Today in Queen Bess's Life

Britain's defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 is, perhaps, one of those events that is taught in most every Western History class as it was the moment that Britain proved its superiority on the seas.  The battle also resulted in a technological revolution that changed the face of naval battles.

The planned invasion by Spain was ordered by the Kind of Spain, Phillip II, and supported by the then Pope, Sixtus V.  Phillip was the widower of Elizabeth's older, Roman Catholic sister, Mary.  Ever since Mary's death, Phillip had challenged the legitimacy of Elizabeth's rule and called her a heretic for her Protestant beliefs.  The failed invasion had been regarded as a crusade.