In This Sort I Have A Little
Digressed From My First Purpose, Only By The Necessary Comparison Of
Their And Our Actions:
The one covetous of honour, without vaunt or
ostentation; the other so greedy to purchase the opinion of their
Own
affairs, and by false rumours to resist the blasts of their own
dishonours, as they will not only not blush to spread all manner of
untruths, but even for the least advantage, be it but for the taking of
one poor adventurer of the English, will celebrate the victory with
bonefires in every town, always spending more in faggots than the
purchase they obtained was worth. Whereas, we never thought it worth the
consumption of two billets, when we have taken eight or ten of their
Indian ships at one time, and twenty of their Brazil fleet. Such is the
difference between true valour and vain ostentation, and between
honourable actions and frivolous vain-glorious boasting. But to return
to my purpose:
NARRATIVE.
The Lord Thomas Howard, with six of her majestys ships, six victuallers
of London, the bark Raleigh, and two or three pinnaces, riding at anchor
near Flores, one of the western islands called the Azores, on the last
of August 1591, in the afternoon, had intelligence by one captain
Middleton, of the approach of the Spanish armada. This Middleton, being
in a very good sailing ship, had kept them company for three days
before, of good purpose, both to discover their force, and to give the
lord admiral advice of their approach. He had no sooner communicated the
news, when the Spanish fleet hove in sight; at which time, many
belonging to our ships companies were on shore in the island of Flores,
some providing ballast for the ships, others filling water, and others
refreshing themselves from the land with such things as they could
procure either for money or by force. Owing to this, our ships were all
in confusion, pestered, rummaging, and every thing out of order, very
light for want of ballast; and what was most of all to their
disadvantage, the half of the men in every ship was sick and
unserviceable. For in the Revenge, there were ninety sick; in the
Bonaventure, not so many in health as could hand her mainsail, insomuch,
that unless twenty men had been taken from a bark of Sir George Careys
which was sunk, and appointed into her, she had hardly been able to get
back to England. The rest of the ships for the most part were in little
better state.
The names of her majestys ships were as follows: The Defiance, admiral,
the Revenge, vice-admiral, the Bonaventure commanded by captain Crosse,
the Lion by George Fenner, the Foresight by Thomas Vavasour, and the
Crane by Duffild. The Foresight and Crane were small ships, the other
four were of the middle size. All the others, except the bark Raleigh,
commanded by captain Thin, were victuallers, and of small or no force.
The approach of the Spanish fleet being concealed by means of the
island, they were soon at hand, so that our ships had scarce time to
weigh their anchors, and some even were obliged to slip their cables and
set sail. Sir Richard Grenville was the last to weigh, that he might
recover the men who were a land on the island, who had otherwise been
lost. The lord Thomas Howard, with the rest of the fleet, very hardly
recovered the wind, which Sir Richard was unable to do; on which his
master and others endeavoured to persuade him to cut his main sail and
cast about, trusting to the swift sailing of his ship, as the squadron
of Seville was on his weather bow. But Sir Richard absolutely refused to
turn from the enemy, declaring he would rather die than dishonour
himself, his country, and her majestys ship, and persuaded his company
that he would be able to pass through the two squadrons in spite of
them, and force those of Seville to give him way. This he certainly
performed upon divers of the foremost, who, as the sailors term it,
sprang their luff, and fell under the lee of the Revenge. The other
course had certainly been the better, and might very properly have been
adopted under so great impossibility of prevailing over such heavy odds;
but, out of the greatness of his mind, he could not be prevailed on to
have the semblance of fleeing.
In the meantime, while Sir Richard attended to those ships of the enemy
that were nearest him and in his way, the great San Philip being to
windward of him, and coming down towards him, becalmed his sails in such
sort that his ship could neither make way nor feel the helm, so huge and
high was the Spanish ship, being of fifteen hundred tons, and which
presently laid the Revenge on board. At this time, bereft of his sails,
the ships that had fallen under his lee, luffed up and laid him on board
also, the first of these that now came up being the vice-admiral of the
Biscay squadron, a very mighty and puissant ship, commanded by
Brittandona. The San Philip carried three tier of ordnance on a side,
and eleven pieces in each tier, besides eight pieces in her forecastle
chase, and others from her stern-ports. After the Revenge was thus
entangled by the huge San Philip, four others laid her on board, two to
larboard and two to starboard. The fight thus began at three in the
afternoon, and continued very terribly the whole of that evening. But
the great San Philip, having received a discharge from the lower tier
of the Revenge, loaded with cross-bar shot, shifted herself with all
diligence from her side, utterly disliking this her first entertainment.
Some say the San Philip foundered, but we cannot report this for a
truth, not having sufficient assurance. Besides the mariners, the
Spanish ships were filled with companies of soldiers, some having to the
number of two hundred, some five hundred, and others as far even as
eight hundred.
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