Battle of Flores

Overview

The Battle of Flores was a naval engagement during the Brittany Campaign of the Anglo-Spanish War of 1585 fought off the Island of Flores between an English fleet of 22 ships under Lord Thomas Howard and a Spanish fleet of 55 ships under Alonso de Bazán. Sent to the Azores to capture the annual Spanish treasure convoy, when a stronger Spanish fleet appeared off Flores, Howard ordered his ships to flee to the north, saving all of them except the galleon Revenge commanded by Admiral Sir Richard Grenville.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Flores, fought on August 30, 1591, brought together senior commanders from both sides of the Anglo-Spanish War, with the Spanish force under Alonso de Bazán, Martín de Bertendona, and Marcos de Aramburu engaging an English force associated with the Earl of Suffolk and Richard Grenville. Beyond the identities of its commanders, the available record does not preserve force sizes, casualties, terrain, or outcome, leaving the battle's specific effect on the wider conflict unresolvable from surviving evidence.

Commanders (5)