The Defeat of the Spanish Armada Essay Example

The Spanish Armada was formed mainly to defeat the English. That goal was never achieved therefore causing a change in the world. King Phillip II was the king of Spain and being Catholic had caused Protestants in the Netherlands to revolt in 1566, but one fact cannot be over looked about this revolt it was assisted by Protestants in England. King Phillip II knew he couldn't conquer the Dutch Protestants without conquering their aiding country England. King Phillip had tried to marry Elizabeth so he could unite their countries together, but Elizabeth declined. With that idea down the drain he decided to attempt to conquer England. Conquering England would be a great accomplishment for King Phillip II. If he were to dethrone Queen Elizabeth I the Protestant ruler of England he would benefit greatly. By dethroning Queen Elizabeth I he would end the fighting over religion and covert England back to Catholicism. Keeping those ideas in mind he came up with his plan to conquer England. As king, Phillip needed to organize a fleet. "-insert book quote and site-"This amazing fleet was composed of 130 ships. With these 130 magnificent ships came Alonso Pérez de Guzmán. He was the duke of Medina-Sidonia and also the leader of the massive armada which consisted of 130 ships. Alonso Pérez de Guzmán also had to lead the crew of 30,000 men who manned the newly formed Spanish Armada. When King Phillip II established his fleet after two years of preparation they were ready to set out and achieve victory only to be delayed. In 1587, the Spanish Armada had reached Cadiz, Spain and was delayed due to the English fleet. The English fleet was lead by one Lord Charles Howard but the delay also has to be credited to Sir Frances Drake as well. Sir Frances Drake raided Cadiz, Spain which lead to the delay of the Spanish Armada for nearly a year till July of 1587. On top of the delay the governor of the Netherlands, the duke of Parma, was trying to postpone the incoming war