Andrew
Spratt contributes:
In 1588 the
Hays of Erroll of Old Slains castle were among
several other Scots Lords alleged to be in league militarily with the
Spanish Armada. These included George Gordon,6th Earl of Huntly of Huntly
castle in Grampian, some 25miles inland from Slains. Archibald
the 'Red' Douglas,8th Earl of Angus of Tantallon castle, perched on
cliffs beside the Firth of Forth in the south east. Lachlan MacLean of
Duart castle on the Isle of Mull on the west coast. And finally the
Maxwells of Caerlaverock castle in Dumfries beside the Solway Firth in the
far south west.
It could be
speculated that the castles of Tantallon, Slains, Duart and Caerlaverock
because of their proximity to the sea, would be ideal sites for ships to
moor nearby to load on supplies and troops for an invasion of England.
Likely the Hay, Gordon and Douglas forces could attack down the east
coast. While MacLean and Maxwell with the aid of Irish forces (also
allegedly involved) could strike down the west coast.
But five
rouge Scots Lords and their troops could hardly constitute a viable
invasion, even with Spanish aid. This was merely the tip of the iceberg.
Many other Scots/Irish Lords and their castles were involved but, after
the defeat of the Armada in 1588,went to great lengths to denounce such
alliances. Many myths and tales abound of Scots and Irish forces capturing
ship wrecked Spanish sailors then handing them over to the custody of the
English to prove their innocence in this regard. One such tale claims some
Irish forces found the bodies of several Spanish sailors washed ashore, so
they chopped off the hands of the corpses and gave these macabre trophies
to the local English garrison commander claiming they had killed the
Spaniards themselves.
The
background history to this proposed Spanish/Scots/Irish invasion of
England in 1588 is not only complexed and confused but sketchy, because of
religious, political and national affiliations. King James VI of Scots
(1567 - 1603) as a Protestant wanted nothing to do with the Armada and
wished to keep the peace with the English. Even though they had executed
his Mother, Mary Queen of Scots (1542 - 1587) who was a Roman Catholic.
Her murder, in fact, cleared the way for him to inherit the throne of the
Protestant Queen, Elizabeth I of England (1558 - 1603). Interestingly some
of the other Scots Lords alleged to have links with the Spanish were
Protestants but wanted to invade England anyway because they would be
fighting the 'Auld Enemy'.
Consequently,
King James VI was furious with any of his subjects who might undermine his
chances of obtaining the English throne because of entanglements with the
Spanish. This anger extended so far in 1588 that he even invited an
English army, into Scotland, with a great cannon similar to 'Mons Meg' (on
display in Edinburgh castle) to besiege Lochmaben castle which was being
held by the Maxwells and Spanish troops in the name of King Phillip II of
Spain. Eventually the walls were torn down by this great bombard and the
castle entered by storm. The Spanish who survived were taken in chains to
England, while the Maxwells were handed over to the wrath of King James.
Three myths
have been repeated again and again by some historians when recounting
tales of the Armada and these have to be addressed to set the records
straight. First and foremost the Armada was not the invasion on its own
but the key part of an even bigger plan. The fleet of 130 ships only
carried 20,000 troops and was in fact an escort for the Duke of Parma's
army of 16,000 to 30,000 waiting in barges to cross the English channel
from the Netherlands. If the English fleet could been engaged or drawn off
by the Armada. These 30,000 veterans (having served their time in several
campaigns) could cross safely landing at Dover and Margate. The Armada
would then disembark only 6,000 of its troops to aid Parma in his assault
on London while the remaining troops would join with the Scots/Irish and
English rebels marching from the north, perhaps 20,000 in number. It was
claimed that within a week London would fall and Queen Elizabeth I of
England would be dead by assassins or overthrown had everything gone to
plan. Likely, King James VI of Scots, who was known as the 'wisest fool in
Christendom' (because of his astute political double dealings behind a
facade of boyish ignorance) could offer his services as King of England on
behalf of the Spanish to help quell the civil unrest which would follow
such a daring military coup. However the Spanish also appear to have been
behind plots to overthrow King James as well, so this offer would
ultimately be declined.
Secondly,
the Armada was not a sudden venture put together over a few months.
Between 1585 and 1588 there were fifteen separate plans to invade England,
seizing a foothold in some peripheral area, either Ireland, the Isle of
Wight or Scotland as a base of operations. This goes some way to explain
the actions of the Maxwell family of Caerlaverock castle, who in 1585
routed their arch rivals the Johnstones destroying Lochwood castle, near
Moffat,in what appears then, to have been a local feud. But in fact this
was to clear the way for the Maxwells, in 1588,to not only garrison
Caerlaverock but also to seize the old Douglas castles of Morton in
Nithsdale and Lochmaben totally unchallenged. They then held these castles
in the name of King Phillip II of Spain awaiting the arrival of Spanish
support. Also in 1588 the Gordons of Sunderland distant kin to the Gordons
of Huntly attempted to seize the coastal Sinclair fortress of Girnigoe.
Wither this was just a local feud or part of a plan to use this castle for
the Spanish is not recorded. Many skirmishes between various Clans during
1588 have been largely ignored by historians when they may have been part
of a bigger Spanish plot.
The famous
attack on Cadiz bay by Sir Francis Drake in 1587,though failing to stop
the Armada did delay it for another year. Had it not been for the
continued skirmishes with Drake and Howard in 1588 at Portland and off the
Isle of Wight (where the Spanish appeared to try a landing) and the fire
ships which scattered the Armada at Calais. The great storm which blew the
Armada east through the channel, combined with the unseasonably low tides
caused by the storm which trapped the Duke of Parma's barges until after
the Armada was passed. Historians might well have a very different tale to
tell.
The third
injustice by historians on the Spanish is the myth of their incompetence
as sailors because of the many (official and unofficial) Armada wrecks
that litter the coastline of Scotland and Ireland. In many instances these
wrecks were the results of desperate attempts to moor too close inshore to
warn Scots/Irish Lords not to invade England because the Duke of Parma's
troops hadn't reached the English mainland.
Such wrecks
are claimed to be off Tantallon castle while trying to contact the 'Red'
Douglas (timbers from this wreck were found near Dunbar five miles south
east of Tantallon), and beside St Andrews castle, though it is unclear who
the Spanish were trying to contact here and off Old Slains castle while
contacting the Hays. The castle garrison must have had a bird's eye view
of this vessel as it floundered nearby before finally sinking. Wither the
Hays tried to send boats out to save the drowning sailors isn't recorded
but unlikely because the storm was so sudden and severe that all three of
these ships were wrecked at the same time. Interestingly it is claimed the
'Red' Douglas Archibald 8th Earl of Angus died on the same night. Which
might of been taken as a bad omen by the Douglases as they don't appear to
have fielded an army during the 1594 'Spanish blanks' rebellion against
King James VI.
The 'Castello
Negro' has been suggested as the name of one of these castle wrecks. But
since there were allegedly some 60 ships lost between Calais, Scotland and
Ireland its difficult to say which ships were which without dives on each
wreck to find some clear identification. There are also claims of wrecks
off Orkney Shetland and Norway but again no names or clear evidence are
available. Returning to documented accounts the 'Barca Amburg' floundered
south west of the Fair Isle, but was able to split her crew between the
'El Gran Grifon' and the 'Trinidad Valencera'. The 'El Gran Grifon' while
trying to find a haven to effect repairs destroyed itself on the cliffs of
the Fair Isle. Eventually the crew were taken to Orkney then to Anstruther
in Fife then Edinburgh. Where they were entertained by the Roman Catholic
community including Francis Stewart Earl of Bothwell a known rebel who was
plotting to overthrow King James VI.
The
'Gerona' and the 'Trinidad Valencera' were wrecked in Irish waters,but
again there are unofficial claims of many more nameless wrecks as many as
seventeen. The 'San Juan de Sicilia' is the famous wreck on the west coast
of Scotland beside Tobermory Bay. Allegedly it was blown up by the
MacLeans of Duart castle. However it was more probably destroyed by an
English spy or the MacDonalds who were at war with the MacLeans. In fact
Lachlan MacLean celebrated the arrival of the 'San Juan' by borrowing some
troops and cannon from the ship to besiege Mingarry castle held by the
Mclans kin to the MacDonalds. As MacDonald reinforcements arrived to save
Mingarry the MacLeans and Spaniards withdrew burning and sacking lands
throughout the region. So it is highly unlikely that MacLean would blow up
his Spanish allies "Great ship" which was of such use to him in
his feud with the MacDonalds.
Shortly
after the MacLeans and Spanish appear to have landed on the Island of
Islay and besieged the MacDonald fortresss of Dunivaig an ancient base for
the MacDonald galley fleet. Which would make an ideal shipyard for the
Spanish to repair the 'San Juan' and any other Armada vessels that might
be nearby. There doesn't seem to be a clear account of this siege but it
did fail. Also the 'San Juan' never sailed to Islay so either the MacLeans
used their own small war galleys for the raid or another Spanish vessel
was involved as local oral tradition claims an Armada ship was wrecked off
Islay. But as yet no official site has been located.
There are
many other claims of wrecks down the west coast but these too are vague.
One claim which obviously has some substance is the tale of two vessels
beaching in the Solway Firth to unload troops to aid the Maxwells in their
defense of Lochmaben castle. Certainly Spanish soldiers and sailors were
captured by the English during this siege so their presence alone proves
the existence of at least one wreck nearby.
It has been
suggested that the Spanish and some Scots Lords may have planned to rescue
Mary Queen of Scots (held captive by the English since her defeat at the
battle of Langside in 1568)and install her as Queen of England. The
Spanish actually used Mary's murder by the English as an excuse to justify
the Armada as a 'holy' war. Because the heritic Queen Elizabeth I had
killed the Roman Catholic Queen Mary of Scots. The Pope even offered to
pay one million ducats if Spanish troops set foot on English soil.
There are
many tales of plots to save Mary and some may merely be fables. The Setons
of Seton Palace in East Lothian who aided Mary after her escape from Loch
Leven castle and at the battle of Langside spent some time in exile in
Flanders. It was here, some claim, that the Setons tried to mass an army
to rescue Mary from England. Likewise it is also claimed that the Kerrs of
Ferniehurst castle near Jedburgh hatched a plan to raid England and effect
Mary's rescue but this plan was leaked and Mary moved to different
locations to confuse such plots. (It should also be noted that the Kerrs
sheltered Spanish sailors at their Manor house beside Newbattle Abbey in
1588. The Spanish chess that remains there today stands testimony to this
visit.) Even the Spanish ambassador, Mendoza was implicated in Francis
Throckmorton's attempt to release Mary and overthrow Queen Elizabeth I in
1584.
But
politically Phillip viewed Mary as a puppet to France and since he was
backing both Catholic and Protestant rebels in France to continue the
civil unrest there. He couldn't count fully on Mary's support if he
installed her as Queen of England. So Phillip's efforts to save Mary
appear somewhat half hearted. The conspiracies focused around Mary also
involved blatant attempts to assassinate Elizabeth by the Scots, Spanish,
French and even English Catholics. One such plot was used as a trap to
arrest Mary in 1586 (which hardly makes sense since she was held captive
in various English castles since 1568). Then on the 8th February 1587 she
was beheaded at Fotheringay castle. The axeman failed to cut through
Mary's neck with the first blow then had to saw with the second blow to
separate the head from the body. He then lifted the head up by the hair to
show the audience but didn't release it was a wig so Mary's head flew off
into the crowd the final indignity.
The Armada
failed for several reasons, the skirmishes with Drake where long range
cannon were used instead of ship to ship boarding, the storms which blew
the Armada east, the same storms which trapped Parma's barges and also the
failure of the English Catholics to rise in support of the Armada. Reports
to Phillip in 1587claimed that one-third of the English population was
ready to rise in support of his troops. This never happened apparently
Elizabeth had struck a deal with the English Catholics to give them more
religious freedom in exchange for their loyalty during the threat of
Armada. The Scots though did rise in 1588. But lacking the support of
their fellow countrymen and the promised 16,000 Spanish troops this led to
nothing and is largely forgotten by historians. Fortunately the Hays,
Gordons and Douglases were able to conceal their involvement at this time,
unlike the Maxwells who seriously thought the Spanish would land in
Dumfries. Inadvertently making themselves rebels without a cause.
The defeat
of the Armada didn't destroy Spain as a naval power. In fact it turned it
into a naval superpower. But the shadow of the defeat in 1588 prevent
Spain from ever fully showing it's naval might again. Even before the
remains of the Armada returned twelve new galleons were being built in the
Cantabrian shipyards to reconstitute the fleet. Within two years it was
claimed a fresh Armada was massing to invaded again and had some success
skirmishing with the English at the Battle of Flores. Interestingly at the
same time Francis Stewart, Earl of Bothwell with a small army besieged
King James VI in Falkland Palace attempting to capture the King. But the
local townsfolk clashed with Bothwell's forces and the King was able to
escape. Could this be another Spanish plot or just coincidence?
But in 1594
there must have been the expectation of some military aid from Spain for
both the Hays of Erroll and Gordons of Huntly to come out in rebellion
against King James VI. But alas, again no Spanish ships appeared and Old
Slains castle was destroyed while Huntly was sacked. In 1597 the Armada
was ready yet again, this time with eighty four mostly new galleons fitted
with long range cannon assembled at Galicia. This time the Scots Lords as
a whole, including the Hays, Gordons and Douglases, given their past
experience would have nothing to do with the Spanish so this Armada never
ventured into English or Scottish waters.
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