What was the singeing of the king of Spain's beard?

Answer 1

Drake's attack on Cadiz and Coruna in 1587 is sometimes called the 'singeing of the King of Spain's beard.' Drake sunk or captured between 20 to 30 ships in this raid. ================ Drake also burned just about every piece of seasoned wood he could find up and down the coast. The Spaniards had been stockpiling the wood in preparation for the (first) Armada. Drake, of course, was virtually unopposed on the sea at this time, the immediate aftermath of the burning of the Armada while it was still in harbour. In addition to the burning of the seasoned wood being a brilliant act, it also terrorized the civilian population (although Drake concentrated his efforts on military targets). The burning of the seasoned wood on shore accomplished two things: because the Spaniards then had to resort to the use freshly cut wood, their remaining patched-up ships and the newly built replacements were not as seaworthy as they otherwise would have been; and the fresh wood that was used in making barrels caused a significant amount of the Spaniards' water and food to go bad during the second Armada.