Once the armada was defeated, only about 65 out of 130 Spanish ships managed to return to Spain. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay And over 20,000 Spanish sailors and soldiers were killed in the Battle of the Armada. But Spain certainly did not lose importance after the defeat of the Armada. Indeed, Spain defeated England at sea and on land in several battles in that decade. After the Spanish Armada, Spain also maintained an important influence on relations in Europe and the Americas well into the 16th century. But due to the war with England, Spain was seriously in debt and King Philip had declared several bankruptcies. Philip accepted the defeat of the army as God's will. Soon after, he planned a new, better and more powerful army similar to the English ships. In the year 1595 the Spanish ships landed in Cornwall but were burned. In the years 1596 and 1597 other "Armies" were sent but were held back by powerful storms. But around the 17th century Spain slowly began to lose power. Now the Spanish kings could not think that he could do whatever he wanted. The Armada was the beginning of the fall of the Spanish empire. The English achieved a very victorious victory. Only 100 men were killed and none of the ships were sunk. But 7,000 English sailors died of disease. And those who survived were treated terribly by the government, many given barely enough money to travel back to England. As a result of the defeat of the Armada, England became a powerful nation. Elizabeth could now be exceptionally confident, knowing that another invasion was unlikely to take place. This also meant that England could survive as an independent Protestant country. Another thing was that the Spanish now had fewer ships, which they could use to protect merchant ships, which meant that English sailors could rob Spanish ports more easily. In the 17th century, as Spain weakened, England began to found colonies. They then established settlers in parts of America, parts that the Spanish had ignored. English businessmen increasingly took control of trade with Central and South America. Remember: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay After the defeat of the Armada, a tremendous celebration occurred in England. A medal was made (right) reading "God blew and they were scattered." Much later, at the end of Elizabeth's reign, as a result of the war against Spain, England's debt reached 3 million. Crown offices and land had to be sold to stop going into further debt.