E N A M ES o f tho se Pe rso n s w ho s ub s crib ed to w ards the efen ce o f this Co un try at the time the SPA N ISH A RM A DA 1 8 8 , 5 , the amo unt d s each co n trib ute . ' VI TH H I STO RI CA L I N TROD UCTI ON C B E " A N D N D X T. N O L E . , I . PHO TO CO PIED BY PRESERVATIO N flonbo n AL F RED RU SSEL L SM ITH, 6 H O O UAR . 3 , S SQ E R DUCTIO N INT O . all th e n o f F the reigns of Sovereigns of E gland , that th e u Qu een Elizabeth is undoubtedly most momento s . The manners and customs, progresses and pageantry of that half century of English history the remarkable men and W0 ’ Who co n tinfio us s men lived in it the succession of eventful matter , not only of domestic, but political import , have caused the sove reignty of Elizabeth Tudor to be made the study of all class es of An d society, historians and critics . certainly the most noteworthy a u incident, the most momentous event in the annals of co ntry, was the invasion of England by the Spanish Fleet in the year of 1 5 88 . I n o t r our Lord, do pretend to write at large the histo y of the Rise and Fall of the Spanish Armada but presume to give in as short an essay as possible, so complete a collection of notes upon the subj ect as could be gathered from the contemporary records of the period, now preserved in various depositories , u Oth M especially our P blic Record ee and the British useum , W n o twith here the Burleigh State Papers are to be seen. Yet, ‘ th e l ar e I standing g amount of valuable information we possess , can th e but repeat the words of Sir Henry Ellis, principal Librarian “ of the British Museum forty years ago - There are many papers of high historical interest preserved in our manuscript repositories Which have not yet seen the light of a later day to explain all O INTRODUCTI N . the c ircu mstanc es attending the formation and defeat of the A ” M Spanish rmada. The discoveries made by otley, Froude and a u other histori ns of this cent ry prove it and , speaking generally, c n MS a my own colle tio of S. has from time to time gre tly assis ted to settle many a curious genealogical puzzle of the Elizabethan era . An d here I cannot forbear calling attention to a very curious — fact the eventful periods in the history of England surrounding ’ 8 8 f o the year , rom the time of William the Conqueror d wnwards . fin ish ed AD 1 08 6 1 087 The Domesday Book was in . or , and just u fir st seven h ndred years later it was being printed for the time. ’ The Conqueror s Charter to the Citizens of London , small as it is (and still preserved with j ealous care by the Corporation) made ’ all - E men law worthy as in King dward s days , and that each ’ child should be his father s heir. William the Conqueror died in 1 08 7 . e w itzalw n September , A c ntury after ards Henry F y , citizen an d o f o f A and draper, ancestor the Earls bingdon , became the firs t M s o th t ayor ( called) of London , and served in o ee wenty a . c 1 1 8 9 three ye rs Ri hard the First was crowned in September , and both in that year and a century later the poor Jews were a uff fo r 1 3 8 6—8 m de to s er terribly conscience sake . In the ris ing of the Lords and the events o f the time c aused the English e u c Au l gislat re to be alled the Merc iless Parliament . I n gust 1 4 8 5 c a Il l , upon the death of Ri h rd . , the Plantagenet race ended aft o f er a reign three hundred years . History has fully recorded u 1 68 8 n I L the Revol tion of and the abdicatio of J—ames , while it must not b e forgotten that the period 1 7 8 6 9 3 was a most momento us one in the annals of the East India Company (founded n f A e n o f c soo a ter the Spanish rmada, in cons que ce the ri hes dis e c u u cov red in the Eastern vessels apt red) , and that the q estion of a Regen cy thr ough the first attack o f insanity suffered by n d u th e e III . a Georg , his s dden restoration to health made thanks ’ a m u f giving service at St . P ul s as emorable as that pon the de eat o f the Armada . five o f u In the years previous to the accession Q een Elizabeth , c M the Roman Catholi religion , during the reign of her Sister ary INTRODUCTION . “ r (who ma ried Philip of Spain , the subsequent hero of the A a c . rmad Plot), had obtained remarkable ascenden y Whether h King Philip deserved t e Knighthood of the Garter or not, it i s not for me to discuss here ; but it is worth noting as a very suggestive fact that to this day his Armorial Shield surrounded by the cherished motto is to b e seen beautifully painted in the windo w of the library at Lambeth ' ’ h ad . M Palace From the day of ary s death , King Philip remained ” s o a good Catholic , and he was smarting to revenge the pers n I II L o w V . w tions by Henry and Ed ard VI . The affairs in the u Co ntries , and the depredations on his shipping by the English , ” u fl in w as c nder the y g devil , as Sir Francis Drake alled, the c M o f c re ent execution of ary Queen Scots , and the still in reasing ’ desire to destroy England s supremacy, and make himself (as he considered he ought to have been) the King of England , and c o f A c di tator the world , inspired him to devise the great rmada, whi h was at one blow to crush fo r ever the English nation and the Pro e testant religion . In this truly gigantic scheme he r ceived from P0 e V . c that holy man p Sextus all the assistan e possible to_ be c l . given by promises, blessings and papal b u ls The latter at on e settled the matter, for they declared the Invasion no sin ; that _all men were from henceforth to be absolved fi om their oath of to o f first allegiance the Queen England, and that he who took possession of our Island was to b e the rightful o ccupier o f the throne : that man of course was to be King Philip himself. Queen Elizabeth however was a very different person to what w us n o t Philip ould have believe . She was going to give up the n Armada r s ug little island so easily. Previous to the m she had 1 eceived for some time much information 1 elating to mysterious pro cee in s u ff _ gl g abroad , and tho gh she a ected to pay no atten th ere , is tion, no doubt she thought a very great deal upon the nb eet . Ma 1 5 8 2 esuit had n u s i In y a Scottish J bee arrested, pon f u a whom was o nd a paper written in I t lian , referring to a proposed ahd u Invasion the deposition of the Q een , and there is still pre ’ served among the state papers* the Attorney General s own notes S D . P. o mes c er V es o l 1 5 3 o 9 . ti S i , , , N . 7 INTRO DUCTION . 1 5 3 a o f 8 . the proposed Invasion , Then gain Sir George Carey, o f o f i c Wals in s the Governor the I sle W ght, wrote to Sir Fran is g h am c 3 0th 1 5 8 3 4 , the Se retary of State, on the Jannary, ( ) that h e h ad c c aco b a re eived good advi e from one J Whiddon , the m ster ; o f a u e f s eemm e ship j st return d rom Lisbon , a man g to be ” c o f ud bothe sober, dis rete and reasonable j gement, that greate pp aratio n be in hande fo r arminge a n av ie this sommer to the Sea fii ve gallies to be upon the S to ckes whereof one excedeth e in ” s bigues anie heretofore made by the halfe, and that the King th d etermin eth e in pso n n e to go this intended voyage w an armi s ” “ th o nsan d es of manye of menne , the designe being to aecom r plish e some acceptable service to God for Sub v s io n of religion a all B isca en s in Engl nd , and that the plott was laid that his y should lande a t M ilfo rde the Kinge about So uth eh ampto n ; the French Kinge at that instant to pro claime warre against us and to enter by Sco tland e i o y n in ge w ith the Scottish forces to invade Sir George Carey c oncludes by begging that the information c w c uc s o dden n e ex l o icte sho ulde be re eived ith secre y, for if s h p h appenn e I have not foure greate peeces mounted n er a forte or pl a ttefo rme in state s ervic eable 11 0r goode po wlder to m ain tein e d aies w a o f shotte for one service, adding by y sarcastic remark Yf this place be of so smale impo rtan n ce to be thought w o rthi e ” of no better provision.