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The English fleet's fire ships scatter the Spanish Armada at Gravelines, sending
Featured Event 1588 Event

August 8

Armada Defeated: England Rises as a Sea Power

The English fleet's fire ships scatter the Spanish Armada at Gravelines, sending the battered Spanish galleons into a chaotic retreat around Scotland and Ireland. This decisive defeat shatters Philip II's invasion plans, securing Protestant rule in England while triggering a slow decline for Spain's naval dominance.

August 8, 1588

438 years ago

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