3rd Spanish Armada Spain, the English signed the Triple Alliance with the Dutch republic and France. England had sent an armada the next year under the Earl of Essex and Charles Howard to Cadiz which was captured and sacked. An angered Philip soon after took into consideration the defence of the peninsula. In a wave of revenge after the defeat at Cadiz, Philip II sent out orders for a large armada to do the same to England by way of taking the French port of Brest. Just after they set off however the fleet was obliterated in autumn storms off Cape Finisterre causing
2nd Spanish Armada disaster much to Philip's sadness. Meanwhile, reports of the Armada having sailed began to filter in England but also that a rumour from Ireland that one thousand five hundred Spanish had landed, with the whole island in revolt. Charles Howard sent out a powerful fleet which included thirteen galleons, to find the dismembered remainders of the armada but found only floating wreckage and bodies. A Spanish flyboat however was captured along with 200 of her crew and from this the knowledge and extent of the armada was then discovered. None of the Spanish ships ever made it to the English