the spanish armada

[jucie]

what could be seen of the armada as it approached the english coast? and what did the english do about it?

[Grunty]

On the Friday afternoon, the Spanish lookout reported land in sight.  That evening the banner was raised showing Christ crucified with the Virgin Mary on one side and Mary the Magdalene on the other.

On Friday evening, Captain Thomas Fleming landed in the Golden Hind and reported that he had seen the Spanish fleet near the Scilly Isles.

Sir Francis Drake paid William Page �5 to take the news to the Queen.  There is a tradition that Drake insisted on finishing his game of bowls saying 'We have time to finish the game and beat the Spaniards too'.  Although this would be a typical reaction on the part of Drake, there is insufficient evidence to prove it. 

The English put to sea and followed the Spanish fleet up the channel where a battle took place.  Full details of the battle are available, but are difficult to condense.  The Spanish eventually made off in disarray.

[smee.tracey]

An alternative answer would be: WE STOPPED THEM

[don1]

We sank the f****** this of course is back in the day when we had a navy.

[Peter Pedant]

Good grunty!

The fella would have boarded the Hind and not landed in it. SOrry to pick.

Contemporary pictures of Elizabeth show that the spanish fleet had the ships in a crescnet shape, and there were two attacks. One into the centre of the crescent and one into one horn.

The spanish led by medina-sidonia reacted badly and this meant that their landing was disrupted. In fact it was prevented.

PP

[Peter Pedant]

Sorry I see: the fella in the Golden Hind sort of drove it up a beach and jumped out - in order to tell Drake who was bowling on the Hoe....

PP

[Clanad]

To be only slightly ... well... pedantic, Grunty is correct when the context of his/her narrative is properly understood.  Captain Fleming is returning from the patrol in the Golden Hind, during which he had spotted the Spanish fleet.  He landed in the barque and reported via amessenger, to Drake, interrupting his famously reported game of bowls.  Drake was actually in command of the Revenge during the following battle.  So, Grunty is accurate in stating Fleming landed in the Hind since he was Captain of the notable ship...

[flaming]

Hang on a minute, please.  If the Golden Hind had come into Plymouth Harbour it would have berthed or docked.  But I don't imagine that it was because of the time it would have taken.  I am picturing Fleming weighing anchor in the bay and then being rowed in a small boat to the Hoe (is that a beach or a cliff?).  Fleming could have 'landed' in that dinghy on a beach or jetty, but not in a ship of the Hind's size which would have quickly run aground.  It would have been anchored, ready to sail off, whilst the reporting took place.  (I pictured that Fleming would have deemed the news important enough to go in person and converse with Drake, rather than send a messenger in the dinghy.)   Hazy thoughts come back - didn't the reinforcement half of the Armada get becalmed?  I recall reading that some piece of luck gave us the advantage that day.  We won, eventually.  Great!

[Grunty]

Sorry, I had not anticipated that 'landed in the Golden Hind' would be interpreted as having been propelled from some other ship onto that one.  In that unlikely event, I should have said 'landed on'.  I assume that the captain went ashore in a small boat.  The only account that I have says that he 'arrived in haste in the barque Golden Hind to say that he had spotted the Spanish fleet'.

[smee.tracey]

Didn't they have a helicopter then?

[Peter Pedant]

sorry grunty - you're right and I'm wrong

One can land in a ship, and I should have known rather than picked.