THE SPANISH MENACE 



Elizabeth demanded that they should be put in some sort of control, and 

 when she could get no satisfaction threw in her lot with the Huguenots, 

 receiving the port of Le Havre. War was never actually declared, but 

 it went on quite merrily all the same, both British and French ships being 

 declared good prize. A crowd of British privateers were commis- 

 sioned, but although they served Elizabeth's purpose in building and 

 fitting out fighting ships that were very useful to the country, they soon 

 began to develop strong piratical tendencies and had to be strictly 

 curbed. The Huguenots made peace with their religious enemies, and 

 then both turned on Britain together, so that eventually we were quite 

 glad to conclude peace on a cash payment. 



CHAPTER VI— THE SPANISH MENACE 



The Beginning of the Spanish Trouble. 



From all the events mentioned in the foregoing chapter it is obvious 

 that, Spain considering herself to be the power divinely chosen to protect 

 the Catholic religion, the English were bound to find trouble in that direc- 

 tion sooner or later, and Queen Elizabeth and her counsellors realised 

 that it was coming quite early. It is certain that in 1580 they were 

 reckoning on such a clash and took steps accordingly, although the game 

 of diplomacy went on all the time. It was not only the question of 

 religion, or the matter of sea power in Europe, but also the whole 

 development of the New World from which the English were rigidly 

 excluded by Spanish policy. For years past the Spanish had done their 

 best to injure us wherever it was possible, especially by fermenting dis- 

 content in Ireland. An expeditionary force of Spaniards and Italians 

 who actually landed in Dingle Bay to assist the Munster rebels were 

 treated with very short shrift, but those who accuse Elizabeth's govern- 

 ment of savagery in this matter must remember that this was precisely 

 the same fate that the Spaniards had promised Drake and his followers 

 if only they could have got their hands on them during his voyage round 

 the world. At the same time reports were coming in almost daily of 

 impudent raids in the West Indies. The time was coming for Elizabeth 

 to declare her hand boldly, but that was still a ver^'^ risky policy, as Spain 

 virtually held the command of the sea. Philip realised this, and in 1585 

 he determined to deal with England once and for all by raising the whole 

 of the Latin Powers against her. In the meantime he attacked British 

 merchant ships wherever they could be seized in a manner which was 

 often basely treacherous. 



The Earl of Cumberland. 



It is very difficult at this period to distinguish the operations of the 

 Navy from the often much less reputable forms of adventuring which 

 had obtained a firm hold on the imagination of the people. The 

 gentlemen-adventurers make a gallant show as they ruffle across the 

 pages of history, but it is to be feared that in real life they were not 

 always as reputable as they might have been, although they were 



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