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The Spanish Armada: The Experience of War in 1588
The "defeat" of the Spanish Armada by the Royal Navy in 1588 is a story every schoolchild knows. Linked in British history with the beginning of England's naval supremacy, it has been presented for years as a David-and-Goliath showdown in which the Armada, then the uncontested ruler of the
seas, was roundly defeated by a British force that was roughly a third the size of the Armada.
The Spanish Armada challenges that view. On the 400th anniversary of the famous sea battle, it offers a more balanced account of the confrontation between the Spanish and British naval powers than has previously been presented. According to Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, the British did not
"defeat" the Spaniards; rather, the event should be seen as a "failure" of the Armada to invade British territory. Miles from home, with many of its crew sick, and fighting in stormy waters, the Spanish fleet did well, Fernandez argues, not to be completely routed. Further, he says, it reflects
badly on the British not to have inflicted more damage on such a disadvantaged opponent.
In this well-written and documented book, Fernandez-Armesto examines the causes of the historical representation of the battle of 1588 and re-creates the event from both sides. The Spaniards, with their tendency to hyperbole, he says, exaggerate the defeat they suffered at British hands. The
story told by the British he attributes to three distorting the "black legend" of Spanish cruelty; the "Whig interpretation of English history," which paints the battle as a victory of English freedom over Spanish despotism; and "Protestant apologetics," according to which the
confrontation proved the superiority of the Protestant religion. (One British description of the attack referred to it as an example of "the incessant malice of the enemies of the Gospel.)"
Based on numerous first-person accounts, the author's retelling of the confrontation is replete with details of 16th-century life--especially that aboard a sea-going ship. Beginning with the raising of funds, he chronicles the planning (which was muddled on both sides), the strategy, and the
actual warfare (waged against both the enemy and the weather). Stressing the common experiences of both sides, Fernandez-Armesto offers a fresh view of one of the most famous sea battles in history.
seas, was roundly defeated by a British force that was roughly a third the size of the Armada.
The Spanish Armada challenges that view. On the 400th anniversary of the famous sea battle, it offers a more balanced account of the confrontation between the Spanish and British naval powers than has previously been presented. According to Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, the British did not
"defeat" the Spaniards; rather, the event should be seen as a "failure" of the Armada to invade British territory. Miles from home, with many of its crew sick, and fighting in stormy waters, the Spanish fleet did well, Fernandez argues, not to be completely routed. Further, he says, it reflects
badly on the British not to have inflicted more damage on such a disadvantaged opponent.
In this well-written and documented book, Fernandez-Armesto examines the causes of the historical representation of the battle of 1588 and re-creates the event from both sides. The Spaniards, with their tendency to hyperbole, he says, exaggerate the defeat they suffered at British hands. The
story told by the British he attributes to three distorting the "black legend" of Spanish cruelty; the "Whig interpretation of English history," which paints the battle as a victory of English freedom over Spanish despotism; and "Protestant apologetics," according to which the
confrontation proved the superiority of the Protestant religion. (One British description of the attack referred to it as an example of "the incessant malice of the enemies of the Gospel.)"
Based on numerous first-person accounts, the author's retelling of the confrontation is replete with details of 16th-century life--especially that aboard a sea-going ship. Beginning with the raising of funds, he chronicles the planning (which was muddled on both sides), the strategy, and the
actual warfare (waged against both the enemy and the weather). Stressing the common experiences of both sides, Fernandez-Armesto offers a fresh view of one of the most famous sea battles in history.
- GenresHistory
300 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1988
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About the author
Felipe Fernández-Armesto
129 books182 followersFelipe Fernández-Armesto is a British professor of history at the University of Notre Dame and author of several popular works, notably on cultural and environmental history.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
August 21, 2012
While the author gave a detailed look into a topic, I knew only the very basics of, he doesn't focus on one area and extrapolate from there. He instead picks say the start of the armada and describes the happening of each area which makes the reader feel very disjointed. I would suggest bringing a map of Europe to keep track of where he has started a paragraph describing each topic brought up. Informative, but not something I would suggest for a casual reader on the subject as it is overfilled with data like numbers for supplies brought on each ship and really becomes redundant and dry.
Displaying 1 of 1 review