Was it, as old-fashioned British textbooks would have you believe, the story of heroism against the odds as the plucky English underdogs beat off the mighty Spanish thanks to their superior sailing skills and daring tactics? Was it, as many Spanish textbooks - and King Philip II - claimed, merely a question of some freakish weather coming to the aid of the fortunate English? Or was the failure of the Armada due to a more complicated combination of military, climatological and political factors?
Try and shake off your national bias and take a look at some of the following websites so that you can make up your own mind.
The History Learning Site offers a pretty objective analysis of events. Spot the interesting differences in the versions given on the Spanish and English versions of Wikipedia. Or take a look at this very detailed webpage and its sister site that attempt to destroy some of the myths surrounding one of the most famous events in English and Spanish history.
Take a look at this David Starkey video for his take on events and decide if you think it gives a fair verdict. Use your own research to decide if Spain really was weakened by the defeat of the Armada.
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