Page 66 - 1992 - XVIII Congresso Internazionale di Storia Militare

32 OliVI!) G. CHANOU:R.

Ac earlicst cwilighr, on che waves lie heaving many a mlle ... Forth·
wlch a guard ac every gun was placed along che waU;
The beacoo blazed upoo che roof of Edgcumbes's loft:y haU
simply because the game had nor yer been invenred, aod in any case he was
ar his home a t Buckland Abbey some eighc miles away acche supposed cime. Simi·
larly, che compiere Anglo-Saxon wodd learns at a render age chac every Spanish
Don H i Idalgo was a cwok, backed by che horrendous menace of che toctuces of
che l nquisition an d che smeU of burniog beteci c (Prorescanc) Il es h a t almo se daily
auros-da-fés, while every English sea-dog was an impeccable hero scouring che Spanish
Main for che love of his Country, bis Quee.n and his Religion (and bue tltvtr his
pocker)!.
The sources of Anglo·Spanish hostilicy ran deep. Growing English envy over
Spain"s growing overseas empire- a od above all ics rrade and wealch- was one.
Since che time of King Henry Vlil"s rejeetion ofRome in che 1550s, che religious
issue had loomed large - Cacholic aga.insr Protescam (as, alas, ir does co this day
in Norchern lreland). Memories of ""Bloody Mary·s·· reign, wich ics economie crises,
che loss of Calais (England"s lasc concinencal possession), che Queen's loveless a od
cbildless marriage ro Philip of Spain and ics concomiram religious peuecution of
Prorestanrs coming ro a bead wich che burning of rh ree bishops-Cranmer, Lacimer
and Ridley- acche sire of coday's Martyr's Memorial a c Oxford, Idi a dark scar
on che memories of many of her balf-siscer successor, Elizabeth's, people. Small
wonder chac Elizabech evenrually espoused che Calvinisr stand in che Unired Provinces,
""d senc an army under Leicester co fighe acthei.r side. As a paranoia.abour Cachol·
ic plotS - mosc of them cemring upoo che person of Mary Quee.n of ScotS - gripped
people and governme.nt alike, fears for England's national securicy and Procescanr
rel.igion ac che bands of che grearesr world power since Rome rapidly developed.
Wich che e.xecurion ofMary Queen ofScocs - rival Carholic daimanc ro che chrone
- on charges probably crumped-up by spy·maSter Walsingham (who certainly
delayed che arrivai of che orde.r of reprieve unril che exe<ution had safcly caken
piace), a full-scale dasb of arms became ioevirable as che mook-kiog, Philip n a c
lasc became rocally e.xaspcraced wich bis irksome sisrer io law. The Pope blessed
che resultam Spanish invasion projea; che iet:tmillima Armada was prepared.
Once again, che mych triumpbs. Bur jusc as every Spanish child believes char
Gibraltar belongs co Spain (a dozen incemarional rceacies since its capro re by Ad-
miral Rooke in 1704 nocwich.sranding), so every Bricish child d.cinks in almosc wich
his or her mocher's milk an equaUy faUacious view ofSir Francis Drake che nacion·
al hero, and ofFelipe Il, che viUainous monk-king of che Escorial. Sometirues "Fic·
cion" is suanger chan ''Trutb'' (co reverse che old adage). This discorced view of
evems is reinforced by reading such imporrane Viccorian hiscorians, poecs and
nove.lists as l ord Macaulay, Charles Kingslcy, Rider Haggard and A. E. Mason co
naroe bue four.