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History Quiz - The Spanish Armada 02 (Questions)

This KS3 History quiz asks questions on the Spanish Armada. The English navy at the time had only about half as many ships as the Armada. They had tried to stop the Spanish fleet closer to Spain a couple of times but failed because of bad weather. The English ships were in Plymouth when the Armada appeared in English waters. It was here that Francis Drake is said to have kept cool and finished playing a game of bowls. Historians think that if this actually happened, it was probably because Drake knew he needed to wait for the tide to turn before his ships could leave harbour.

The big break for the English navy came when the Armada's Admiral, the Duke of Medina-Sidonia, unexpectedly anchored off Calais. The English sent fireships in amongst the Armada. The Spanish quickly set sail and were unable to get organised into their usual defensive formation during the next day's battle.

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Strong winds blew the Armada off course and into the North Sea. The English navy chased them as far as the Firth of Forth in Scotland, so they had to return to Spain by sailing round the north and west of the British Isles. During that voyage, almost half of the ships and men were lost, without the English navy needing to attack them.

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1. Who led the Spanish army in the Netherlands?
[ ] Duke of Alba
[ ] Duke of Catalonia
[ ] Duke of Lombardy
[ ] Duke of Parma
2. Who commanded the Armada?
[ ] Duke of Braga-Esposende
[ ] Duke of Espina-Pravia
[ ] Duke of Medina-Sidonia
[ ] Duke of Sada-Carreira
3. As it sailed, the Armada took up what formation?
[ ] Christmas tree
[ ] Crescent
[ ] Linear
[ ] Square
4. Who was commander of the English fleet?
[ ] Earl of Leicester
[ ] Lord Howard of Effingham
[ ] Lord Hugh of Swaffingham
[ ] Sir Francis Drake
5. How were people told of the Armada's arrival?
[ ] By lighting beacons
[ ] By men on horseback
[ ] By sending up flares
[ ] By sounding warning sirens
6. The story goes that Drake was doing what when the Armada was sighted?
[ ] Having tea with the Queen
[ ] Playing bowls
[ ] Practising archery
[ ] Washing his hair
7. What destroyed the Armada's close formation?
[ ] A mutiny by the Spanish sailors
[ ] A shark attack
[ ] A tidal wave
[ ] English fireships
8. What was the main battle between the two fleets?
[ ] Battle of Calais
[ ] Battle of Coulogne
[ ] Battle of Gravelines
[ ] Battle of Winchelsea
9. As the Armada retreated, over 20 ships were lost off the coast of where?
[ ] France
[ ] Ireland
[ ] Scotland
[ ] Wales
10. In her victory speech, Elizabeth claimed to have what?
[ ] A crush on Francis Drake
[ ] More power than any other monarch in Europe
[ ] The courage of a lion
[ ] The heart and stomach of a king

You can find more about this topic by visiting BBC Bitesize - Spanish Armada

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History Quiz - The Spanish Armada 02 (Answers)
1. Who led the Spanish army in the Netherlands?
[ ] Duke of Alba
[ ] Duke of Catalonia
[ ] Duke of Lombardy
[x] Duke of Parma
The troops planned to join the Spanish fleet
2. Who commanded the Armada?
[ ] Duke of Braga-Esposende
[ ] Duke of Espina-Pravia
[x] Duke of Medina-Sidonia
[ ] Duke of Sada-Carreira
Not the best choice - he suffered from sea sickness!
3. As it sailed, the Armada took up what formation?
[ ] Christmas tree
[x] Crescent
[ ] Linear
[ ] Square
With the faster, heavily-armed ships on the 'wings'
4. Who was commander of the English fleet?
[ ] Earl of Leicester
[x] Lord Howard of Effingham
[ ] Lord Hugh of Swaffingham
[ ] Sir Francis Drake
He was Queen Elizabeth's cousin
5. How were people told of the Armada's arrival?
[x] By lighting beacons
[ ] By men on horseback
[ ] By sending up flares
[ ] By sounding warning sirens
Beacons - the Elizabethan version of social media?
6. The story goes that Drake was doing what when the Armada was sighted?
[ ] Having tea with the Queen
[x] Playing bowls
[ ] Practising archery
[ ] Washing his hair
He finished his game first - cool customer!
7. What destroyed the Armada's close formation?
[ ] A mutiny by the Spanish sailors
[ ] A shark attack
[ ] A tidal wave
[x] English fireships
Small vessels that were set alight and left to drift between the ships of the Armada whilst they were at anchor
8. What was the main battle between the two fleets?
[ ] Battle of Calais
[ ] Battle of Coulogne
[x] Battle of Gravelines
[ ] Battle of Winchelsea
This followed the fireships' attack the night before. The English had the advantage with faster, lighter ships and the chaos in the Armada created by the fireships
9. As the Armada retreated, over 20 ships were lost off the coast of where?
[ ] France
[x] Ireland
[ ] Scotland
[ ] Wales
Wrecked due to bad weather, illness and lack of maps
10. In her victory speech, Elizabeth claimed to have what?
[ ] A crush on Francis Drake
[ ] More power than any other monarch in Europe
[ ] The courage of a lion
[x] The heart and stomach of a king
The famous speech was made at Tilbury in Essex