Pirates & Privateers: Colin Martin & Geoffrey Parker's Books

In late July 1588, two fleets engaged off the coast of England in what has become known as the Spanish Armada. It was King Philip II’s attempt to invade England and return her people to the Catholic faith. Queen Elizabeth and her ministers took the threat seriously, and all understood the stakes should England lose. To Philip, this was an operation blessed by God and He would not allow Spain to fail. But the endeavor did fail and the reasons for that failure were many, as Martin and Parker deftly show.

The authors explain the historical background, starting with King Henry VIII’s setting aside his wife, the Spanish Catherine of Aragon, in favor of Anne Boleyn through to Queen Elizabeth’s execution of her cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots. We meet the key players on both sides of the conflict, including the monarchs and their ruling styles, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the admirals, the navies, and the ships. Also shared is information gleaned from exploring the shipwrecks and artifacts that have been found.

This book is divided into four parts: The Fleets Assemble, God’s Obvious Design, “It came, it saw, it departed,” and The Aftermath. It contains more than 155 illustrations and six tables, as well as a glossary, a chronology, notes, a bibliography, and an index. There is also a URL to a downloadable digital file that contains five appendices. The majority of illustrations are in color – some artifacts are black-and-white renderings, rather than photographs – and these are spread throughout the book rather than in separate sections.

This new edition of Armada, which was previously published in 1988, has been revised and expanded. At over 700 pages, it is a comprehensive and highly readable account of this well-known event. Written by an underwater archaeologist and a historian, it incorporates artefacts and contemporary documents to entertain, enlighten, and separate reality from myth. Archives around the world have been searched to provide the most comprehensive account of the events and people involved in this historical milestone.

What also makes this a compelling read is that the authors allow the participants to tell the story without relying on the myths and nationalistic fervor that have colored many previous histories of the Armada. In addition, the authors explore the failures on both sides, the aftermath of the attack, who should take the blame, lessons learned and not learned, survivors’ stories, what if’s, how England and Iberia remember the Armada, and what we might learn in the future. For those seeking an informative account of the events that occurred in the summer of 1588, Armada is well-worth the read and a bargain since readers are left with a clear understanding of who was involved, what happened, and why it unfolded as it did without needing to undertake the depth of research that Martin and Parker have.

Meet Geoffrey Parker
Listen to an interview with Geoffrey Parker
Read an excerpt
Download Appendices