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If the names of the ships that sank there are known, along with the numbers of sailors who perished, does that mean there were some survivors? Or other ships wi
by ilamont 3mo ago
If the names of the ships that sank there are known, along with the numbers of sailors who perished, does that mean there were some survivors? Or other ships witnessed the sinking but managed to make it home? That part of Ireland in 1588 was indeed very wild and at that time Gaelic speaking.
Although amongst the local clergy perhaps there were some people who could speak Spanish or Latin if any shipwrecked sailors made it ashore.
- torben-friis 3mo agoAbout 300 survivors of different fate, according to this Spanish source (you can probably ai translate, there is a survivors section): https://www.armadainvencible.org/desastre-la-playa-streedagh/#Los_supervivientes https://www.armadainvencible.org/desastre-la-playa-streedagh... The short of it is that only 5 can be said for certain to have returned, plus one person that stayed in Ireland under the service of Hugh O’Neill. The idea seems to be Catholic Irish nobility "such as the O’Rourke or the Mc Clancy" may have helped them, while the English army searched for survivors and killed those who found.
- taffydavid 3mo agoFrancisco de Cuellar survived in Sligo, and escaped inland to O'Rourke's Castle where he got refuge and found 70 or so other Spanish survivors. The path he took from the shore inland is marked to this day by signposts and you can follow it yourself. Granted he didn't leave us a Strava trail but roughly speaking we know the way they went. We know what happened to him in amazing detail because he escaped north, to the Hebrides, through Flanders, Dunkirk and eventually back to Spain where he lived out his days. O'Rourke was executed by the English for harboring survivors https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_de_Cuellar https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_de_Cuellar
- fauria 3mo agoFrancisco de Cuéllar survived a shipwreck near Streedagh beach, in Co. Sligo (Ireland). The film Armada 1588 tells that story: https://youtu.be/2LxjGGzjtAE https://youtu.be/2LxjGGzjtAE Every year in September, Spanish Armada Ireland organises an event called Remembering the Armada, to pay tribute to those fallen in that coast: https://youtu.be/xTUwTmjauLg https://youtu.be/xTUwTmjauLg This year will happen between September 17th and 20th: https://spanisharmadaireland.com/full-programme-2026/ https://spanisharmadaireland.com/full-programme-2026/