A complete collection of detailed information on the naval battle of Gravorine

The battle of Gravelines (English) was an integral part of the Anglo-Spanish War. In retaliation for Elizabeth's execution of Mary, Philip II vowed to invade England and replace it with a Catholic monarch. He built a fleet of about 13 ships, including 8, soldiers and 18, sailors. It is called "Armada", which literally means "great and lucky navy", in order to raise funds for this project. Pope Sixtus V allowed Philip II to collect taxes far away. The Pope promised to further subsidize the Spanish army if they could reach the British mainland. They sailed for the Netherlands on May 28th, 1588. Where more troops were sent to invade Britain. However, the British navy defeated the Armada in the naval battle of Gravorine and forced it to sail northward. In the waters near Scotland, it was subjected to stormy weather that seriously damaged the fleet and personnel. The failure of the Armada provided valuable sailing experience for British sailors. The British were able to persist in privateering against Spain and continue to send troops to help Philip II's enemies, the Netherlands and France. These efforts have brought some tangible returns. One of the most important effects of the incident was that the defeat of the Armada was regarded as a sign that God supported the Protestant Reformation in England.

finally, only 65 ships of the Armada returned to Spain. Most of the survivors suffered from severe scurvy and malnutrition, and many of them fell ill soon after they set foot on Spanish land. However, Spain learned a lesson from the failure, and equipped the Spanish treasure fleet with long heavy guns to effectively resist the looting of British pirate ships.

In the second year, Britain also organized a similar large-scale expedition, namely, the Corina Lisbon expedition, but it was really unsuccessful, causing serious losses to the British economy and heavy losses to people and ships. Name of basic introduction: location of the naval battle in Gravorine: Northwest European time: August 8, 1588. Participants: Kingdom of England, Netherlands * * * and China VS Iberian Union (Spain and Portugal) Results: decisive victory in Britain, victory in Protestant propaganda. Participants' strength: Iberian Union: 28 warships, 12 armed merchant ships

Britain and the Netherlands: 34 warships, 163 armed merchant ships and 3 clippers. Casualties: Iberian Union: 5 ships were lost in battle, with more than 1,4 casualties

Iberian Union, half of the ships were lost in non-combat and about 2, people were reduced.

Britain and the Netherlands: 8 arson ships were lost in battle. 45-5 casualties

Britain and the Netherlands: about 6,-8, non-combat casualties. Major commanders: Charles Howard, Francis Drake VS Mathia Szidonia? War background, expedition preparation, war course, tortuous journey, naval battle course, hurricane, war influence, war background Spain was in its heyday in the mid-16th century. By the time Philip II succeeded to the Spanish throne in 1556, its territory not only spread all over Western Europe, but also included many islands in the Caribbean. Spanish flags are also flying in Mexico, Peru and the vast land of intelligence. The Pacific Ocean has become the Spanish inland sea, and their treasure-carrying sailboats can sail safely in the waters between Valparaiso and Panama. When the Portuguese royal family died in 158, Philip II was crowned king of Portugal as the only legal heir in theory. The Iberian Peninsula has become a country, and a series of Portuguese colonial trading posts in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, the African coast, the Persian Gulf, India and Southeast Asia have also become Spain's bag. Spain at that time can almost be regarded as the "empire that never sets" in the 16th century. Philip II, who reached the peak of his life in 158, however, other European countries are also eyeing the huge benefits that the Spanish have gained from the "new world". Since 1555, when French Huguenots looted Havana, Cuba, and once established a colonial stronghold on the coast of Florida, more and more European adventurers appeared in the original sphere of influence of Spain. As a rising nation-state, England has begun to pay more and more attention to overseas. Since the discovery of Newfoundland by the cabot brothers in 1497, British maritime exploration has also begun. When john howkins and Francis Drake infiltrated into Western America in the way of triangle trade, the Spanish colonists began to regard the British as an intolerable threat to their monopoly in America. In 1568, in San Juan de Ulua, Hawkins' fleet was suddenly attacked by the Spanish fleet, and only a few people escaped by boat. At this point, the conflict between Britain and Spain officially began to be open, and they tested each other's bottom line. In 1585, when the Dutch army was defeated by the Spanish Flanders Army, Elizabeth I signed the Treaty of Nongsaqi with the Dutch, and promised to provide the latter with military and financial support. This marks that Britain and the West have entered an "official" state of hostility. Because Mary, the former Queen of Scotland, opposed Elizabeth's plot with "conclusive evidence", Elizabeth beheaded her in February 1587. This incident gave Philip II an excellent excuse. While the Spanish diplomatic mission was releasing peace smoke in London, the preparations for the Armada, which was commanded by the Spanish veteran Marquis of Santa Cruz, were also in full swing in Lisbon, and a big war was inevitable. Preparation for Expedition Santa Cruz died suddenly in Lisbon on February 9, 1588, at the age of 62. Santa Cruz is the hero of the Battle of Lebanto, the winner of the Battle of Tesera, who retaken the Atlantic Ocean from the Portuguese and rushed to the Azores, and the commander-in-chief of the famous Armada. The Spanish people were shocked to learn of his bad news, and all of them expressed their deep mourning and lamentation. When Santa Cruz died, Philip II immediately appointed the governor of Andalusia, and Szidonia, 24 years younger than Santa Cruz and only 38 years old, took over the important post of commander-in-chief of the Armada. Szidonia, who was born in a noble family, is a respected and excellent chief executive. He has repeatedly accomplished the task of replenishing materials and recruiting troops for the Armada. Szidonia traveled a long way to Lisbon. The reality he face in Russia is unbelievable and amazing. Since the sudden death of Santa Cruz, the management of the fleet in Lisbon Port has completely fallen into a state of no * * *, and there is a lack of leaders with authority and self-confidence who can solve this chaotic state. Therefore, it is an urgent task for Szidonia to reverse this chaos and put the preparatory work on the right track. Then he used several personal aides. One of them is Diego Flores de valdes, commander of the Castilla Garrion Fleet escorting the East Indian route. He is also an expert in tides and currents. He has participated in the design of Garrion ships and is a very talented person. In addition, Diego de maldonado and Mallolin de Juan, who are experienced and respected crew members, were appointed as staff officers. He also borrowed Italian artillery experts from heavy artillery commanders as artillery staff. Szidonia, together with three reliable and capable assistants, overcame many difficulties in a down-to-earth manner, and made the preparations for the fleet to set sail smoothly. In the past, the warships of the Spanish fleet, which took the Mediterranean as the stage, were mainly hand-to-hand combat between Gary ships. Therefore, the equipment of the Spanish fleet's shipborne artillery was much behind that of the English fleet. To this end, Santa Cruz wrote to the king, emphasizing the necessity of preparing large artillery, and the military meeting also asked the king to provide funds for raising artillery. Finally, this request was approved by Philip II. Casting artillery was a very difficult and complicated technology at that time, and most of the excellent artillery casting craftsmen were in England. At the same time, the price of artillery is very high, especially bronze, which is much better than cast iron as a gun body material, is more expensive, and there is little equipment to make Kabarin guns with long gun bodies. Therefore, although the quality and quantity of the shipborne artillery of the Armada have been greatly strengthened and improved by Szidonia's efforts, the shortage of long-range artillery is still the biggest weakness of the Armada. In order to strengthen the spare guns of the capital ship and the Lyon ship, we have to take expedient measures and sacrifice the spare guns on other ships. On the other hand, the number of ships joining the fleet has also increased significantly. By the end of April 1588, there were 13 ships of various sizes incorporated into the invincible fleet. Ships arriving in Lisbon one after another are busy with repairs and maintenance. Almost all the crew of the Armada are equipped with armor, spears and muskets. The replenishment of artillery shells is also relatively smooth. Each cannon is equipped with 5 artillery shells. Of course, this number is not many, but it has greatly exceeded the number of 3 required by Santa Cruz. At the same time, according to the advice of Italian artillery experts, it has increased by one and a half times. Szidonia successfully persuaded Philip II to postpone the departure date, so as to strengthen and maintain the fleet, thus gaining increasing trust within the fleet. However, no matter how hard he tried, he still couldn't solve the serious problem of insufficient food and crew. This problem has not been improved, and it is getting worse. Despite all kinds of defects and difficulties, we can no longer ignore Philip II's repeated sailing orders. On April 25th, 1588, Szidonia accompanied Philip II's acting governor to Lisbon Cathedral. The archbishop read a prayer, praying that the expedition of the Armada would be a success. On the morning of May 9, 1588, all the ships of the Armada moored in Lisbon Harbor pulled out their anchors and set sail one after another, passing through the Belem Tower and descending along the ru river. But the stronger and stronger west wind is blowing from the sea to the estuary, and the fleet has to anchor in front of the castle near the estuary again. The strong westerly wind kept blowing, and the Armada stayed at the mouth of the Tru River for more than 2 days without moving. Philip II sent the latest information and instructions to Szidonia, who was waiting for the weather to improve at the mouth of the Tru River, which wrote: "It is speculated that the Drake fleet is very weak at present. He is locked in Plymouth harbor, probably to avoid a full-scale war with the Armada. When the Armada passes through Plymouth waters, other English fleets patrolling Dunkirk waters will attack from behind. Drake will probably wait until all the Spanish troops have landed in England before attacking the Armada. Therefore, before defeating the Drake Fleet, Szidonia must try its best to keep the fighting capacity of the Armada from being lost. After joining forces with Palma, you can act on camera, or attack the fleet at sea or in the harbor. Before that, we can't avoid fighting, but we shouldn't challenge the enemy first. Even if the Drake Fleet will come to harass and threaten China's coastal ports, Szidonia must do its best to join forces with Palma. " Philip II's order was issued according to the information provided by Mendoza, the ambassador of Spain's intelligence network leader in Paris. In his intelligence, he exaggerated the differences of opinion among English naval generals on john howkins's innovative shipbuilding policy. So Philip II made the judgment that "the fighting capacity of the English fleet is very weak". The Armada with 13 ships is a special mixed fleet with different countries, languages and living habits. Therefore, Szidonia reorganized and unified the ways of signal and communication, and at the same time made the archives of navigation essentials, formation programs and combat instructions necessary for large-scale fleet establishment, and distributed them to all ships. And by the familiar with the situation of the strait and the North Sea, the Spanish, Dutch, bretons, and English Catholics, the pilot group was also assigned to the commanders of the fleets. On May 28th, 1588, the weather finally returned to normal. Szidonia immediately gave the order to set sail, so the Armada began to descend quietly along the ru river. The invincible ship sailed from the sea to the north along the Portuguese coast against the wind and experienced hardships. The wind direction is changeable, sometimes windy, then westerly, playing tricks on the fleet back and forth, and sometimes there is no wind at all, and the fleet is drifting in the rough waves of the Atlantic Ocean. From time to time, a fierce headwind blew the fleet to the south. Due to such bad weather and the defects of the mixed fleet itself, it took only 156 nautical miles to sail from Lisbon to Cape Finisterre at the northwest end of Iberian Peninsula for 13 days. People soon realized that the future of the expedition was difficult. Twenty days after sailing from Lisbon port, that is, on June 19th, it was breezy that night, but it was still very sultry. Late at night, a strong southwest wind suddenly blew. Even a sailboat sheltering from the wind in La Coruna Bay was blown away from the berth, and another one with an anchor collided with a Galion ship and was seriously damaged. Other ships left on the ocean drifted far away from the downwind land, only to avoid the danger of being blown away and tentacles. To be on the safe side, the ships went their own way, drifting with the wind, falling apart and not forming a formation. Until the 24th, there were still 3 ships whose whereabouts were unknown. These ships carry about 6 sailors and soldiers. On many ships that can withstand storms, some crew members suffer from dysentery and typhoid fever because they eat rotten food, which is miserable. Moreover, most ships have been damaged to varying degrees, such as masts and sails being blown off, anchor loss, water leakage and so on. The Armada has been moored in La Coruna for more than a month, concentrating on repairing the hull, supplementing food and treating patients. In this way, on July 21st, the Armada was restored to its original fighting capacity. In the early morning of July 22, all the ships of the Armada sailed out of La Coruna Bay and headed for England with strong south wind and full sails. On the afternoon of July 29th, when the coastline of southwest England had appeared in the Spanish sight, the Duke ordered the flagships to raise the flags and cross flags of the crucifixion of Santa Maria and Jesus, and concentrated all the people in the fleet to watch mass on the decks of the ships. Subsequently, the duke called senior generals to hold the last operational meeting before the war. At the meeting, Ricalde and Reva proposed that Plymouth Port should be attacked immediately, because it is said that Drake is in the port. Since the British navy has an advantage in artillery, the Spanish can only force British warships to fight in a narrow sea area that is not conducive to the exertion of artillery power if they want to carry out their own good docking and white-edged assault. To say the least, if we can't wipe out the British main force, we can at least block them in a narrow port area, so that the rest of the ships of the Armada can escort the marines to the scheduled place without hindrance. However, the Duke rejected the plan, stressing that the king's order was to transport and escort the army troops to the assembly point along the coast of Flanders as soon as possible by fleet, while avoiding direct confrontation with the British fleet. His decision was criticized by later historians, but it was not unreasonable for him to do so: first of all, there are still doubts about whether the main force of the British fleet is really in port; Secondly, Spanish ships and captains lack experience in fighting in hostile ports, and their ships are bulky, and Plymouth port is famous for its tortuous fjords and shoals and reefs. Thirdly, if this plan is carried out, the fleet will inevitably disperse its troops, which is very unfavorable for protecting the 23 supply ships carrying supplies and marine troops in the fleet and maintaining a close defensive formation.