Not Just the Tudors When the Spanish Armada Reached Ireland
Apr 2, 2026
Michael B. Barry, historian and author of 1588: The Spanish Armada, guides listeners through the Armada’s disastrous Irish landings. He recounts shipwrecks, storms and survival on wild coasts. He examines mass executions, local reprisals and the tangled politics of Tudor Ireland. He traces the Girona catastrophe, relics recovered and how myths grew from the rubble.
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Trinidad Valencera Survivors Pillaged Then Massacred
- The Trinidad Valencera struck rocks on the north Donegal coast; many crew made shore but locals pillaged and later mercenaries massacred roughly 300 after a false surrender promise.
- Officers were separated and ransomed later, illustrating social value of rank amid the brutality.
English Orders Turn Shipwrecks Into Executions
- English authorities in Ireland, fearing Spanish-Gaelic alliances, ordered execution of shipwrecked Spaniards; Sir Richard Bingham enforced this with ruthless measures.
- Bingham had prior experience of brutal suppression, and his decree led to mass executions such as the Galway massacre.
Last Will Scribbled On The Way To Execution
- Don Antonio de Ulloa scribbled a last will while marched to execution at Galway asking for masses and gifts; his final line reads The executioner does not give me any more time.
- The paper survived, was archived in Simancas, and masses for his soul were held in Córdoba in April 2024.