The defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 was a diplomatic and military disaster for Spain, but it only encouraged a rebuilding and strengthening of the fleet in order to restore Spanish maritime power. A second attempt to invade England in 1596 was met, as before, with a preemptive strike against the fleet in Cádiz, which was carried out from June 20 to July 5, 1596.
Maritime rivalry between England and Spain intensified after 1588. An English counterarmada against Spain the following year proved to be a fiasco, while English attacks on Spanish treasure ships returning from the New World caused great controversy, although they often failed in their mission. It was, therefore, no surprise when Philip II of Spain ordered a second armada to invade England.
In response, a large English and Dutch fleet of around 120 ships, commanded by Charles Howard, the 1st Earl of Nottingham, and Robert Devereux, the 2nd Earl of Essex, left Plymouth on June 3, 1596, to scuttle the Spanish plans. The warships carried eight infantry regiments numbering about 6,500 soldiers, their mission to seize the port of Cádiz and destroy the fleet at anchor there.
Once at Cádiz, where the Spanish garrison numbered only some 350 soldiers, the English destroyed two Spanish galleons and captured two more, including the flagship, seized by the famed privateer and explorer Sir Walter Raleigh. Devereux then led his men to storm the walls and occupy the city. Cádiz was ransacked, but the English failed to seize the rich merchant ships in the inner harbor, allowing the Spanish to scuttle them in time. Devereux wanted to occupy and garrison the city permanently, but Howard, hero of the previous armada’s defeat, refused to agree because many of the English wanted to return home with their loot.
Given that and the arrival of Spanish reinforcements, and leaving the city in flames, the English withdrew on July 5. A success in terms of hurt Spanish pride, the raid failed to prevent the second armada from setting sail four months later. However, once again, the weather intervened, and the Spanish fleet was forced home before it had reached its destination.
Losses: English, no ships of 120; Spanish, 2 ships sunk and 2 ships captured.