Howard of Effingham, Lord (1536-1624), was an English sailor who commanded the fleet that defeated the Spanish Armada. The Spanish Armada, a fleet of armed ships, tried to invade England in 1588. But the English navy and stormy weather destroyed almost half the Armada. The failure of the Armada was a great blow to the prestige of Spain, then the world’s most powerful country.
Charles Howard was born in 1536. He became ambassador to France and a member of Parliament. In 1573, he succeeded his father as Baron Howard of Effingham. After 1585, he was lord high admiral of England. In 1596, he was made Earl of Nottingham for his part in a naval raid on the Spanish port of Cádiz with the Earl of Essex. Five years later, he crushed Essex’s rebellion against Queen Elizabeth I. Howard continued to hold high offices under Elizabeth’s successor, King James I. Howard died on Dec. 13, 1624.
