The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1904-04-20
The INVINCIBLE ARMADA.
How II Came to Destruction In a Big
Storm.
FROM THE PEN OF REV. HENRY WOLF.
The Treaty with Spain Which Secured lnde-
pendence to the United King.
dom OF Holland.


Elizabeth for the ordering of the
execution of the Catholic Mary
Stuart (the former aiding the
Netherland to gain their inde.
pendence) that he determined on
England's total destruction and
the eventual wlping out of all
heresy. He therefore prepared
one the largest and strongest
fleets of war ships that had ever
been gotten up by any single
power. 1t consisted of 130 most
powerful ships, which took sixty
million dollars out of Philips
treasury. 1t was commanded by
Medina Sidonia, with 10000 land
troops aboard, and Duke Parme
with "a, 900 more land forces was
TO join HIM from the Netherlands.
The English could only oppose
the '"Invincible Armada, so call.
ed, with thirty ships, having
another fleet to block up the ports
of the Netherlands, to prevent
junction of the two Spanish
forces. AS the English ships
were lighter than the Spanish,
they were more easy to handle,
which gave the brave English
such an advantage that they could
intlict such damage upon the
Spanish ships that they took
refuge on the coast of Pealand.-
Now Parma would not EN- bark his
troops, so Sldonla, to get back to
Spain, choose to sail around the
the Orkneys, as the wind was un-
favorable to go back through the
channel. Accordingly he pro-
ceeded northward, the English
following as far as F'lam borough
Head, doing them much HARM
Here they encountered a most
terrific storm; most of the ships
were shattered, and seventeen of
the ships having 5000 men aboard
were cast away on the Western
Isles on the coast of Ireland. Of
the whole armada, only nifty three
ships returned to Span, and
these in wretched condition.
The sequel of these events was
the loss of SPANS supremacy on
the high seas, and the lndepen-
dence of the Netherlands.
Philip also took part in the
French war, and on two occasions
sent Parma with an army to
France, which greatly retarded
the campaign in the Netherlands,
and gave Maurice Orange time to
re-enforce himself. Parma died
in disappointment In 1592-all his
plains to crush out liberty and
leresy having miscarrled.
What had been a failure with
the energetic Parma was an utter
impossibility with his successors.
SO Philip shortly before his death
conceived the idea of giving the
Netherlands to his daughter Eu-
gina at her marriage to Duke AL.
bright of Austria, with the pro.
viso That, if there were no
children, the provinces should
fall back to Spain. The Southern
Provinces (Belgium) consented to
these arrangements, and accept
cd Albright as their stakeholder
(l595) but the Northern (HollandD
whose independence had been ac-
knowledged by several courts, re.
iected every offer of peace or
treaty with Albright, fearing
harm would come to their so high
ly priced religious and political
freedom, the enjoy ment of which
had given them such satisfaction.
Although the Spanish General
Splnolia, after three years siege
took the famine-reduced city of
Ostende, nevertheless the United
States of the Netherlands, under
tie government of Maurice
Orange, began it's great conquests
at sea and laid It's foundation of
Its wonderful future com merce
IN 1904.
For more than forty years,
Philip III. had endeavored to sub
due the spirit of liberty and
heresy IN the provinces, but ut
terly failed. It's said that these
wars with the Netherlands had