John Hopkins

And by July, the English fleet is assembled at Plymouth.

The stage is set for the coming of the Spanish Armada.

On the 19th of July, 1588, the Spanish naval fleet is sighted heading towards Plymouth.

The two sides are equally matched, around 130 Spanish ships to England's 120.

As they approach Plymouth, the Spaniards have a clear advantage in that the English ships are still in port.

Fortunately for England, the Spanish commander, the Duke of Medina Sidonia, squanders this opportunity.

By sailing straight past Plymouth, the Spanish give their enemy plenty of time to maneuver.

At dawn on the 21st of July, the would-be invaders awake to find themselves under attack.

The subsequent battle is inconclusive, although Drake's vessel, the Revenge, soon captures one of the Spanish ships and its cargo of gold, artillery and gunpowder.

The two fleets fight sporadically over the next few days.

At one point, as the Armada approaches France, hoping to rendezvous with the Spanish invasion force, the English send in burning ships and cause havoc, scattering the enemy's fleet.

Drake and others then engage the Spanish commander in a fierce close-range gun battle.

This action, off the coast of Gravelines, a port in the Spanish Netherlands, is the last battle of the Armada campaign.

Shortly afterwards, a storm drives the Spanish fleet north and the invasion plan grinds to a halt.

England has been saved from the might of Catholic Spain, at least in part thanks to Francis Drake.

In subsequent years, he makes much of his involvement, though historians still debate his impact on the campaign.

The defeat of the Spanish Armada marks the pinnacle of Sir Francis Drake's naval career.

It is a level of fame and fortune that cannot be maintained for long.

In 1589, he and the military commander Sir John Norris set out at the head of what is sometimes termed the English Armada.

The Queen orders Drake to destroy any warships that he finds in Spanish ports, and they are also tasked with placing a claimant named Dom Antonio on the throne of Portugal to lessen Philip II's power.