2nd Spanish Armada 1596. Spain and England had been at war for nearly twelve years with neither side gaining the upper hand. The result of the intervention of Philip II in the religious war in France in support of the Catholic League, meant that Spanish forces had established coastal garrisons along the French and Flemish coast by the late 1580s. These bases had a huge strategic value because they allowed England to be threatened by the Spanish fleet and troops. England on the other hand had also intervened in France, but in support of King Henry IV of France, as a result of
3rd Spanish Armada its captain, master, and purser, were brought in and sent to Falmouth. Here the English captain reported that the Spanish fleet as some thirty leagues off the Scilly Isles. In addition the Spanish prisoners had with them letters and plans on their rendezvous at Falmouth. This was the first indication of the Armada off the Cornish shores and immediately the Privy Council met. However, the evidence from only one ship was not enough. Also, the English fleet had not yet arrived; they could only send orders, pay and supplies to the fleet in hope that it would return in time.