1888.] on the Invincible Armada : a Tercentenary Metro^pect. 315 



Lizard as a rendezvon?, and suggest the proprletr of seizing on some 

 unfortified port in the Sonth of England.* As a matter of fact, a 

 position south of the Scilly Isles was given out as a rendezvous in the 

 first instance ; in the second, on sailing from Corunna, the rendezvous 

 was Mount's Bay.+ 



In crossing the Bav of Biscay the Spaniards experienced bad 

 weather, and were a gc-od deal scattered : barely two-thirds of the fleet 

 were in company when Medina-Sidonia sighted the Lizard on the 

 morning of 19 th July, acc-ording to the English calendar, which I shall 

 henceforth follow. There, whilst waiting for the fleet to collect he 

 hoists the royal standard at the fore — a sacred flag, containing in 

 ad'iition to the royal arms, the figures of Our Lord and the Blesse-i 

 Virgin. Other flags there were by the score. The fleet was organised 

 by provinces ; and I am led to believe that the ships of each s«^uadr>:»n 

 wore the flag of its province — Andalusia. Guipusc-oa, Xaples. Jrc. ; 

 that they wore in addition the flags of the nobles and knights on 

 board, and probably also the flag of the partictdar saint to which they 

 were dedicated. But the flag which they appear to have worn in 

 common as the flag of the empire was, strictly speaking, the Burgun- 

 dian flag, which had been adopted by Spain in the time of Charles V. 

 — white, a saltire raguled red. I may add that, amongst this great 

 nmnber and diversity of flags, the one flag which was not worn and 

 could not be worn was the red and yellow ensign of the preset] t day : 

 this flag was not iu-vente-i till the year 17 So. I may here remind you, 

 in puissing, that tLe English flag at this time was the plain St. George's 

 flag — white, a cross red ; and this seems to have been worn by every 

 English ship; though the ArJ:. Lord Howard's ship, flew the royal 

 standard at the main — the lilies and lions, the relative pc»sition of 

 which will recall to you the peculiar happines>s of Macaulay's cele- 

 brated couplet : — 



" Lock how the lion of the sea lifts np his aiieient ctowil. 

 And nnd-mtath his dea.ilv paw tr&ads the gay lilies down." 



Whether any of the ships flew private or local flags is doubtfnl. 

 I think it, however, not improbable that they di'L Sir Oswald Brierly 

 thinks that some of the ships may have worn, not the plain English 

 flag, but the red cross on a Tudor ground, striped white and green, 

 and has so shown it in some of his delightful pictures. That such 

 a combination flag was occasionally used is pc>ssible enough, but I 

 have not fuund any evidence of its having been worn as a national 

 ensign at sea. 



Whilst the Dake of Medina-Sidonia was lying to, on the Lizard, 

 on 19th July, he was sighted by one of the English cruisers, the 

 Golden Hind, commanded by Thomas Flemyng, who forthwith carried 

 the news to the Admiral ; 1 and, according to the familiar story, 

 which I see no reason to doubt, found him, with the admirals 



* Duro, ii. p. S. t Ibid, ii. pp- 27, 1<>S. 



* 'State Papers,' Domestic, ccxv, 02. 



