| Some historians have suggested that
the Armada failed because the original Spanish plan was flawed.
Philip II had asked two different commanders to put together plans
for the invasion. Both the Marquis of Santa Cruz and the Duke of
Parma put forward their suggestions. Santa Cruz’s plan was
a naval plan; Parma’s was an army plan. Philip II made the
mistake of trying to combine the two different plans. The final
plan involved sailing the Armada to the Spanish Netherlands to pick
up Spanish soldiers who were stationed there before sailing on to
invade England's south coast. But there was no obvious port to pick
up the soldiers in the Netherlands. |
In Spain after the defeat many people
blamed the Duke of Medina Sidonia for the defeat saying that he
lacked courage or that he had been a poor commander. It was certainly
unfortunate that Spain's Lord High Admiral, Santa Cruz, the man
who had developed the naval plan, died in 1586. Certainly, Medina
Sidonia, though a good general, had never been to sea before and
when he did get on board his ship, he got seasick. However, he was
an experienced soldier and commander - it was not his fault that
the plan was flawed. |
| The Spanish had experienced considerable bad luck
in putting together their Armada. In 1587, Drake had attacked Cadiz
harbour and destroyed or damaged a number of ships that were in
preparation for the invasion. This meant that new ships had to be
built very quickly and other ships repaired. |
Thus the Spanish plan seemed doomed from the start.
While it sailed in a crescent shape, the Armada was relatively safe.
But part of its plan was to stop, pick up sailors and then sail
to England. The simple fact that the plan involved stopping the
Armada, meant that it was fatally flawed. Warships on the move and
in formation gave the Armada protection. Once the ships were still,
they were open to attack. |
| The unlucky destruction of ships meant that new
ships had to be built in such a hurry that they put the stores on
board in barrels that were made of new wood which was still damp.
This rotted the food and made the water sour. |
It was even more misguided for
Medina Sidonia to expect reliable communications between himself
and Parma. He wrongly believed that Parma would have his troops
aboard the barges and small ships before the Armada reached the
Narrow Seas, and would therefore be ready to put out the instant
its sails were spotted.
|
| The Armada first sailed in April 1588. It hit a
terrible storm and many ships were damaged. They had to return to
port to get repaired. This reduced the size of the fleet. |
Also, the English gunners were seamen, thoroughly
familiar with the guns aboard their vessels and experienced at the
tasks of operating them at sea. Those who worked the guns were not
expected, as were the Spaniards, to double as soldiers |
Other historians point to the weaknesses in
the Spanish side, most particularly their failure to fire their
guns enough, and argue that this is why the Armada failed. There
seem to have been several reasons for this. Firstly, the Spanish
had no procedure for disciplined reloading of guns as a standard
battle drill (they only expected to fire one broadside before
boarding the ship). Secondly, the 18 pound Spanish guns took up
far more deck space than the English guns and were difficult to
reload.
|
The Spanish had bad luck with the weather. Good
weather was essential for Spanish success - it was the least of
the miracles they expected from God. They needed good weather to
preserve their fragile Mediterranean shipping, calm seas to maximise
the effectiveness of their galleasses, mild conditions for Parma's
barges, a moderate swell to compensate for the inexperience of their
gunners; and above all, an easy, speedy voyage to help keep them
safe despite the lack of a northern port of refuge. The storms and
'extreme foul’ weather were a disaster for the Spanish. |
| Additionally, the English used very effective tactics.
For example - the fireship attack. This drove the Armada from its
only anchorage, temporarily dispersed it and caused it to lose many
irreplaceable anchors and cables. |
At one point the Duke of Medina Sidonia wanted
to turn and attack the English with the whole Armada. but it was
impossible, as both wind and and tide were against him, the wind
blowing from the NW towards the land.
|
Thirdly, Medina Sidonia complained that many of
his ships couldn't defend themselves adequately because they did
not have enough 'projectiles'. However, recent archaeological evidence
from the wrecks raised from the sea shows that none of these reasons
were the real reason why the Spanish guns were not fired often enough.
Archaeologists examining the wrecks have found many unfired cannon
balls on board the ships. It would seem that, because the ships
and guns were hastily and badly manufactured many of the cannon
balls didn’t fit the guns and some of the guns were bored
so badly off centre that they probably could never have been fired
at all. It is likely that Drake realised that he had little to fear
from the Spanish guns, particularly after he captured a Spanish
galleon and was able to get on board.
|
Others say that the English had better ships and
better guns, and their seamen were better trained than the Spanish.
The English had many advantages as regards to the ships they used.
The Spanish put their hope in the power of the galleons. The English
used smaller, faster ships which were more manoeuverable. Also,
the 24 pound English guns were very efficient (aiming low and hitting
enemy ships below the water line as they heeled over) |
| Elizabeth inspired her troops to fight with determination
by delivering a rousing speech. She said, 'I know I have the body
but of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach
of a King, and of a King of England too, and think foul scorn that
Parma of Spain, or any Prince of Europe should dare to invade the
borders of my realm.' |
The weather slowed down the Spanish fleet and made
their job very difficult because they didn't have a port they could
take refuge in. |
| Some historians suggest that the main reason the
Armada was defeated was because of the strengths of the English
side. Firstly, some point out the clever English tactics. The English
used their greatest strength - their guns - to do damage to the
Spanish and then they sent out a fireship that dispersed the Armada,
making it move northwards. This meant that Medina Sidonia lost all
hope of being able to link up with Parma. |
Spanish tactics didn't help them to score victory.
Whereas the English just wanted to sink the Spanish ships the Spanish
wanted to board the English ships and then capture them. To do this
they needed to come up alongside our ships - this left them exposed
to a broadside from English cannons and meant that were more easily
sunk. |