commended that lettell servis which I was abell, much better then ether of them bothe I was abell to deserve,-wherein yf I have not performed as much as was lowked for, yeat I perswade my self his good Lordship will confesse I have byne dutiffull. Towching any other cawsses that ether hath byne done, or is to be done, lett me pray pardon of your honor, for I assure your Honor that my Lord Admerall hath so suffycyently instructed hymself dayly, as I faythfully beleve his good Lordship will throwghly satisfye her Majestie and your Honor what is now best to be done; thus humbly takyng my leave, I besech God to bless the work of her Majestie's hands allways. Written abourd her Majestie's good ship the Reveng, at mydnyght, this 11th August, 1588.

Your Honor's faythfully

to be comanded,

To the Right Honorable

Sir Francis Walsingham, knight.

FRA. DRAKE.

CHAPTER X.

THE SPANISH ARMADA, CALLED THE INVINCIBLE.

1588.

Summary of the Spanish losses-Libels of the late Spanish Ambassador on the British Officers-Drake's reply-Public thanksgiving-Queen's procession to St. Paul's-Letters of the Lord High Admiral and Sir Francis Drake, relative to the late invasion-The fleet is paid off.

THE disasters which befel the Armada in its passage along the western coast of Ireland were most deplorable. The loss of officers and men by shipwreck and sickness exceeded that which they had previously experienced in the English Channel and the North Sea. By one account, made out with great care, it would appear that in the British Channel and the North Sea fifteen ships were lost, and on the west coast of Ireland seventeen others; and that the loss of life on board these thirty-two vessels must have exceeded ten thousand souls, exclusive of those who were slain in fight, or died of sickness and famine. But if the statement be correct that the utmost number of ships which reached the Spanish ports did not exceed sixty, the loss must have been much greater. Hakluyt says

"Of one hundred and four and thirty sail, that came out of Lisbon, only three and fifty returned to Spain. Of the four galiasses of Naples, but one; the like of the four largest galleons of Portugal; of the one and ninety galleons and great hulks, from divers provinces, only three and thirty returned. In a word, they lost eighty-one ships in this expedition, and upwards of thirteen thousand five hundred soldiers."

It may easily be conceived how severe the shock must have been to Philip, when he received the intelligence of the defeat and destruction of his Invincible Armada. He is said, however, to have borne his disappointment well, and to have returned thanks to God that it was no worse. He could not, however, overlook

the conduct of those whose disobedience to his orders had in some degree led to the ill-success of the enterprise. Against the Duke of Medina Sidonia, in particular, his anger was so much excited, that he gave orders he should never again appear at court but the duchess, who was extremely beautiful, and a great favourite with the king, prevailed on his Majesty to rescind the order, and again to receive him into favour. But Don Diego de Valdez, who was considered to have been the person who misled the Duke, was sentenced to be imprisoned in the castle of Saint Andrea, and was never seen or heard of afterwards. Don Pedro de Valdez remained a prisoner in England between two and three years; and was only released on a ransom of about 30007.

The conclave of the Vatican did not bear their disappointment so well as the king had done! His Holiness the Pope, the cardinals, priests, monks, and Jesuits, were exasperated beyond bounds, not only at the defeat of the Armada, which they had pronounced Invincible, but because the falsification of all their prophecies against England would bring them into discredit throughout Europe. The defeat of the Armada was known in Paris immediately after the dispersion of the fleet by the fireships off Calais; yet after it was so known, Mendoza, the late ambassador to London, kept his printing-press at work to disseminate lies against the Queen, the Lord High Admiral, and Sir Francis Drake.

"But however coolly," says Stow, "Philip might take the disastrous account of his Armada, his ambassador in France, Don Bernardin Mendoza, and his tool, one Capella, were industrious enough to spread false reports in print, claiming a victory for Spain. So blindly did his impudence and indignation carry him, that he dispersed his lies in French, Italian, and Spanish, pretending he had received advices from London, that the Queen's High Admiral had been taken by the Spanish Admiral, and that he saved himself in a boat, and that Drake was either taken or slain; that the Catholics, perceiving her navy to be spoiled, had made a mutiny, which induced the Queen to take the field in person, and that it is affirmed, as true, that no ship nor boat of the Spaniards had been carried into England, except the ship of Don Pedro de Valdez."

Strype says that one of Mendoza's own friends pointed out to him the baseness of his conduct in the following terms:

"I marvel, good Sir, to see a man of so noble a lineage, and no less endued with gifts of nature than others, should have your ears so opened to hear the rumours and lies which the scoffing and gibing flatterers do write you; and I wonder not so much in that you credit them, as at the speed wherewith your honour doth write them. Your honour writeth to Spain that it is a matter most true that the Lord High Admiral was come, running away with twenty-five or twenty-six ships, unto London, and that he had lost his flagship; and that Drake was taken prisoner; and that this was written for a matter most certain by persons of credit from London."

This fabulous gazette of Don Bernardin was translated into English, and published under the title of A pack of Spanish Lies, sent abroad into the world, translated out of the original, and now ripp'd up, unfolded, and, by just examination, condemned, as containing false, corrupt, and detestable wares, worthy to be damn'd and burnt.'

Though Drake very rarely gave himself the trouble to answer personal abuse, yet, on the present occasion, he published an admirable and spirited letter, which proves that he was no less able to vanquish a libeller with his pen than an enemy with his sword.

"They were not ashamed," he says, "to publish in sundry languages in print, great victories in words, which they pretended to have obtained against this realm, and spread the same in a most false sort over all parts of France, Italy, and elsewhere; when, shortly after, it was happily manifested in very deed to all nations, how their navy, which they termed invincible, consisting of one hundred and forty sail of ships, not only of their own kingdom, but strengthened with the greatest Argosies, Portugal carracks, Florentines, and large hulks of other countries, were, by thirty of Her Majesty's own ships of war, and a few of our merchants, by the wise, valiant, and advantageous conduct of the Lord Charles Howard, High Admiral of England, beaten and shuffled together even from the Lizard in Cornwall, first to Portland, where they shamefully left Don Pedro de Valdez, with his mighty ship: from Portland to Calais, where they lost Hugh de Moncado, with the galleys of which he was captain; and from Calais, driven with squibs from their anchors, were chased out of the sight of England round about Scotland and Ireland; where, for the sympathy of their religion, hoping to find succour and assistance, a great part of them were crushed against the rocks, and those other that landed, being very many in number, were, notwithstanding, broken, slain, and taken; and so sent from village to village, coupled in halters to be shipped into England, where Her Majesty, of her princely and invincible disposition disdaining to put them to death, and scorning either to retain, or entertain them, they were all sent back again to their countries to witness and recount the worthy

L

achievement of their invincible and dreadful navy. Of which the number of soldiers, the fearful burthen of their ships, the commanders' names of every squadron, with all other, their magazines of provisions, were put in print, as an army and navy irresistible and disdaining prevention; with all which their great terrible ostentation they did not, in all their sailing round about England, so much as sink or take one ship, bark, pinnace, or cockboat of ours, or even burn so much as one sheepcote on this land."

It is said that the Spanish noblemen and the officers of the Armada had made a specific division among themselves of all the noblemen's estates in England; and had in fact apportioned out the kingdom among themselves: the houses of the rich merchants in London, which were to be given as plunder to the soldiers and sailors, were also systematically registered. The extent to which this vain anticipation was carried, appears to us the less incredible when we remember that; in our own days, a foe as inveterate as Philip, with means more formidable, and hatred more intense, and also of far greater talents, encouraged his myrmidons to the invasion of our shores, by the same audacious partition of our lands and property.

While among the Spaniards the loss was so great that there was scarcely a family of any distinction throughout the kingdom which was not in mourning, England everywhere resounded with acclamations of joy; in which all the Protestant nations of Europe participated; whilst poets and painters employed their talents to celebrate the joyful issue of the contest.

Nor was the Queen backward in acknowledging, in the most public and solemn manner, her gratitude to Almighty God for the signal victory his providence had granted her.

"At a council held at Greenwich the third of November, 1588, at which all the great officers of state were present, a letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury, lettinge his lordship to understande that Her Majestie's expresse pleasure and comandment was, that order should be given by his Lordship in all the dioceses under his Lordship's province, to the severall bishoppes, curates, and mynisters, to appoint some speciall daye wherein all the realme might concur in givinge publique and generall thanckes unto God with all devocion and inward affection of hearte and humblenesse, for his gratyous favor extended towardes us in our deliverance and defence, in the wonderfull overthrow and destruction showed by his mightie hand on our malytious enemyes the Spanyardes, whoe had thought to invade and make a conquest the realme.

of

“The lyke letter wrytten unto the deane and chapter of the byshoprick of