The English Armada (also known as the Counter Armada, or the Drake-Norris Expedition), a fleet of warships sent to the Iberian coast by Elizabeth in 1589, is led by Sir Francis Drake as admiral and Sir John Norreys as general.

Elizabeth's intentions are to capitalize upon Spain's temporary weakness at sea after the successful repulsion of the Spanish Armada and to compel Philip II to sue for peace.

It is not a simple matter, and the expedition has three distinct aims: to burn the Spanish Atlantic fleet, to make a landing at Lisbon and raise a revolt there against Philip II, and then to continue south and establish a permanent base in the Azores.

A further aim is to seize the Spanish treasure fleet as it returns from America to Cadiz, although this depends largely on the success of the Azores campaign.

The complex politics are not the only drawback for the expedition.

Like its Spanish predecessor, the English Armada suffers from overly optimistic planning, based on hopes of repeating Drake's successful raid on Cadiz in 1587.

A critical contradiction lies between the separate plans, each of which is ambitious in its own right.

But the most pressing need is the destruction of the Spanish Atlantic fleet lying at port at La Coruña, San Sebastián and Santander along the north coast of Spain, as directly ordered by the Queen.

The expedition is floated as a joint stock company, with capital of about eighty thousand pounds—one quarter to come from the Queen, and one eighth from the Dutch, the balance to be made up by various noblemen, merchants and guilds.

Concerns over logistics and adverse weather delay the departure of the fleet, and confusion grows as it waits in port.

The Dutch fail to supply their promised warships, a third of the victuals have already been consumed, and the number of veteran soldiers is only eighteen hundred while the ranks of volunteers has increased the planned contingent of troops from ten thousand to nineteen thousand.

The fleet also lacks siege guns and cavalry—items that had been lavishly laid on in the Spanish Armada expedition of the previous year—which raises serious doubts about the intentions of those in charge of the preparations.

When the fleet sails, it is made up of six royal galleons, sixty English armed merchantmen, sixty Dutch flyboats and about twenty pinnaces.

In addition to the troops, there are four thousand sailors and fifteen hundred officers and gentlemen adventurers.

Drake assigns his vessels to five squadrons, led respectively by himself in the Revenge, Sir John Norreys in the Nonpareil, Norreys' brother Edward in the Foresight, Thomas Fenner in the Dreadnought, and Roger Williams in the Swiftsure.

Also sailing with them—against the Queen's express orders—is the Earl of Essex.