The Spanish Armada

The victory of the English navy over the Spanish Armada in 1588 is one of those defining moments in our history, a shining example, so the story goes, of British pluck and determination to succeed against almost overwhelming odds. Well no, not really, says historian Robert Hutchinson in his revelatory new book. Instead he argues that the Spanish forces were defeated by a combination of bad weather, poor strategy and sheer ill fortune - CHOICE

Napoleon once called history “a fiction that men agree to believe”. The Spanish Armada is a case in point, as Robert Hutchinson ably demonstrates in this cogent, readable account of the attempted invasion of England by the Spanish forces in 1588 … Hutchinson tells this bloody, brilliant story authoritatively and without sentiment, revealing a real “game of thrones” that shames the TV series for drama, ruthless ambition and grand enterprise - GOOD BOOK GUIDE

The author does a magnificent job of describing the military campaign from Drake’s daring raid on Cadiz to the critical battle of Gravelines, but he also shows what a close-run thing it was, and how Elizabeth was not supported unanimously by her own council and nobles. He also argues convincingly that, in terms of intelligence, and particularly the role played by her spymaster Francis Walsingham, this was a truly modern war - GOOD BOOK GUIDE

In a book which successfully weaves together the different elements of the dramatic story, Robert Hutchinson, making use of fresh research (not least his own), sets out to consider the background and the events themselves, using all the evidence now available to historians - THE TABLET