55°14′46″N6°30′15″W / 55.2462°N 6.5043°W /55.2462; -6.5043
 A depiction of a galleass of the Spanish Armada | |
| History | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Name | La Girona |
| Homeport | A Coruña |
| Fate | Wrecked 26 October 1588 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | 50-gungalleass |
| Capacity | 1,300+ emergency loading |
| Troops | 186 transported |
| Complement | 531 sailors and rowers |
| Armament | 50 bronze and iron cannon |
| Notes | over 1,300 aboard, 9 survived |
.jpg) Wreck of the Girona (Ulster Museum Exhibit Painting) | |
La Girona was agalleass of the 1588Spanish Armada that foundered and sank offLacada Point,County Antrim, on the night of 26 October 1588, after making its way eastward along the north coast ofUlster. The wreck is noteworthy for the great loss of life that resulted and the treasures recovered.
La Girona (/lɑː xɪˈrɔːnɑː/) was named after theGirones family, who at the time had just becomeDukes of Osuna andviceroys of Naples[1] (not afterGirona, theCatalan name of the city and province ofGerona). Its captain wasHugo de Moncada y Gralla, knight of theOrder of Malta.[1]
La Girona had anchored with a damaged rudder inKillybegs Harbour in the south-west ofTír Chonaill, aGaelictúath that covered most of the then newly establishedCounty Donegal in the west ofUlster. With the assistance of an Irish chieftain,MacSweeney Bannagh, she was repaired and set sail for theKingdom of Scotland on the 25th of October, with 1,300 men on board, includingAlonso Martínez de Leiva [es], knight andtrece of theOrder of Santiago.[1]
AfterLough Foyle was cleared, a gale struck andLa Girona was driven on to Lacada Point and the "Spanish Rocks'" (as they were known, thereafter) nearBallintoy inThe Route, a territory on the north coast ofCounty Antrim in the north-east of Ulster, on the night of 26 October 1588. Of the estimated 1,300 people on board, nine survived. 260 bodies washed ashore and were buried in a common grave at the local churchyard.
The survivors were sent on toScotland by the local clan leader,Sorley Boy MacDonnell ofDunluce Castle, which was situated just to the west on theGiant's Causeway cliffs overlooking the coast. From there, MacDonnell is also believed to have conducted the first clandestine salvage efforts on the shipwreck.[2]
Between 1967 and April 1968, off the coast ofPortballintrae (Port-na-Spaniagh Bay), a team consisting of local diver and historian John MacLennan, alongside a team ofBelgian divers (includingRobert Sténuit, the world's firstaquanaut) located the remains of the wreck and brought up the greatest find ofSpanish Armada treasure salvaged up until that time.[3][4][5] The underwater site was designated under theProtection of Wrecks Act on 22 April 1993.
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The wrecking ofLa Girona was officially commemorated with a period illustration on the reverse side ofsterling banknotes formerly issued by theFirst Trust Bank inNorthern Ireland.[6]
"Treasures from the Girona".Gold and silver coins, jewelry, armaments, and utilitarian objects from the Spanish galleass,Girona, are on permanent display at theUlster Museum (part of the National Museums of Northern Ireland) inStranmillis inBelfast.
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![Gold cross of a knight of Saint John of Jerusalem (Order of Malta), most probably Hugo de Moncada y Gralla who was the only knight of the Order on board[1]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aCross_of_a_Knight_of_St_John_of_Jerusalem.JPG)
