hours' firing, the enemy sheered off, having lost one vessel by fire, and having had several badly mauled; and the English, proceeding, reached England without further adventure in May, 1596.[1]
The year 1595 witnessed two other expeditions of some importance. One was the voyage of a little squadron under Amyas Preston and George Somers to the West Indies. It was a privateering venture, and, in the course of it, the island of Porto Santo, near Madeira, was taken and pillaged, and considerable damage was done to the Spaniards on the coast of what is now Venezuela.[2] The other was the eighth of the Earl of Cumberland's voyages. For the occasion the earl had built the Scourge of Malice, 900 tons, at Deptford. His intention was to personally lead the expedition, and, indeed, he actually started with it, but was recalled by the queen. The other ships were the Alcedo, Captain William Monson; the Anthony, David Jarret, master; and an old "frigate." Cumberland's appointment of Captain Langton to take his place as "admiral" disgusted Monson, who left the other ships, and cruised, but to no effect, on his own account. The remaining vessels made several prizes, but narrowly escaped falling into the hands of a large Spanish fleet.[3]
It is interesting to note here that the Scourge of Malice, a famous ship in her day, was sold, after Cumberland had done with her, to the East India Company, and, re-named the Dragon, distinguished herself against the Portuguese in the Eastern seas in the time of James I.
Rumours of a renewed intention on the part of Spain to invade England still persisted. Indeed, Spain had apparently forgotten the catastrophe of the Armada, and, there is little doubt, harboured some fresh designs against Elizabeth, and particularly against her dominions in Ireland. Yet it is more than possible that the great English expedition of 1596 would not have sailed when, and struck as, it did, but for the fact that, owing to French mismanagement and folly in declining proffered English help, the Spaniards succeeded in making themselves masters of Calais.[4] This stirred England, just in the same way as the probability of a Spanish occupation of Brest had stirred it in 1594. Preparations for an
