality implications such as "The Maiden," "Maiden No More," and "Fulfilment". It could be suggested that the form of play would have been an interesting alternative introducing the more physical vulnerability of Tess to be displayed on stage...

Words: 2502 - Pages: 11

Free Essay

Ap Euro Notes

...“the people”, wanted own share of wealth/power R-Russia A-Austria  Ciompi Revolts: 1378 Florence, Popolo were revolting [eew], brief period of control over government B-Britain  Milan taken over by signor (which is a tyrant) • o Under control of the Condottiero (mercenary) Sforza- Significant because after this, a few wealthy families dominated Venice (e.g. Medici) Humanism: Francesco Petrarch (Sonnets), came up with term “Dark Ages”, began to study classical world of rhetoric and literature  Cicero: Important Roman, provided account of collapse of Roman Republic [like Edward Gibbon], invented Ciceronian style: Latin style of writing which humanists followed • [Even though they weren’t in Rome, Humanists did as the Romans do]  Despite being accused of following Pagan culture, Petrarch talked a lot about universality  Civic Humanists: Politicians/ diplomats, utilized public education for common good  Plato: Studying Greek allowed enlightened people to observe platonic ideals [also, big fat...

Words: 17289 - Pages: 70

Free Essay

Alchemist

...Ben Jonson (1572–1637).  The Alchemist. The Harvard Classics.  1909–14. | | |  | |Introductory Note | |  | |  | |BEN JONSON was born of poor parents at Westminster in 1573. Through the influence of Camden, the antiquary, he got a good |  1| |education at Westminster School; but he does not seem to have gone to a University, though later both Oxford and Cambridge gave | | |him degrees. In his youth he practised for a time his stepfather’s trade of bricklaying, and he served as a soldier in Flanders. | | |  It was probably about 1595 that he began to write for the stage, and within a few years he was recognized as a distinguished |  2| |playwright. His comedy of “Every Man in His Humour” was not only a great immediate success, but founded a school of satirical | | |drama in England. “Sejanus” and “Catiline” were less popular, but are impressive pictures of Roman life, less interesting but more| | |accurate than the Roman plays of Shakespeare. ...

Words: 30021 - Pages: 121

Free Essay

Mhqvwuydfqyugfow

...AP World History Survival Guide Name ________________________________ Teacher __________________________ Block _________________ Table of Contents | Pages | AP World History Overview | 3 – 7 | The AP Exam | 3 | World Regions | 4 – 5 | Five Course Themes | 6 | Four Historical Thinking Skills | 7 | Essays Overview | 8 - 15 | Document-based Question (DBQ) | 8 – 12 | Change and Continuity over Time (CCOT) | 13 – 15 | Comparative Essay | 16 – 18 | Released Free Response Questions | 19 – 20 | AP Curriculum Framework | 21 – 38 | Period 1 (Up to 600 B.C.E.)—5% | 21 – 22 | Period 2 (600 B.C.E. to 600 C.E.)—15% | 23 – 25 | Period 3 (600 to 1450)—20% | 26 – 28 | Period 4 (1450 to 1750)—20% | 29 – 31 | Period 5 (1750 to 1900)—20% | 32 – 35 | Period 6 (1900 to the present)—20% | 36 – 38 | Help with Some Confusing Subjects | 39 – 43 | Chinese Dynasties | 39 | Political, Economic, and Social Systems | 40 | Religions | 41 | Primary Sources | 42 | “Must Know” Years | 43 | * Many of the guidelines in this study packet are adapted from the AP World History Course Description, developed by College Board. The AP Exam Purchasing and taking the AP World History exam are requirements of the course. This year, the AP World History exam will be administered on: ___________________________________________ Format I. Multiple...

Words: 16161 - Pages: 65

Free Essay

Help

...AP World History Survival Guide Name ________________________________ Teacher __________________________ Block _________________ Table of Contents | Pages | AP World History Overview | 3 – 7 | The AP Exam | 3 | World Regions | 4 – 5 | Five Course Themes | 6 | Four Historical Thinking Skills | 7 | Essays Overview | 8 - 15 | Document-based Question (DBQ) | 8 – 12 | Change and Continuity over Time (CCOT) | 13 – 15 | Comparative Essay | 16 – 18 | Released Free Response Questions | 19 – 20 | AP Curriculum Framework | 21 – 38 | Period 1 (Up to 600 B.C.E.)—5% | 21 – 22 | Period 2 (600 B.C.E. to 600 C.E.)—15% | 23 – 25 | Period 3 (600 to 1450)—20% | 26 – 28 | Period 4 (1450 to 1750)—20% | 29 – 31 | Period 5 (1750 to 1900)—20% | 32 – 35 | Period 6 (1900 to the present)—20% | 36 – 38 | Help with Some Confusing Subjects | 39 – 43 | Chinese Dynasties | 39 | Political, Economic, and Social Systems | 40 | Religions | 41 | Primary Sources | 42 | “Must Know” Years | 43 | * Many of the guidelines in this study packet are adapted from the AP World History Course Description, developed by College Board. The AP Exam Purchasing and taking the AP World History exam are requirements of the course. This year, the AP World History exam will be administered on: ___________________________________________ Format I. Multiple...

Words: 16161 - Pages: 65

Premium Essay

California an Interpretive History - Rawls, James

...CALIFORNIA CALIFORNIA An Interpretive History TENTH EDITION James J. Rawls Instructor of History Diablo Valley College Walton Bean Late Professor of History University of California, Berkeley TM TM CALIFORNIA: AN INTERPRETIVE HISTORY, TENTH EDITION Published by McGraw-Hill, a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 1221 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020. Copyright © 2012 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Previous editions © 2008, 2003, and 1998. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written consent of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., including, but not limited to, in any network or other electronic storage or transmission, or broadcast for distance learning. Some ancillaries, including electronic and print components, may not be available to customers outside the United States. This book is printed on acid-free paper. 1234567890 QFR/QFR 10987654321 ISBN: 978-0-07-340696-1 MHID: 0-07-340696-1 Vice President & Editor-in-Chief: Michael Ryan Vice President EDP/Central Publishing Services: Kimberly Meriwether David Publisher: Christopher Freitag Sponsoring Editor: Matthew Busbridge Executive Marketing Manager: Pamela S. Cooper Editorial Coordinator: Nikki Weissman Project Manager: Erin Melloy Design Coordinator: Margarite Reynolds Cover Designer: Carole Lawson Cover Image: Albert Bierstadt, American (born...

Words: 248535 - Pages: 995

Premium Essay

Jcals Upload

...I: Economic efficiency and the factors of production Book II: The accumulation of capital Book III: The progress of economic growth Book IV: Economic theory and policy Book V: The role of government 3 The Incredibly Condensed Theory of Moral Sentiments 4 Further reading 9 32 42 47 59 77 84 4 7 1 Introduction Adam Smith’s pioneering book on economics, The Wealth of Nations (1776), is around 950 pages long. Modern readers find it almost impenetrable: its language is flowery, its terminology is outmoded, it wanders into digressions, including one seventy pages in length, and its numerous eighteenth-century examples often puzzle rather than enlighten us today. And yet, The Wealth of Nations is one of the world’s most important books. It did...

Words: 23406 - Pages: 94