Drake's Raid on Cádiz (1587): Singeing the King of Spain's Beard

Drake’s raid on Cádiz was a surprise attack by an English fleet under Sir Francis Drake on Spanish shipping in the Bay of Cádiz between 29 April and 1 May 1587. Drake destroyed or captured dozens of ships and large quantities of supplies being gathered for Philip II’s invasion of England. The raid, which Drake reportedly described as “singeing the King of Spain’s beard”, helped delay the Spanish Armada by about a year.

Background

By 1587 England and Spain were in an undeclared war. Elizabeth I had sent troops to support the Dutch rebels in 1585, English privateers were attacking Spanish shipping, and Drake had raided Spanish ports in the Caribbean in 1585–1586. Philip II began preparing a great fleet to invade England, and the Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots in February 1587 strengthened his resolve.

Drake, famous for his circumnavigation of the globe in 1577–1580, proposed a pre-emptive strike. Elizabeth agreed. His fleet, funded partly by the Crown and partly by London merchants, sailed from Plymouth in mid-April 1587 (early April in the English Julian calendar, which was ten days behind the Gregorian calendar used in Spain). He left quickly, before an order arrived limiting his freedom to attack Spanish ports.

The attack on Cádiz

The fleet numbered around 23 to 26 ships, including four royal galleons: Drake’s flagship Elizabeth Bonaventure, the Golden Lion, the Dreadnought and the Rainbow. On the afternoon of 29 April Drake sailed straight into the outer harbour of Cádiz without a council of war, against the advice of his vice-admiral, William Borough.

The harbour was crowded with merchant ships and transports, many of them assembling for the Armada. Spanish galleys came out to defend them but were driven back by the heavier guns of the English galleons. Over the next day and a half the English captured or burned many vessels, including a large galleon belonging to the Marquis of Santa Cruz, Spain’s leading admiral and commander of the planned Armada.

Estimates of Spanish losses vary. Drake claimed 37 ships destroyed or taken, while Spanish sources suggest about 24. The English took useful stores of wine, biscuit and other provisions for themselves. On 1 May, as the wind allowed, they withdrew with few losses.

Cape St Vincent and the San Felipe

Drake did not go home. He seized the castle at Sagres near Cape St Vincent and used the headland as a base to intercept coastal shipping. His men destroyed fishing boats and coasters and burned a large quantity of seasoned barrel staves, commonly estimated at 1,600–1,700 tons, intended for the casks that would hold the Armada’s food and water.

He then sailed to the Azores and in June captured the Portuguese carrack São Filipe (San Felipe), returning from the East Indies with a cargo valued at about £114,000. This prize made the voyage highly profitable for its investors.

Key people

• Sir Francis Drake (c. 1540–1596): commander of the expedition and England’s most famous seaman.
• William Borough (c. 1536–1598): Drake’s vice-admiral, who protested at Drake’s methods. Drake had him arrested, and the crew of Borough’s ship, the Golden Lion, later sailed home without permission.
• Álvaro de Bazán, Marquis of Santa Cruz (1526–1588): Spain’s senior admiral, whose own galleon was lost at Cádiz. He died in February 1588 while the Armada was still being prepared.
• Philip II of Spain (1527–1598): the king whose invasion plans the raid was designed to disrupt.

Consequences

The raid did not destroy the Armada, which was concentrated mainly at Lisbon, but it disrupted Spanish preparations at a critical moment. Ships and supplies had to be replaced, and the Spanish navy spent the summer of 1587 chasing Drake rather than assembling for an invasion. The Armada did not sail until 1588.

The loss of seasoned staves had a longer-term effect. Casks made from green wood leaked, and during the 1588 campaign much of the Armada’s food rotted and water spoiled. After Santa Cruz’s death, command passed to the Duke of Medina Sidonia, an inexperienced commander at sea, which also shaped the campaign that followed, as described in the article on the Spanish Armada.

Myths and facts

“Drake destroyed the Armada in harbour.” The main Armada fleet was gathering at Lisbon, which Drake did not attack. Cádiz held mostly merchant ships and transports, so the raid damaged supplies and shipping rather than the core of the war fleet.

“The raid was official English policy from start to finish.” Elizabeth hoped to avoid open war and sent a message restricting Drake’s orders soon after he sailed, but it never reached him.

Timeline

• 1587, 8 February: Mary, Queen of Scots is executed.
• 1587, mid-April: Drake’s fleet leaves Plymouth.
• 1587, 29 April: The English enter Cádiz harbour and attack the shipping.
• 1587, 1 May: Drake withdraws from Cádiz.
• 1587, May: Drake takes Sagres and destroys supplies near Cape St Vincent.
• 1587, June: Drake captures the carrack San Felipe off the Azores.
• 1588, February: The Marquis of Santa Cruz dies in Lisbon.

Why it matters

The Cádiz raid showed the value of striking an enemy’s naval preparations before they were complete. It bought England time, damaged Spanish logistics in ways that hurt the Armada in 1588, and added to Drake’s reputation as Spain’s most feared opponent at sea.