Battle of Gravelines

E30881

The Battle of Gravelines was a decisive 1588 naval engagement in which the English fleet badly damaged the Spanish Armada, contributing to the failure of Spain’s attempted invasion of England.

Aliases (1)

Statements (47)
Predicate Object
instanceOf historical event
naval battle
alsoKnownAs Battle off Gravelines
associatedWith Elizabethan era
defense of Protestant England against Catholic Spain
belligerent Kingdom of England
Spanish Empire
combatant English fleet
Spanish Armada
commander Alonso Pérez de Guzmán, 7th Duke of Medina Sidonia
Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham
Lord Henry Seymour
Lord Thomas Howard
Sir Francis Drake
conflict Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604)
countryWhoseCoastItWasNear Spanish Netherlands
date 1588-07-29
dateOldStyle 1588-07-19
englishCasualties relatively light
followedBy Spanish Armada retreat into the North Sea
location North Sea
off Gravelines, Flanders
monarchOfEnglandAtTime Elizabeth I of England
monarchOfSpainAtTime Philip II of Spain
objective to prevent Spanish Armada from securing control of the English Channel
to stop Spanish invasion of England
outcome Spanish Armada badly damaged
Spanish Armada forced to retreat north around Scotland and Ireland
Spanish invasion attempt of England thwarted
partOf Spanish Armada campaign
precededBy English fireship attack at Calais roads
result English victory
shipTypeUsedByEnglish race-built galleons
shipTypeUsedBySpanish armed merchantmen
galleons
significance contributed to long-term decline of Spanish naval supremacy
marked turning point in the Spanish Armada campaign
strengthened England’s position as an emerging naval power
spanishCasualties heavy
spanishShipsLostOrDamaged many ships damaged or rendered unseaworthy
strategicGoalOfEngland to disrupt and destroy the Spanish Armada before it could link with invasion forces
strategicGoalOfSpain to escort an invasion army from the Spanish Netherlands to England
tacticalSituation English fleet to windward of Spanish Armada
tacticsUsed close-range gunnery by English ships
line-ahead formation by English fleet
weatherRole winds favored English maneuverability
year 1588

Referenced by (3)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Italian Wars ("Battle of Gravelines (1558)")
Spanish Armada
significantEvent
Martin Frobisher
participantIn

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