Military1

 **A Time of War**

During the Elizabethan period England was involved in three major wars. They were The English War with Spain, The Spanish Armada, and the Wars in Ireland. The English war with Spain took place from 1585-1603, the war occurred do to various conflicts where England and Spain competed for power, control, and trade in the New World. It was also because there were differences in religion, under the rule of Queen Elizabeth England became known as a Protestant nation whereas Spain was Catholic and declared war upon England in order to conquer the country and restore Catholicism. The war had much naval warfare between the two countries. This includes English piracy which the Queen did not seem to mind since she did not scold the escapades when they raided Spanish vessels.

The wars in Ireland are also known as or referred to the Desmond Rebellions they took place 1569-1573 and 1579-1583. The war took place for many reasons but here are the main reasons. First of all England wished to establish and maintain control over Munster which was ruled by the Catholic Earl of Desmond dynasty. Also the English government wanted to replace local Irish Lords with English military governors. The influence and religion of the Irish lords was opposed and threatened by the English. Lastly the leader of the Desmond Dynasty revolted against the English and was joined by many other Irish lords. The Pope backed up the Irish with money and troops which lead to the carry-on of the war. The aftermath of the Desmond Rebellions were devastating, there was a terrible famine that plagued Munster because during the war the English had burned and destroyed the Irish crops, the Desmond clan was defeated, and Irish estates and land was seized by the English.

Although much of the medieval weaponry was still in use, the Elizabethan period brought the introduction of the musket and other weapons along with it. England’s arsenal included:

- A variety of swords such as the Rapier, Broadsword, Cutting sword, and so on...

- The Mace which was to bash through thick armor.

-The Longbow, a skilled bowman was capable of firing ten to twelve arrows per minute.

-The Crossbow also known as the Arbalest.

- Battle axes, single and also double handed axes.

-Numerous types of spears like a Pikes, Lances, and Halberds.

- Caltrops sharp pole formations used to down a horse.

- Various daggers for example the Basilard a dual bladed dagger.

- The Billhook used to maim knights from their mounts.

- Muskets like the Matchlock later replaced by the Flintlock.

- Cannons. According to the page "Elizabethan Weapons" from the site //Elizabethan-era.org.uk// says, “Canons were developed which replaced the heavy artillery of the Medieval years such as the ballista, trebuchet and the Mangonel.”

Armor of the time was mainly used for show purposes only, although some heavy platted armor was used on the battlefields.

As you can notice during the Elizabethan period England was under constant warfare and it makes sense that they would develop and acquire new weaponry and armor to help give them the advantage on the battlefield.



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