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Protestantism in England From the Times of Henry VIII - James Aitken Wylie

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with trumpets, streamers, banners, and warlike<br />

eng<strong>in</strong>es.[5]<br />

Dur<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> time that this unprecedentedly vast<br />

fleet was be<strong>in</strong>g built <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> harbors <strong>of</strong> Spa<strong>in</strong>,<br />

everyth<strong>in</strong>g was done to conceal <strong>the</strong> fact from <strong>the</strong><br />

knowledge <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> English nation. It was meant that<br />

<strong>the</strong> bolt should fall without warn<strong>in</strong>g and crush it. In<br />

an age when <strong>the</strong>re were hardly any postal<br />

communications, secrecy was more easily<br />

atta<strong>in</strong>able than <strong>in</strong> our day; but <strong>the</strong> preparations<br />

were on far too vast a scale to rema<strong>in</strong> unknown.<br />

The next attempt was to propagate a delusion<br />

touch<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> real dest<strong>in</strong>ation <strong>of</strong> this vast armament.<br />

At one time it was given out that it was <strong>in</strong>tended to<br />

sweep from <strong>the</strong> seas certa<strong>in</strong> pirates that gave<br />

annoyance to Spa<strong>in</strong>, and had captured some <strong>of</strong> her<br />

ships. It was next said that Philip meant to chastise<br />

certa<strong>in</strong> unknown enemies on <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r side <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

Atlantic. All that craft and downright ly<strong>in</strong>g could<br />

do was done, to lay to sleep <strong>the</strong> suspicions <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

people <strong>of</strong> <strong>England</strong>. Even <strong>the</strong> English agent at<br />

Madrid, with <strong>the</strong> Armada build<strong>in</strong>g as it were before<br />

his eyes, was <strong>in</strong>duced to credit <strong>the</strong>se fabulous<br />

372

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