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 Pet owner educational atlas

PARASITES
Diagnosis, control and prevention
Texts and review: Sergio Villanueva Saz Asier Basurco Pérez

P83100_PetOwner_Parasites_SERVET_cover.indd 1 27/4/17 13:27

 Pet owner educational
atlas

PARASITES
Diagnosis, control
and prevention

00_P83100_Principles.indd 1 3/5/17 10:16

 For this English edition:
Pet owner educational atlas
Parasites. Diagnosis, control and prevention
Copyright © 2017 Grupo Asís Biomedia, S.L.
Plaza Antonio Beltrán Martínez nº 1, planta 8 - letra I
(Centro empresarial El Trovador)
50002 Zaragoza - Spain

First printing: May 2017

This book has been published originally in Spanish under the title:
Atlas de información al propietario.
Parásitos. Diagnóstico, control y prevención
© 2017 Grupo Asís Biomedia, S.L.
ISBN Spanish edition: 978-84-16818-54-9

Translation:
Owen Howard
Illustrators:
Jacob Gragera Artal
Paula Marco Peinado

ISBN: 978-84-16818-71-6
D.L.: Z 706-2017

Design, layout and printing:

Servet editorial - Grupo Asís Biomedia, S.L.
www.grupoasis.com
info@grupoasis.com

All rights reserved.

Any form of reproduction, distribution, publication or transformation of this book is only permitted
with the authorisation of its copyright holders, apart from the exceptions allowed by law. Contact
CEDRO (Spanish Centre of Reproduction Rights, www.cedro.org) if you need to photocopy or
scan any part of this book (www.conlicencia.com; 0034 91 702 19 70/0034 93 272 04 47).

Warning:
Veterinary science is constantly evolving, as are pharmacology and the other sciences. Inevitably, it is
therefore the responsibility of the veterinary surgeon to determine and verify the dosage, the method
of administration, the duration of treatment and any possible contraindications to the treatments given
to each individual patient, based on his or her professional experience. Neither the publisher nor the
author can be held liable for any damage or harm caused to people, animals or properties resulting
from the correct or incorrect application of the information contained in this book.

00_P83100_Principles.indd 2 3/5/17 10:16

 3
PREFACE

PREFACE
The objective of this informative book is to help veterinary surgeons provide pet owners with
simple explanations about different aspects of the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and zoono-
tic risk of the main parasites of dogs and cats. Given the growing popularity of exotic pets,
we also felt that it was important to provide veterinary surgeons with the necessary tools to
answer basic questions related to their care. We have placed a particular emphasis on the
parasites that most commonly affect these animals, as well as those that can also potentially
affect humans.

The text in this educational atlas for pet owners is complemented by illustrations. These are de-
signed to facilitate communication between the veterinary surgeon and the pet owner, and to
help explain key concepts and ideas about the world of parasitic diseases and the importance
of parasites in animal health.

We have sought to provide straightforward answers to the issues of greatest interest to pet
owners, such as preventive care of pets and the relationship between the pet itself, parasites,
and humans.

Finally, we wish to note the excellent work done by the illustrators (Jacob Gragera and Paula
Marco) and editors (Leticia Escuin and Marta Borobia) who helped to shape this book.

We hope that the reader will find the content of interest and that this book serves as a useful
support tool for veterinary surgeons in their daily clinical practice.

The authors,
Asier Basurco Pérez
Sergio Villanueva Saz

00_P83100_Principles.indd 3 3/5/17 10:16

4 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Table of contents
01 TYPES OF PARASITES

External parasites
1 Fleas ............................................................................................................................................................................. 7
2 Ticks ............................................................................................................................................................................. 8
3 Lice ................................................................................................................................................................................ 9
4 Mites ......................................................................................................................................................................... 10
5 Mosquitoes and sandflies .......................................................................................................................... 11

Internal parasites
6 Roundworms ....................................................................................................................................................... 12
7 Flukes and tapeworms ................................................................................................................................. 13
8 Microscopic agents ....................................................................................................................................... 14

02 PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

Digestive system
9 Caused by nematodes ................................................................................................................................. 15
10 Caused by cestodes ...................................................................................................................................... 16
11 Caused by trematodes ................................................................................................................................ 17
12 Caused by protozoa ..................................................................................................................................... 18

Cardiorespiratory system
13 Lungworms ........................................................................................................................................................... 19
14 Heartworm (canine dirofilariasis) ........................................................................................................ 20

Blood
15 Tick-borne diseases ........................................................................................................................................ 21
16 Other parasitic diseases of the blood .............................................................................................. 22

Renal system
17 Urinary parasites ............................................................................................................................................. 23

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 5
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Systemic or multiorgan
18 Leishmaniasis ...................................................................................................................................................... 24
19 Toxoplasmosis .................................................................................................................................................... 25
20 Other diseases .................................................................................................................................................. 26

Cutaneous
21 Flea infestation: flea allergy dermatitis ............................................................................................ 27
22 Tick infestation ................................................................................................................................................... 28
23 Allergic reactions to bites .......................................................................................................................... 29
24 Mange ..................................................................................................................................................................... 30
25 Myiasis .................................................................................................................................................................... 31

Ocular
26 Ocular parasites .............................................................................................................................................. 32

03 DIAGNOSTIC TESTS
IN PARASITOLOGY

27 Stool analysis ..................................................................................................................................................... 33

28 Blood smear ........................................................................................................................................................ 34
29 Skin scrapings ................................................................................................................................................... 35
30 Trichogram ........................................................................................................................................................... 36
31 Adhesive tape test .......................................................................................................................................... 37
32 Flea comb ............................................................................................................................................................. 38
33 Analysis of otic exudate ............................................................................................................................. 39

04 MAIN ZOONOSES

34 Zoonoses from dogs ..................................................................................................................................... 40

35 Zoonoses from cats ........................................................................................................................................ 41

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6 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

05 MAIN PARASITES
OF EXOTIC ANIMALS

36 Parasites of birds ............................................................................................................................................. 42

37 Parasites of small rodents .......................................................................................................................... 44
38 Parasites of rabbits ......................................................................................................................................... 46
39 Parasites of ferrets ........................................................................................................................................... 48
40 Parasites of reptiles ........................................................................................................................................ 50

06 MISCELLANEOUS

41 How to remove a tick ................................................................................................................................... 52

42 Correct use of a pipette .............................................................................................................................. 53
43 How to administer an oral antiparasitic ......................................................................................... 54
44 How does an antiparasitic work? Presentations ....................................................................... 55
45 How do I know if my pet is parasitised? ........................................................................................ 56
46 Basic hygiene measures ............................................................................................................................. 57
47 Management recommendations ........................................................................................................... 58
48 Parasite control programmes .................................................................................................................. 59
49 How to remove fleas from the environment ................................................................................. 60
50 Avoid mosquito and sandfly bites ....................................................................................................... 61

00_P83100_Principles.indd 6 3/5/17 10:16

 7
TYPES OF PARASITES

EXTERNAL PARASITES

1 Fleas
The adult forms of these small insects (Ctenocephalides spp.) require the blood of animals to com-
plete their life cycle. They pose a risk to the animal: massive infestations and hypersensitivity reac-
tions (flea allergy dermatitis, FAD). They can also transmit other diseases: dipylidiasis, bartonellosis,
haemoplasmosis (mycoplasmosis), filariasis, and rickettsiosis.

A high parasite load

in the environment can
lead to biting/infestation
of humans, and the Adult flea
transmission of various
pathogens.

Eggs

Pupa

Larva 1
Larva 2

Larva 3

Clinical signs
Dog: Cat:
■ Intense pruritus (scratching, biting, or licking). ■ Pruritus (licking).
■ Lumbosacral alopecia. ■ Symmetrical self-induced alopecia.
■ Seborrhoea and scaling. ■ Eosinophilic granuloma complex lesions.
■ Pyotraumatic dermatitis. ■ Miliary dermatitis.
■ Presence of Dipylidium caninum. ■ Presence of Dipylidium caninum.
■ Chronic cases: hyperpigmentation, lichenification, ■ Chronic cases: alopecia without lesions.
hyperkeratosis. ■ Massive infestations: ingestion of blood by fleas can
■ Massive infestations: ingestion of blood by fleas can cause anaemia.
cause anaemia.

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8 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

EXTERNAL PARASITES

2 Ticks
These temporary ectoparasites feed on varying amounts of blood and can harm animals or hu-
mans, either by direct action or by transmitting pathogenic agents. Ticks from two different families
can affect dogs and cats: Argasidae (soft ticks) and Ixodidae (hard ticks). The latter is the most
important family.

Life cycle of Ixodidae

Hatching

Larva
Female with eggs
falls to the ground Eggs deposited in the
environment

Feeding on blood
of the host

Feeding on blood
Moulting in the
of the host
environment

Nymph

Feeding on blood
of the host
Male Female Moulting in the
Adults environment

Clinical signs
■ Areas in which ticks are most commonly found: ears, face, neck, belly, axillae and interdigital areas.
■ Otitis externa.
■ Localised cutaneous inflammatory reaction: inflammatory nodules, microabscesses at point of attachment.
■ Massive infestations: anaemia.
■ Tick toxicosis: ascending paralysis, ataxia, etc.
■ Clinical signs associated with transmitted pathogen.

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 9
TYPES OF PARASITES

EXTERNAL PARASITES

3 Lice
These insects are capable of causing infestations (pediculosis), mainly in young, aged, or debilitated
animals. They can be divided into two broad classes, depending on feeding habits: chewing or
biting lice (feed on organic debris and detritus) and blood-sucking lice.

Lice (Trichodectes canis) can

They are highly specific to also serve as intermediate hosts of
their host, and thus there is other parasites such as Dipylidium
no risk of transmission to caninum.
humans.

Egg

Nymphs
(several stages)

Dog
Trichodectes canis (chewing louse)
Linognathus setosus (blood-sucking
louse)

Cat
Felicola subrostratus
(chewing louse)

Clinical signs
■ Cutaneous: poor haircoat appearance, self-induced excoriations due to pruritus, scaling and
alopecia (dorsal area or generalised).
■ General: anaemia and weakness in the case of massive infestations with blood-sucking lice.

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10 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

EXTERNAL PARASITES

4 Mites
These are small parasites that can affect dogs (Sarcoptes scabiei), cats (Notoedres cati), or both
(Demodex spp., Otodectes cynotis, Cheyletiella spp., Straelensia cynotis, and Neotrombicula
autumnalis). They generally cause pruritus and skin alterations.

Cheyletiella Some mites can cause zoonosis.

Other mites

Sarcoptes
Adult

Eggs

Nymph
(several phases)

Otodectes

Notoedres

Larva
Demodex

Clinical signs
■ Alopecia.
■ Scaling.
■ Crusts.
■ Erythema.
■ Pruritus of varying intensity depending on the mite responsible. Neotrombicula
■ Thickening of the skin.
■ Papules and pustules.
■ Skin hyperpigmentation.
■ Erosions and ulcerations. Straelensia
■ Otitis with presence of dark-coloured cerumen (mites that affect
the inner ear).
■ Excoriations and lesions caused by scratching.

01_Types_parasites.indd 10 3/5/17 12:42

 11
TYPES OF PARASITES

EXTERNAL PARASITES

5 Mosquitoes and sandflies

Culicid mosquitoes (Culex spp., Aedes spp., Anopheles spp.) and sandflies (Phlebotomus spp.,
Lutzomyia spp.) are ectoparasites that rest temporarily on the skin of the animal to feed. They
can transmit important pathogens, including parasites such as Leishmania infantum (sandflies) and
Dirofilaria immitis (culicid mosquitoes).

Culicid Sandflies
mosquitoes
Terrestrial
Aquatic

Eggs
Anopheles Culex

Aedes

Larva (4 stages)

Pupa

Aerial Aerial

Adult

In the case of mosquitoes and

sandflies, it is the female that
Clinical signs bites and feeds on blood.

■ Swelling, pain and pruritus of varying intensity in the area of the bite.
■ Skin lesions: papules, crusting, erythema, lesions caused by scratching.
■ Possible hypersensitivity reactions.

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12 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

INTERNAL PARASITES

6 Roundworms
Parasites of this group are of variable size and are characterised by a cylindrical and elongated
body. They are commonly referred to as roundworms or nematodes. These parasites cause various
lesions and inflammatory reactions in the anatomical sites in which they are found. Some of these
worms affect either canine or feline species, while others can affect both species.

Ocular Urinary
parasites parasites
■ Thelazia spp. ■ Capillaria spp.
(T. callipaeda and T. californiensis)) (C. plica and C. feliscati)
■ Onchocerca lupi ■ Dioctophyma renale

Cardiorespiratory Blood
parasites parasites
■ Dirofilaria immitis Located in the subcutaneous tissue:
■ Angiostrongylus vasorum ■ Dirofilaria repens

■ Filaroides spp. ■ Acanthocheilonema

(F. osleri and F. hirthi) reconditum

■ Crenosoma vulpis Located in the
■ Capillaria aerophila abdominal cavity:
■ Aelurostrongylus abstrusus ■ Acanthocheilonema

■ Troglostrongylus spp. dracunculoides

Digestive parasites
Located in the oesophagus: ■ Trichuris vulpis
■ Spirocerca lupi ■ Ancylostoma spp.
Located in the stomach: (A. caninum, A. tubaeforme
■ Physaloptera spp.
and A. braziliense)
■ Uncinaria stenocephala
Located in the intestine:
■ Trichuris vulpis
■ Toxascaris leonina
■ Strongyloides stercoralis
■ Toxocara spp. (T. canis and T. cati)

Some of these parasites can

affect humans.

01_Types_parasites.indd 12 3/5/17 12:42

 13
TYPES OF PARASITES

INTERNAL PARASITES

7 Flukes and tapeworms

These have a soft, dorsoventrally flattened body, which lends them a flatworm-like aspect. Pets can be
affected by two distinct classes: trematodes (flukes) and cestodes (tapeworms). The main difference
between the two classes is the absence (flukes) or presence (tapeworms) of a segmented body.

Some of these parasites can

affect humans.

1 2 3

The degree of
parasitisation of
the affected animal
influences the clinical
picture and its severity.

Flukes Tapeworms
Clinical signs Clinical signs
Affected animals may show no clinical signs or, The owner will usually observe signs of anal pruritus in
conversely, may develop different associated affected animals (rubbing against the floor) and the presence
clinical manifestations (depending on the location of segments of the parasite (proglottids) in the perianal area
of the adult forms/migration of immature forms). or in the stool.
In severe cases the clinical signs are primarily gastrointestinal,
including diarrhoea/constipation, vomiting, abdominal
distension, and intestinal obstruction (highly parasitised animals).
Nonspecific clinical signs such as weight loss, anorexia and
poor haircoat appearance may also be observed.

Echinococcus (3)
Paragonimus (1) Opisthorchis (2) Alaria (3)

1. Pulmonary localisation
2. Hepatic localisation
Taenia (3)
3. Intestinal localisation

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14 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

INTERNAL PARASITES

8 Microscopic agents
Protozoa are unicellular parasites that cannot be observed with the naked
eye. Depending on their organ tropism, protozoa can have localised
effects (e.g. digestive protozoa, which cause gastrointestinal signs) or can Some of these parasites
spread systemically, damaging multiple organs (nonspecific and often can also affect humans.
variable clinical signs).

Digestive
Infectious form
Animals acquire the parasite by ingesting
infective forms. This is followed by various
stages of development and multiplication in Intestine
the intestine, and the life cycle is completed
with the production of new forms of the
parasite. These forms can be infective at the
moment of excretion or may require time
in the environment before becoming infective.

Systemic
These protozoa spread to various organs, resulting in
systemic infections.
Despite their intestinal multiplication phase, Toxoplasma
gondii and Neospora caninum can be considered
systemic protozoa given the nature of the clinical picture
they cause.

Babesia (erythrocytes) Cytauxzoon

(various blood cells)
Trypanosoma
(bloodstream)

Theileria Hepatozoon
(various blood cells) (various blood cells)

Leishmania (macrophage)

01_Types_parasites.indd 14 3/5/17 12:43

 15
PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

9 Caused by nematodes
Gastrointestinal nematodiasis is caused by different kinds of nematodes that affect dogs and/
or cats. These parasites can be found in the oesophagus (Spirocerca lupi: spirocercosis),
stomach (Physaloptera spp.: physalopteriasis) or intestine (Ancylostoma spp./Uncinaria spp.:
ancylostomiasis; Toxascaris leonina: toxocariasis; Toxocara canis: canine toxocariasis; Toxocara
cati: feline toxocariasis; Trichuris vulpis: trichuriasis; Strongyloides stercoralis: strongyloidiasis).

Some gastrointestinal nematodes

can pose risks to humans.

Clinical signs
■ Abdominal swelling.
■ Abnormal faeces (altered consistency, presence
of blood or mucus).
■ Vomiting.
■ Dehydration.
■ Lack of appetite.
■ Lethargy.
■ Cachexia.
■ Poor haircoat condition.
■ Anaemia.
■ Dysphagia.
■ Regurgitation.
■ Stunting.
■ Intestinal obstruction.
■ Lesions associated with larval migration, depending
on location.

This condition can have serious consequences

for puppies and young animals.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Stool analysis. ■ Endoscopic removal ■ Correct and regular disposal of stools.
■ Diagnostic imaging. of parasites. ■ Proper use of internal antiparasitics, paying particular attention
■ Molecular diagnosis (PCR). ■ Anthelmintic treatment. to puppies and pregnant or lactating females.
■ Serology (antibody detection). ■ Supportive therapy if ■ Hygiene measures and cleaning to reduce environmental
■ Tests to detect antigens in stool. required. contamination (eggs, larvae).
■ Additional tests (endoscopy, ■ Regular stool examinations.
colonoscopy). ■ Prevent hunting and predatory behaviours.
■ Avoid feeding animals raw or undercooked products.
■ Concrete floors in outdoor accommodations.
■ Adequate control of relevant intermediate and/or paratenic hosts.

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16 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

10 Caused by cestodes
Cestodosis is caused by different types of tapeworms that infect dogs and cats. Adult parasites
cause damage while attaching to the intestinal wall of the animal. The most important species are:
Taenia spp. (T. serialis, T. ovis, T. multiceps, T. hydatigena, and T. pisiformis in dogs and T. taeniae-
formis in cats), Dipylidium caninum, Echinococcus spp. (E. granulosus and E. multilocularis in dogs
and E. multilocularis in cats), Mesocestoides spp., Diphyllobothrium latum and Spirometra spp.

Proglottids in perianal area

D. caninum, Echinococcus spp.,

D. latum, Spirometra spp. and
Eggs released from the proglottids Mesocestoides spp. pose a
zoonotic risk.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Direct observation of parasite ■ Suitable anthelmintics. ■ Removal and proper disposal of faeces.
segments or proglottids (in faeces, ■ Antiparasitic control of ■ Periodic antiparasitic treatment of external (D. caninum)
vomit, perianal region) and infestations of fleas and lice and internal parasites.
morphological identification. (D. caninum). ■ Periodic stool analysis.
■ Stool analysis. ■ Supportive therapy. ■ Prevent hunting and predatory behaviours.
■ Molecular diagnosis (PCR). ■ Complete washing of animal ■ Avoid feeding animals raw or undercooked meat or fish.
■ Detection of antigens in stool (removal of infectious forms Provide them with commercial pet diets.
(Echinococcus spp.). attached to haircoat). ■ Avoid consumption of potentially unclean drinking water
■ Detection of parasites in abdominal (by humans and animals).
cavity (e.g. during surgery). ■ Wash fresh products (vegetables, fruits).
■ Cook all foods adequately.

02_Diseases_systems.indd 16 3/5/17 13:00

 17
PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

11 Caused by trematodes
Forms of digestive trematodiasis that affect dogs and cats include liver fluke infection (Opisthorchis spp.,
Metorchis spp., Platynosomum fastosum) and intestinal fluke infection (Alaria spp.). In the case of
P. fastosum, only cats are affected.

Liver fluke infection Intestinal fluke infection

These parasites are located in the hepatobiliary Immature forms
system. are located in
■ Opisthorchis spp. the lung.
■ Metorchis spp.
■ Platynosomum fastosum

Alaria spp.

Mature forms
(adults) are
located in the
small intestine.

Consumption of certain products, such

as frogs’ legs and fish (containing
forms of the parasite), can be
dangerous unless adequately cooked.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Stool analysis and morphological ■ Pharmacological ■ Adequate removal of faeces to prevent environmental contamination.
identification of eggs. treatment with ■ Periodic stool analysis.
■ Molecular diagnosis (PCR). appropriate anthelmintic. ■ Prevent hunting and predation of animals that act as hosts
■ Diagnostic imaging. ■ Supportive therapy. (intermediate or paratenic).
■ Avoid feeding pets raw or undercooked fish.

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18 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

12 Caused by protozoa
These diseases are caused by various species of protozoa that can affect dogs, cats, or both. These
include coccidiosis (Cystoisospora spp., Sarcocystis spp., Besnoitia besnoiti, Hammondia spp.),
cryptosporidiosis (Cryptosporidium spp.), giardiasis (Giardia) and trichomoniasis (Tritrichomonas
foetus). Consequences are more severe in young animals than in adults, and clinical signs are more
common in young and immunocompromised animals.

Clinical signs
■ Very mild or inapparent clinical signs.
■ Nonspecific clinical signs: anorexia, fever,
abdominal distension, weight loss, dehydration,
apathy and depression in the most severe cases.
■ Digestive clinical signs: diarrhoea, vomiting,
steatorrhea, presence of blood or mucus in stool.

Giardia spp. and Cryptosporidium spp. pose

a zoonotic risk. Wash hands after touching or
handling any animal.
Immunocompromised individuals should
avoid contact with the faeces of affected
animals or use adequate protective methods
to prevent contagion.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Stool analysis. Animal: ■ Know the health status of new animals.
■ Other diagnostic tests may be ■ Anti-protozoan drugs. ■ Serial faecal analysis and parasite control depending on results.
required: ■ Supportive therapy. ■ Correct stool disposal (avoid dissemination).
■ Faecal immunodiagnostic ■ Treatment of all animals in the ■ Avoid overpopulation and implement adequate hygiene
tests. same environment. measures (group-housed animals).
■ Faecal analysis using specific ■ Complete washing of animal ■ Prevent hunting behaviours (ingestion of infective forms).
stains. (removal of infectious forms ■ Avoid situations that can compromise the immune response,
■ Molecular diagnosis (PCR). attached to haircoat). especially in puppies.
■ Culture for isolation of Environment: ■ Maintain good animal health.
causative agent. ■ Cleaning and disinfection of ■ Prevent drinking of potentially unsanitary water.
surfaces. ■ Proper preparation of raw foods.
■ Hygiene and disinfection of eating/drinking utensils.

02_Diseases_systems.indd 18 3/5/17 13:00

 19
PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

CARDIORESPIRATORY SYSTEM

13 Lungworms
While these parasitic diseases are rare in companion animals, those that live outdoors are at greatest risk.
The main parasites affecting companion animals are:
■ Dog: Angiostrongylus vasorum (also in pulmonary arteries and heart), Filaroides osleri, Filaroides hirthi,
Crenosoma vulpis and Capillaria aerophila.
■ Cat: Capillaria aerophila, Aelurostrongylus abstrusus and various species of the genus Troglostrongylus.

Life cycle of Angiostrongylus vasorum

DH (dog)
In the lymph nodes, the larvae
mature and migrate to the heart
The DH ingests
and pulmonary arteries
parasitised molluscs

IH (land snail)

Adults

The L1 stage
penetrates the skin
of the snail Larva 1

Eggs

The L1 stage ascends

the pharynx, and is Alveoli and
swallowed and shed in pulmonary
the faeces capillary with
eggs and larvae
Adults develop and shed
eggs, which are then
DH: definitive host transported in the blood to
IH: intermediate host the pulmonary capillaries

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Stool analysis. ■ Pharmacological: suitable Animal:
■ Washing of airways. anthelmintic. ■ Regular internal parasite control.
■ Thoracic radiography. ■ Surgery: in cases of severe ■ Routine stool analysis.
■ Serology (A. vasorum). respiratory obstruction. ■ Avoid ingestion of hosts (intermediate and
■ Molecular diagnosis (PCR). ■ Supportive therapy. paratenic).
■ Haematological profile. ■ Rest. Environment:
■ Echocardiography (A. vasorum). ■ Application of molluscicide products.
■ Additional tests: bronchoscopy, aspiration and ■ Concrete floors in outdoor accommodations.
pulmonary biopsy.

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20 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

CARDIORESPIRATORY SYSTEM

14 Heartworm
(canine dirofilariasis)
Disease caused by the nematode Dirofilaria immitis. This is transmitted by mosquitoes (mainly
Culex spp., Aedes spp. and Anopheles spp.). The main locations of adult parasites of dogs are the
large blood vessels (pulmonary artery and vena cava) and heart (right ventricle).

Infected mosquitoes can also Infective L3 larvae penetrate the

bite humans and transmit wound caused by a mosquito bite
parasites. Pulmonary nodules
may develop.

IH
(Aedes, Culex,
and Anopheles,
among others)

This infection also

affects cats.

Adult worms located in the

pulmonary arterial tree and heart
IH: intermediate host Microfilaria in
the blood

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Blood smear. ■ Pharmacological treatment: Animal:
■ Detection of microfilaraemia: filter test ■ Adulticide and microfilaricide treatment. ■ Annual screening prior to commencing
and/or Knott’s test. ■ Appropriate antibiotic therapy against preventive treatment.
■ Serology: bacteria associated with the parasite. ■ Macrocyclic lactones against
■ Antigen detection in blood. ■ Supportive therapy. microfilariae during periods of risk.
■ Antibody detection (cat). ■ Surgery: in cases of involvement of the heart ■ External treatment with insecticide with

■ Additional tests: and large blood vessels. repellent activity.

■ Thoracic radiography. ■ Symptomatic treatment: severe clinical picture ■ Reduced exposure to vector.

■ Echocardiography. and/or pulmonary embolism. Environment:

■ Electrocardiogram. ■ Rest and restriction of exercise. ■ Vector control measures.

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PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

BLOOD

15 Tick-borne diseases
These diseases require ticks for transmission. They pose a great challenge to veterinary surgeons
owing to the difficulty associated with diagnosis and control.

Protozoa
Hepatozoonosis* Citauxzoonosis Babesiosis Theileriosis
(Hepatozoon spp.) (Cytauxzoon felis) (Babesia spp.) (Theileria spp.)

* Transmitted by ingestion of the tick.

Nematodes

Filariasis
(Acanthocheilonema
dracunculoides)

A single tick can transmit more

than one pathogen (parasitic,
bacterial or viral).

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Medical history: exposure to ticks. ■ Specific ■ Educate the owner about how to inspect the animal for
■ Clinical presentation: nonspecific. pharmacological ticks after walks.
■ Identification of the type of tick (if possible). treatment, depending ■ To prevent disease transmission:
■ Haematology, biochemistry and serum protein on the type of ■ Remove ticks as soon as possible.
analysis. transmitted pathogen. ■ Ensure that the animal does not ingest ticks.
■ Specific diagnostic tests: blood smears, cytology, ■ Supportive therapy. ■ Apply antiparasitic products with repellent activity.
biopsy, serology, molecular tests (PCR). ■ Vaccines (limited availability).
■ Limit exposure in areas of high tick density.

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22 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

BLOOD

16 Other parasitic diseases

of the blood
These diseases are caused by nematodes whose larval forms (microfila-
riae) can be detected in circulating blood. The adult worms, depending
on the species, are located in the subcutaneous tissue and muscle fascia They primarily affect the dog and
are vector-borne.
(Dirofilaria repens and Acanthocheilonema reconditum) or in the peritoneal
cavity (Acanthocheilonema dracunculoides).

Disease Parasite Vector

Subcutaneous dirofilariasis D. repens Culicid mosquitoes

A. reconditum Fleas and lice
Accanthocheilonemiasis
A. dracunculoides Ticks and flies

D. repens

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Detection and identification of microfilariae in ■ Surgical removal of parasites located in ■ Vectors: broad-spectrum ectoparasiticide.
the blood (concentration methods). the subcutaneous tissue (nodules). Incorporate topical repellent if necessary.
■ Specific histochemical staining (differentiation ■ Microfilaricide treatment if necessary ■ Avoid exposure to vectors.
of microfilariae). (evident clinical presentation). ■ Screening for microfilariae in blood
■ Molecular diagnosis (PCR). ■ For D. repens, combination of: before applying preventive treatment
■ Microhaematocrit: observation of fraction ■ Adulticide therapy. (D. repens).
beneath the buffy coat. ■ Microfilaricide therapy. ■ Preventive treatment with macrocyclic
■ Observation and identification of adult forms ■ Appropriate antibiotic therapy against lactones during periods of risk.
in the animal (e.g. during surgery/removal of bacteria associated with the parasite.
a node).

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PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

RENAL SYSTEM

17 Urinary parasites

The main urinary parasites affecting companion animals are:

Dioctophymiasis ■ Capillaria plica: located in the bladder and occasionally in
ureters and kidneys (cat and dog).
■ Dioctophyma renale: located in kidneys, but can migrate to
the abdominal cavity (dog).
■ Capillaria feliscati: parasite of the bladder with very similar
characteristics to C. plica (cat).

Most infestations caused by these

nematodes are usually subclinical
or inapparent.

Clinical signs
■ Urinary problems (cystitis, dysuria, kidney failure, etc.).
■ D. renale in abdominal cavity: liver damage, peritonitis,
haemoperitoneum.

Consumption of raw or
Capillariasis undercooked fish or frogs’ legs
poses a risk.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Detection of eggs in urinary ■ Pharmacological treatment: anthelmintic Animal:
sediment. (Capillaria spp.). ■ Prevent access to the edges of ponds, lakes.
■ Radiology and abdominal ■ Surgery: elimination of parasites present in ■ Do not feed raw or undercooked fish.
ultrasound. the kidney or abdominal cavity (D. renale). ■ Avoid ingestion of intermediate and paratenic hosts.
■ Exploratory laparotomy (free forms ■ Transfer of animal to a place free of ■ Regular internal parasite control.
of D. renale in the abdominal environmental contamination.
Environment:
cavity).
■ Concrete floors in outdoor accommodations.

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24 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

SYSTEMIC OR MULTIORGAN

18 Leishmaniasis
Disease caused by Leishmania infantum and transmitted by arthropods of the genera Phlebotomus
(Europe, Asia and Africa) and Lutzomyia (Americas).

Skin

VH (dog) IH (infected sandfly)

Eye

Lymph node

Infected sandflies can also Kidney

bite humans and transmit
parasites. Immunosuppressed Amastigotes are released
or immunocompromised and multiply in the organism Macrophages
individuals are at greater risk. phagocytose
promastigotes
Joints

Cats can be infected and

in some cases develop the
disease.

VH: vertebrate host

IH: invertebrate host

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Clinical history and physical ■ Depends on the stage of the In dogs:
examination. disease. ■ Early diagnosis and treatment of infected dogs.
■ Haematology, biochemistry, and ■ Main drugs recommended: ■ Topical products with insecticide and repellent activity
serum protein analysis. domperidone, meglumine (pyrethroids).
■ Confirmatory tests: serology antimoniate, allopurinol, ■ Vaccines and immunomodulators.
(determination of levels of anti- miltefosine, meglumine ■ Avoid walks during hours of peak vector activity (from dusk
Leishmania antibodies in blood), antimoniate + allopurinol, to dawn).
cytology, histopathology, and miltefosine + allopurinol.
molecular tests (PCR). ■ Supportive therapy. Environment:
■ Application of vector control measures.

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PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

SYSTEMIC OR MULTIORGAN

19 Toxoplasmosis
Toxoplasma gondii affects warm-blooded animals (birds and mammals, including humans). Provided proper
basic hygiene measures are implemented, human-cat contact is not the main route of transmission.

Diagnosis Treatment
■ Serology: detection of anti-T. gondii antibodies (IgM and IgG). ■ Pharmacological: various treatments and
■ Molecular tests (PCR). treatment combinations are available.
■ Stool analysis: flotation methods. ■ Supportive therapy: if associated complications.
■ Final diagnosis: confirm the presence of the parasite in tissues (biopsy)
or body fluids (cytology).

Tissue cysts

Tissue cysts

Sporulated oocysts
(infective)

DH (cat)

Sporulated oocyst
(noninfective)

Sporulated oocysts
(infective)

24 hours – 5 days

DH: definitive host

Prevention ■ Basic personal hygiene measures.

In cats: ■ Prevent children from putting their hands in their mouths without
■ Feed on commercial diet. Meat should be properly first washing hands.
cooked or frozen first if served raw. ■ Cook meat properly (>80 °C, 15 min) and, in the case of
■ Avoid drinking water from uncontrolled areas. undercooked meat, freeze beforehand (−12 °C) for at least 3 days.
■ Prevent hunting behaviours. ■ Wash fruits and vegetables.
■ Stool analysis. ■ Avoid drinking unclean water and unpasteurised milk.
In humans: ■ Proper kitchen hygiene measures.
■ Risk: immunocompromised individuals and seronegative ■ Clean cat tray daily without making direct contact with the sand,
pregnant women. and wash hands after. At-risk individuals should avoid this activity.

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26 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

SYSTEMIC OR MULTIORGAN

20 Other diseases
Trypanosomiasis
■ Affects dogs and cats.
■ Nonspecific clinical presentation.
■ Transmitting vectors:
■ Triatomine bugs (Trypanosoma cruzi).

■ Horseflies and flies of the genus Stomoxys

(Trypanosoma evansi).

Risk of zoonosis in the case of

Chagas disease (T. cruzi).

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Clinical history and physical examination. ■ Specific treatment against ■ External antiparasitic products with repellent
■ Haematology, biochemistry and serum protein Trypanosoma spp. activity.
analysis. ■ Supportive therapy. ■ Avoid eating meat of animals likely to be
■ Diagnostic tests: blood smears, cytology, serology, infected.
PCR, culture. ■ Screening of animals in endemic areas.
■ Additional tests to assess heart function (T. cruzi). ■ Environmental control of vectors.

Neosporosis
■ Affects dogs (puppies and immunocompromised animals).
■ Neurological and muscular disorders.

Neospora caninum

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Clinical history and clinical presentation. ■ Pharmacological treatment: ■ Avoid ingestion of the remains of animals that
■ Diagnostic tests: aspiration cytology, muscle specific antibiotic therapy. act as intermediate hosts.
biopsy, serology, PCR of cerebrospinal fluid. ■ Passive stimulation of muscles. ■ Prevent faecal contamination of food and water
■ Stool analysis. from livestock.
■ Avoid stress and immunosuppressive drugs in
seropositive dogs.
■ Do not use seropositive females for breeding.

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PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

CUTANEOUS

21 Flea infestation:
flea allergy dermatitis
Flea allergy dermatitis (FAD) is an allergic dermatitis (hypersensitivity reaction) caused by allergens
present in flea saliva.

A very small number of fleas can

trigger an allergic reaction if the
animal is sensitised.

Distribution patterns

Affected area

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Clinical history. ■ Complete control of flea life cycle: ■ Insecticide treatment of animals in
■ Clinical signs. ■ Elimination of adult forms on the surrounding environment.
■ Presence of fleas and/or flea faeces (brush animal and immature forms in the ■ Regular cleaning of areas that may harbour
haircoat and check for flea faeces with environment. immature forms (carpet, upholstery, etc.).
damp paper towel). ■ Control of pruritus and secondary ■ Washing and insecticide treatment of
■ Response to antiparasitic control of fleas. complications. basket or other items in which animal rests.
■ Identification of Dipylidium caninum. ■ Internal parasite control for Dipylidium
■ Eliminate other causes of pruritus. caninum.

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28 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

CUTANEOUS

22 Tick infestation
Affects both dogs and cats. The following are the main genera of ticks
implicated:
■ Family Ixodidae: Ixodes spp., Rhipicephalus spp., Dermacentor spp.,
Haemaphysalis spp., Amblyomma spp., Hyalomma spp.
■ Family Argasidae: Ornithodoros spp., Otobius spp.

Given their grooming behaviour, it

is quite unusual to find ticks on cats.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Visualisation and Animal: ■ Regular application of acaricide
identification of ticks. ■ Removal of tick as soon as possible products with repellent activity in all
■ Clinical history: travel or (see Sheet 41. How to remove a tick). animals.
stays in environments in ■ Acaricide treatment. ■ Avoid environments susceptible to
which ticks live. high densities of ticks (farms, wild
Environment:
environments).
■ Treatment with effective chemicals (house, kennels,
■ Regular inspection of animal looking
residences).
for attached ticks.
■ Inspection of places likely to harbour ticks (cracks, etc.).
■ Elimination of favourable habitats for ticks.

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PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

CUTANEOUS

23 Allergic reactions to bites

These are reactions to the bites of different types of insects. Their severity depends on the
immune response of each animal.

Distribution patterns

Mosquito bite hypersensitivity

Some repellents designed

for human use can be toxic
to animals.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Clinical history. ■ Consult a veterinary surgeon as soon as possible. ■ External antiparasitic
■ Clinical presentation. ■ Cleaning and disinfection of the area. repellents during times of
■ Skin biopsy suggestive of compatible histological ■ Control inflammation and pruritus using topical insect activity.
pattern (not diagnostic). and/or systemic glucocorticoids. ■ Avoid contact between
■ Detection of ectoparasites on the animal. ■ Antibiotics for secondary bacterial complications. animal and insects

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30 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

CUTANEOUS

24 Mange
These are cutaneous processes caused by infestations of dogs and cats with different mites, such
as Notoedres cati, Cheyletiella spp., Demodex spp., Otodectes cynotis, and Sarcoptes scabiei.

Diagnosis
■ History (clinical picture and lesion distribution). ■ Therapeutic diagnosis: response to acaricide
■ Direct observation and identification of parasites. (if suspected S. scabiei infestation).
■ Specific diagnostic tests: skin scraping, adhesive tape test, ■ Pinnal-pedal reflex (if suspected infestation with
trichogram, examination of ear discharge (otitis), haircoat S. scabiei, O. cynotis).
brushing, serology (S. scabiei). ■ Skin biopsy (exceptional cases).

The clinical picture depends

on the type of mite involved.

The risk of
zoonosis
depends on the
type of mange.

Sarcoptic mange

Dogs that have experienced

generalised demodicosis should
not be used for breeding given
their hereditary predisposition.

Treatment Prevention
Animal: ■ Treat all cohabitating animals and avoid ■ Good animal health.
■ Application of acaricides (systemic and/ contact with infected animals. ■ Periodical treatment with
or local). Environment: external antiparasitic product.
■ Cleaning and treatment of inner ear in ■ Avoid contact with animals of
■ Cleaning, aspiration, and disinfection of
cases of otitis. bedding and other household items (fomites). unknown health status (street
■ Antiseborrheic shampoo to remove crusts. and wild animals).
■ Application of ectoparasiticides.
■ Antibiotic therapy in cases of secondary
bacterial infection.
■ Decrease pruritus: antipruritic treatment.

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PARASITIC DISEASES BY SYSTEMS

CUTANEOUS

25 Myiasis
Infestation characterised by the presence of larvae (maggots) of dipteran flies.

Predisposing factors
■ Poor hygiene measures.
■ Debilitated (elderly, sick) animals.
■ Animals with paresis. Adult fly (attracted to areas of skin)
■ Wet haircoat.
■ Suppurating wounds.
■ Faecal and/or urinary incontinence. Eggs
Larva 1

The use of insecticides can cause

anaphylactic reactions.

Larva 2 (begin to feed on cutaneous tissue)

Crateriform ulcer

Pupa

Larva 3

Clinical signs
■ Ulcers with remains of necrotic tissue.
■ Lesion distribution: around the eyes,
mouth, nose, anus, genitals, untreated
infected wounds.
■ Characteristic odour.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Direct observation of the larvae ■ Evaluation and control of predisposing factors. ■ Avoid attracting flies (uncured
or batches of eggs on the skin, ■ Clipping, cleaning and disinfection of all affected areas suppurating wounds, skin
haircoat, or in cutaneous lesions. with antiseptic products. soaked with urine, vomit or stool
■ Thorough exploration in long- ■ Manual removal of larvae. remains).
haired animals. ■ Surgical debridement of wounds and subsequent cure. ■ Use of bed nets in debilitated
■ Transfer to a fly-free environment. animals.
■ Antibiotic treatment in cases of wound complications
(bacterial infection).
■ Analgesics.

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32 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

OCULAR

26 Ocular parasites
Thelaziasis and onchocerciasis are two eye diseases caused by parasitic nematodes of the genus
Thelazia (T. callipaeda, T. californiensis) and by Onchocerca lupi, respectively.

Thelazia spp. Onchocerca lupi

IH (diptera fly) IH (blackfly)
(Phortica variegata) (simulids)

Conjunctival granuloma

IH: intermediate host

Some infected animals may not

show clinical signs, while others
Clinical signs develop an ocular presentation.

■ Ocular parasites affect dogs and cats.

■ Ocular presentation: conjunctivitis, conjunctival oedema, lacrimation, photophobia,
ocular discharge and pruritus.
■ Granulomas and possible blindness (O. lupi).
■ Presence of O. lupi in subcutaneous tissue (skin) without apparent clinical signs.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Morphological and/or ■ Surgery: removal of parasites (Thelazia spp.) ■ Periodic application of internal and
molecular identification. and granulomas (O. lupi). external antiparasitic products with
■ Thelazia spp.: direct observation ■ Specific pharmacological treatment: repellent activity.
of the nematode (adults and/or ■ Thelazia spp.: macrocyclic lactones. ■ Minimise contact between vector and
larvae) in the eye. ■ O. lupi: combination of drugs (macrocyclic lactones, animal.
■ O. lupi: granuloma biopsy. melarsomine dihydrochloride, doxycycline). ■ Reduce access to outdoors during
■ Anti-inflammatory and/or antibiotic treatment in cases periods in which vectors are abundant.
of eye complications. ■ Environmental control of vector
populations.

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DIAGNOSTIC TESTS IN PARASITOLOGY

27 Stool analysis
A set of diagnostic procedures based on the evaluation of faecal material to identify any stages
of internal parasites eliminated in the faeces.

Sampling
■ Can be performed by the owner.
■ Avoid environmental contamination (dirt, leaves, etc.).
■ A small amount of sample is required (5–10 g).
■ It is important to ensure that the sample has been recently taken.
■ It is advisable to conduct serial stool analyses over several days.
■ Features to note during stool analysis: smell, consistency,
presence of mucus or fresh blood, undigested food particles,
presence of parasites.

To establish an accurate
diagnosis, a combination of
several diagnostic techniques
is sometimes necessary.

Diagnostic techniques
■ Direct microscopic examination, with or without staining.
■ Determination of egg/cyst concentration by flotation.
■ Sedimentation techniques.
■ Determination of nematode larvae concentration.
■ Egg counts.
■ Detection of parasite antigens in stool.
■ Molecular diagnostic tests.
■ Culture.

Baermann apparatus
(concentration of nematode larvae)

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34 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

28 Blood smear
Technique to assess blood cell characteristics. This can be useful for the detection of certain
intra- or extracellular parasites.

Examination of fresh blood

■ Place a drop of blood on a slide.
■ Place a coverslip over the drop.
1 ■ Examine the preparation under the microscope using different
objectives.

This may allow detection of

2 mobile parasites.

Examination of a fixed
blood sample
1. Place a recently acquired drop of blood at one end of the slide.
2. Hold another slide at an angle of 30–60 ° with respect to the
first slide and allow the drop to extend across the first slide.
3
3. Push the second slide forward along the length of the first in a
smooth and steady motion, without lifting and maintaining the
angle. This causes the blood to form a thin layer across the slide.
4. Allow the preparation to dry.
5. Staining: the most commonly used stain is the Diff-Quik stain.
4 and 5
6. Examine the preparation under the microscope using different
objectives.

Trypanosoma Babesia Hepatozoon

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 35
DIAGNOSTIC TESTS IN PARASITOLOGY

29 Skin scrapings
Diagnostic technique used to identify ectoparasites living on the surface area of the skin
(Cheyletiella spp., Neotrombicula spp., Otodectes spp., Sarcoptes spp., Notoedres spp.) or
in deeper locations (Demodex spp., Straelensia cynotis). It can also be useful for locating the
larvae of certain helminths.

It may be necessary to shave the area to be scraped if

the skin is covered by a lot of hair. Next, apply a thin
layer of mineral oil.

Superficial scraping
The skin is scraped off in the direction
of hair growth, without applying
excessive pressure on the
scalpel blade (which is held
perpendicular to the skin).

Sarcoptes

In both cases, the collected sample is mixed with

mineral oil on a microscope slide, and spread to
create thin layer, which is then examined under
the microscope.

Deep scraping
A fold of skin is held
between the fingers and moderate
pressure applied to squeeze
out the entire contents of
the hair follicles.
Scrape several times with
the scalpel blade to induce
light capillary bleeding.

Demodex

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36 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

30 Trichogram
Technique used to observe and evaluate the structure of the hair (tip, root and shaft) and its
current growth phase. Especially useful when seeking to detect ectoparasites (mites and lice),
both adult forms and immature forms or eggs.

Hair plucking
■ A small number of hairs are plucked by the base using the
fingertips. A rubber-coated haemostat can also be used to
pull the hair away with a twisting motion.
■ Hair shafts should be plucked in the direction of hair growth.

It is advisable to examine samples under

a microscope at low magnification.

Correct mounting
of the sample
■ The sample is placed on a slide.
■ This is achieved using adhesive tape or mineral oil.

Microscopic image of Demodex Microscopic image of lice

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DIAGNOSTIC TESTS IN PARASITOLOGY

31 Adhesive tape test

This involves the use of adhesive tape for sampling (hair, superficial skin debris, parasites or
their eggs attached to hair). Once the sample has been collected, the tape is placed on a slide
and viewed under a microscope.

Cheyletiella

For correct sampling, the tape

should be applied with some
pressure to the area to be
sampled.
Ectoparasites
With this technique, external parasites are trapped
■
Endoparasites
on the tape and cannot escape.
■ This technique is useful for detecting Demodex spp., ■ The adhesive surface of the tape is pressed against
Cheyletiella spp., lice and, in some cases, fleas. the perianal area and perineum.
■ This technique is particularly useful for the detection
of parasites such as Dipylidium caninum.

Demodex Cheyletiella

Ctenocephalides Felicola

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38 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

32 Flea comb
This procedure involves brushing the haircoat using a special ultra-fine comb. The purpose is to collect
organic material such as detached hairs, crusts, flakes, and especially to detect ectoparasites and
their eggs. The collected material is placed on damp white paper for evaluation with the naked eye
or using a lens to magnify the image.

In particular, the neck, groin area

and base of the tail should be
combed with special attention.

Damp paper test

■ This technique is extremely useful for detecting fleas and their
faeces, which appear as tiny black comma-shaped particles.
■ Lightly press the faeces against a damp paper towel. Reddish
brown staining of the paper is indicative of flea faeces, due to the
presence of soluble pigments contained in the blood ingested by
the flea.

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DIAGNOSTIC TESTS IN PARASITOLOGY

33 Analysis of otic exudate

Technique used to assess any problem in the ear canal.

Procedure
1. A cotton swab or ear brush can be used.
2. The veterinary surgeon inserts the tip of the swab or brush into the external ear canal and
rotates it against the skin of the ear.
3. The swab or brush is removed from the ear and rotated against the surface of a slide on
which a few drops of mineral oil have been placed, thus allowing extension of the otic
exudate sample.
4. The sample is examined under a microscope at low magnification to identify acarids such
as Otodectes spp. or Demodex spp.

Microscope image of Otodectes Microscope image of Demodex

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40 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

34 Zoonoses from dogs

External parasites of dogs
(mode of transmission: by direct contact)
Parasite Animal disease Clinical signs in humans
• Pruritus and skin lesions.
Sarcoptes scabiei var. canis Sarcoptic mange (scabies)
• Papulovesicular presentation.
• Extremely rare infestation.
Otodectes cynotis Otoacariasis
• Pruritus, irritation and skin lesions.
Cheyletiella yasguri Cheyletiellosis Pruritus, irritation and skin lesions.
• Bites in a row.
Pulicosis • Dermal inflammatory reaction.
Ctenocephalides canis
Flea allergy dermatitis • Pruritus.
• Flea allergy dermatitis.

Internal parasites of dogs

Main mode
Parasite Animal disease Clinical signs in humans
of transmission
• Watery diarrhoea.
Cryptosporidium canis Cryptosporidiosis Ingestion of infective oocysts • Risk: immunosuppressed individuals
(HIV, chemotherapeutic treatments).
Giardia Giardiasis Ingestion of infective cysts Diarrhoea.
• Visceral larva migrans.
Ingestion of infective
Toxocara canis Toxocariasis • Ocular larva migrans.
embryonated eggs
• Neurological larva migrans.
Ancylostoma spp. Penetration of skin by • Cutaneous larva migrans.
Ancylostomiasis
Uncinaria stenocephala infective larva • Pruritus.
Penetration of skin by • Abdominal pain.
Strongyloides stercoralis Strongyloidiasis
infective larva • Skin disorders with urticaria.
• E. multilocularis, hepatic involvement with nonspecific
clinical signs (poor general health, epigastric pain,
Echinococcus multilocularis Ingestion of infective
Echinococcosis hepatomegaly, jaundice).
Echinococcus granulosus embryonated eggs
• E. granulosus, clinical signs associated with liver, lung and
brain involvement.

Scabies (papules, vesicles, etc.)

Cutaneous larva migrans

Fleabite

04_Main_zoonoses.indd 40 3/5/17 11:39

 41
MAIN ZOONOSES

35 Zoonoses from cats

External parasites of cats
(mode of transmission: by direct contact)
Parasite Animal disease Clinical signs in humans

Notoedres cati Notoedric mange Pruritus, irritation and skin lesions.

• Extremely rare infestation.
Otodectes cynotis Otoacariasis
• Pruritus, irritation and skin lesions.
Cheyletiella blakei Cheyletiellosis Pruritus, irritation and skin lesions.
• Bites in a row.
Pulicosis • Dermal inflammatory reaction.
Ctenocephalides felis
Flea allergy dermatitis • Pruritus.
• Flea allergy dermatitis.

Internal parasites of cats

Main mode
Parasite Animal disease Clinical signs in humans
of transmission
• Watery diarrhoea.
Cryptosporidium felis Cryptosporidiosis Ingestion of infective oocysts • Risk: immunosuppressed individuals
(HIV, chemotherapeutic treatments).
Giardia Giardiasis Ingestion of infective cysts • Diarrhoea.
• Pregnant women: miscarriage, neonatal death,
• Ingestion of infective malformations and neurological sequelae.
oocysts • Immunocompromised individuals: pneumonia, myocarditis,
Toxoplasma gondii Toxoplasmosis
• Ingestion of meat and meningoencephalitis.
containing infective cysts • Immunocompetent individuals: fever, malaise and
lymphadenopathy.
• Visceral larva migrans.
Ingestion of infective
Toxocara cati Toxocariasis • Ocular larva migrans.
embryonated eggs
• Neurological larva migrans.
Penetration of skin by • Cutaneous larva migrans.
Ancylostoma spp. Ancylostomiasis
infective larva • Pruritus.
Penetration of skin by • Abdominal pain.
Strongyloides stercoralis Strongyloidiasis
infective larva • Skin disorders with urticaria.
Ingestion of infective • Hepatic involvement with nonspecific clinical signs (poor
Echinococcus multilocularis Echinococcosis
embryonated eggs general health, epigastric pain, hepatomegaly, jaundice).

Ocular toxoplasmosis
(eye fundus)

04_Main_zoonoses.indd 41 3/5/17 11:39

42 PET OWNER EDUCATIONAL ATLAS PARASITES. DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND PREVENTION

36 Parasites of birds
External parasites
The presence of ectoparasites is usually cause for a visit to a veterinary clinic. Mites, the most im-
portant group of ectoparasites, include those that burrow into the epidermis (Knemidocoptes spp.),
those that live on the surface of the epidermis and feed on blood (Dermanyssus gallinae,
Ornithonyssus spp.), and various forms that live on feathers (Dermation spp., Protolichus spp.,
Dubininia spp.).

Clinical signs
■ Skin: irritation, crusts, hyperkeratosis
of the beak and legs, scaly skin.
■ Feathers: lesions, decreased number
of feathers.
■ Pruritus of varying intensity.
Knemidocoptes ■ Anaemia (blood-sucking mites).
■ General depression, apathy.

In the case of affected birds, other

associated conditions such as
immunosuppression, concomitant
diseases, or other nutrition-related
problems should be assessed.

Hyperkeratosis of bill and legs

The red poultry mite (D. gallinae) can infect

humans, producing a very intense pruritic
dermatitis, and is very difficult to eradicate.

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Clinical presentation. Animal: ■ Appropriate hygiene measures.
■ Samples collected from ■ Antiparasitic product with activity against ■ Keep new birds temporarily separated from
birds: observation of ectoparasites. others to ensure the absence of parasites.
material obtained. Environment: ■ Proper nutrition.
■ Cleaning and disinfection of cages and other items
(e.g. nests).
■ Application of insecticide products in the
environment.

05_Exotic_animals.indd 42 3/5/17 13:18

 43
MAIN PARASITES OF EXOTIC ANIMALS

Internal parasites
In psittacines, internal parastites are more common in wild or outdoor-dwelling specimens (e.g. in
aviaries). The most common types are protozoa (Trichomonas spp., Eimeria spp., Isospora spp.,
Cryptosporidium spp., and Giardia spp.) and nematodes (Ascaridia spp. and Capillaria spp.).
In passeriform birds, the most important endoparasites are protozoa (Atoxoplasma spp.,
Isospora spp., Cryptosporidium spp., Toxoplasma gondii, Giardia spp., Cochlosoma spp. and
Trichomonas spp.). In some cases certain helminths are also detected, although these are much less
common than in psittacine birds.

Clinical signs
(depending on parasite)
■ General nonspecific signs: depression, anorexia, weight loss, poor appearance,
dehydration.
■ Digestive: melaena, diarrhoea, dysphagia, bloating, vomiting.
■ Respiratory signs: respiratory difficulties, coughing, sneezing, nasal discharge.
■ Nervous: circling behaviour, ataxia, incoordination.
■ Ocular effects: blindness.

In cockatiels exhibiting vent pecking

behaviour, a stool analysis should be
performed to rule out Giardia spp.

Giardiasis and cryptosporidiosis

are two diseases with zoonotic
potential.

Coccidia

Diagnosis Treatment Prevention

■ Clinical presentation. Animal: ■ Appropriate hygiene measures and maintenance (cleaning of
■ Stool analysis over ■ Antiparasitic product, depending on food bowls, water containers).
several consecutive days. the type of parasite diagnosed. ■ Keep new birds temporarily separated from others (until two stool
■ Serology against specific ■ Supportive therapy. analyses have been performed).
suspected parasites. Environment: ■ Serial stool analysis and deparasitation depending on findings.
■ Post mortem. ■ Cleaning and disinfection.
■ Proper nutrition.
■ Control of water and drinkers.
■ Avoid overcrowding in the same cage (passerines).
■ Avoid contact between birds and cats/cat faeces.

05_Exotic_animals.indd 43 3/5/17 13:19

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his standard, and he was ready to promise anything, and everything, for the
help he wanted. Already in 1582, when Catharine de Medici had aided him
to fit out the fleet under Strozzi at Bordeaux which was to hold Terceira and
restore Antonio to the throne, the desperate gamester had promised her the
great empire of Brazil as a reward for her help; and now, if my Spanish
diarist is to be believed, he offered to make himself a mere vassal of
Elizabeth if he were successful.

In the Record Office there is a bond by which Antonio undertakes, in

February, 1589, to reimburse to the adventurers all the cost of the enterprise
and the pay of the soldiers, but the Spanish manuscript gives the substance
of an agreement between Dom Antonio and the Queen which promises much
more than mere repayment. The diarist I quote says:—

"The Queen, cautious and astute as she was, caught at the fine promises
that Dom Antonio held out and insisted that an agreement should be entered
into; which was done, in substance as set forth in the following clauses. This
agreement was brought, written in the English language, by a certain
Portuguese named Diego Rodriguez who came hither as treasurer to this
expedition and passed over to the service of our lord the King on the
eleventh of June. The clauses, translated into Castilian, say as follows:—

"First her Majesty the Queen of England undertakes to provide a fleet of

one hundred and twenty vessels and twenty thousand men—15,000 soldiers
and 5,000 sailors—with captains for both services, to go and restore Dom
Antonio to the throne of Portugal.

"Dom Antonio undertakes that within eight days from the arrival of the
said fleet in Portugal the whole country will submit to him in accordance
with the letters he has received from the principal people in the said
kingdom.

"Item, That on arriving in Lisbon the city will be reduced at once without
any defence and all Castilians in it killed and destroyed, and, for the
friendship and aid thus shown him in recovering his kingdom, he undertakes
to fulfil the following things—namely:—
 "First that within two months of his arrival in Lisbon he will hand to her
Majesty the Queen as an aid to the costs of the fleet five millions in gold.

"Item, In testimony of the help she has given him he will pay every year
to the Queen for ever three hundred thousand ducats in gold, placed and paid
in London at his cost.

"Item, That the English should have full liberty to trade and travel in
Portugal and the Portuguese Indies and the Portuguese equal freedom in
England.

"Item, That if the Queen should not desire to fit out a fleet against the
King of Spain in England she shall be at liberty to do so in Lisbon and shall
be helped in all that may be necessary.

"Item, That the castles of São Gian, Torre de Belem, Capariza, Oton, São
Felipe, Oporto, Coimbra and the other Portuguese fortresses shall be
perpetually occupied by English soldiers paid at the cost of Dom Antonio.

"Item, That there shall be perpetual peace between her Majesty the Queen
and Dom Antonio and they shall mutually help each other on all occasions
without excuse of any sort.

"Item, That all the Bishoprics and Archbishoprics in Portugal shall be

filled by English Catholics and the Archbishopric of Lisbon shall be at once
filled by the appointment of Monsieur de la Torques (sic).

"Item, On arriving at Lisbon every infantry man shall receive twelve

months pay, and three extra, as a present from Dom Antonio and they shall
be allowed to sack the city for twelve days, on condition that no man of any
rank shall presume to harm any Portuguese or molest the churches or houses
wherein maidens are dwelling; and also that they pay in money for whatever
they may need in the country. Which agreement her Majesty ordered to be
duly executed under date of last day of December 1588."[12]

The Spanish scribe waxes very indignant at this document, showing, as

he says it does, the sagacity of the Queen and the blind infatuation of Dom
Antonio, "who gives up the substance for the shadow of kingship, and is
content to make the Portuguese subjects slaves so that he shall be called
King." But he is most shocked at the sacrifice to this "pestilent sect" of the
two instincts clearest to the Portuguese heart, namely, devotion to their
Church and their greed of gain; the first of which, he says, will be destroyed
by relationship with the accursed heretics, and the second attacked by the
substitution for "our lord the king who does not spend a maravedi of
Portuguese money, but brings Castilian money into Portugal," of a King who
has promised to pay away more than the Portuguese can ever give him. "And
besides," he says, plaintively, "we Castilians and Portuguese are not so
estranged in blood of boundaries after all, for only a line divides us, and if it
be hard for the Portuguese to endure connection with their Castilian kinsmen
who bring riches into the country and take nothing from it how much worse
will it be to put up with a nation so greedy and insolent as the English,
separated from them by land and sea, and foreign to them in customs,
language, faith and laws?"

He ridicules the idea of five millions (of ducats) in gold being paid, and
says he supposes that a mistake of a nought has been made, which probably
was the case; but even then, he asks, where is such a sum as 500,000 ducats
to come from, "let alone the 15 months' pay"? However correct or otherwise
in detail this agreement may be, it is certain that some such terms were
made, and it may be safely assumed that Elizabeth, with her keen eye to the
main chance, would take care to make the best bargain she could out of the
sanguine eagerness of Dom Antonio, who would be ready to promise
"mounts and marvels" for ready aid.[13] My Portuguese diarist also ridicules
the impossible terms promised by the Pretender, but adds the false finishing-
touch, evidently spread by the Castilians for the purpose of arousing the
indignation and resistance of the Portuguese, that the churches were to be
plundered and the Portuguese inhabitants of Lisbon despoiled.

It would appear strange at first sight that Elizabeth should have made any
proviso for the benefit of English Catholics whom she had sometimes treated
so unmercifully, but on other occasions she had favoured the idea of English
Catholic settlements being established across the seas under her sway; and
the great body of Catholic sympathisers resident in England had not acted
altogether unpatriotically in the hour of panic and terror on the threat of
invasion. It would, therefore, not have been an impolitic move to earn their
gratitude and further loyalty by opening a new field for them outside of her
own country but, in a manner, under her control.
 On the 23rd of February, 1589,[14] the Queen issued a warrant of her
instructions for the expedition, appointing Sir John Morris[15] and Sir
Francis Drake to the chief command thereof, and in it lays down precise
rules for their guidance. She says that the objects of the expedition are two:
namely, first to distress the King of Spain's ships, and second to get
possession of some of the Azores, in order to intercept treasure passing to
and from the East and West Indies. Also to assist the King Dom Antonio to
recover the kingdom of Portugal, "if it shall be found the public voice in the
kingdom be favourable to him."

On the same date authority was given to Norris and Drake to issue
warrants to the adventurers for their shares in the enterprise; and the Queen
herself undertook to repay them if the expedition were stopped at her
instance. Courtiers and swashbucklers touted their hardest for subscriptions
to this joint-stock warfare, and pressure was put upon country gentlemen to
subscribe liberally as a proof of their patriotism—a pressure not to be
disregarded in those doubtful times.[16] The Queen's subscription ultimately
reached £20,000, besides seven ships of the Royal Navy. Promises of money
and arms were forthcoming in abundance, and flocks of idlers, high and low,
offered their valuable services. The scum of the towns, the sweepings of the
jails, were pressed for the voyage, and Pricket (or Wingfield), in his apology
for the expedition, lays most of the blame of failure on the kind of men they
had, and complains bitterly of the justices and mayors sending them "base
disordered persons sent unto us as living at home without rule." He says
many idle young men, having seen their fellows come back after a few
months in the Netherlands full of their brave deeds and tales of the wars,
"thought to follow so good an example and to spend like time amongst us,"
and finding soldiering a harder trade than they had bargained for, were not
likely to make good troops.

The misfortunes of the enterprise began before it was fairly launched. As

may be supposed, promises of support, given under such circumstances as
those which I have described, were hardly likely to be strictly kept, and the
performance in this case fell far short. Pricket (or Wingfield) bemoans this as
follows: "For hath not the want of 8 out of the 12 pieces of Artillerie which
was promised unto the adventure lost her Majestie the possession of the
Groyne and many other places as hereafter shall appeare whose defensible
rampiers were greater than our batterie (such as it was) could force and
therefore were lost unattempted. It was also resolved to send 600 English
horse out of the Low Countries whereof we had not one, notwithstanding the
great charge expended in their transportation hither.... Did wee not want
seaven of the thirteene old Companies we should have had from thence?
foure of the ten Dutch Companies and sixe of their men-of-warre for the sea
from the Hollanders? which I may justly say we wanted in that we might
have had so many good souldiers, so many good shippes, and so many able
bodies more than we had.

"Did there not, upon the first thinking of the journey, divers gallant
courtiers put in their names for adventurers to the summe of £10,000, who
seeing it went not forward in good earnest, advised themselves better and
laid the want of so much money on the journey?"

But the expedition was got together somehow. Men were cajoled into the
belief that they were going on a great plundering excursion, and would soon
return home again loaded, as Wingfield says, with "Portogues" and
"Milrayes" which should make them independent for life. There were no
surgeons, no carriages for the hurt and sick, and from the first the discipline
was of the loosest. Provisions were said to be shipped for two months, but in
some of the ships the men declared they were starved from the first day.

Even amongst contemporaries much difference of statement exists as to

the number of ships and men that composed the expedition, although this
difference is partly accounted for by a fact which will presently be
mentioned, and which has hitherto escaped notice. We should probably not
be far out when we put the number of soldiers who left Plymouth at about
16,000 and the sailors at 2,500.[17] Of the men-at-arms all but the three or
four thousand old soldiers, mostly from the Netherland wars, were idle
vagabonds whose first idea was loot and whose last was fighting. In addition
to these there were 1,200 gentlemen or more, the flotsam and jetsam of the
Court, younger sons of slender fortunes, and gallants whose hearts were
aflame to do good service to their country. Seven[18] of the bravest of the
Queen's ships, of three hundred tons burden each, twenty other armed ships,
and a large number of transports and galleys of light draft, would have
completed the fleet, but sixty German smacks and sloops, which had been
wintering in Holland on their way to Spain, were pressed into the service and
added to the number, which finally reached nearly two hundred sail. The 1st
of February was the date originally fixed for starting, but when that date
arrived nothing was ready but the army of idlers, who wanted feeding, so
that when the fleet could have sailed it was found that most of the stores had
been consumed, and in some ships not a week's provision remained. Money
ran short, and Drake and Norris wrote, day after day, during all the month of
March and first two weeks in April, heartrending letters to the Council and to
Walsingham. The provisions were run out, they said; the enterprise must fall
through if help be not sent at once. They point out the dishonour and
disgrace of such a lame ending, and again and again beg for more
provisions.

The innkeepers and victuallers of Canterbury, Southampton, Winchester,

Plymouth, and elsewhere wrote dunning letters to the Queen for money due
for stores supplied. The Dutch shipmasters commanding the flyboat
transports contributed by the States formally protested and refused to put to
sea with such insufficient provender as they had; and, just as it looked as if
the expedition would break down for good, there came providentially into
the harbour a Flemish ship with a cargo of dried herrings, another with five
hundred pipes of wine, and above all a sloop loaded with barley. These
provisions were promptly transferred to the fleet to the dismay of the
masters, who protested for many a day afterwards, fruitlessly, against the
confiscation of their cargoes. The expedition was declared ready for sea, but
then came tales of contrary winds that kept them in and out of harbour for
several days more; and one day, whilst they were thus detained, the Queen's
kinsman, Knollys, comes post haste from London. Had anybody seen or
heard anything of the young Earl of Essex, the Queen's last new pet?
Curiously enough nobody had, although only the day before a party of
young gallants had dashed into Plymouth from London all dusty and travel-
stained, and had been received with open arms by the courtiers and officers
on the fleet. Hot-blooded Essex, with all the thoughtlessness of his twenty-
two years, tired of sickly dallying with an old lady and of squabbling with
Raleigh, tired of his debts, his duns and duties as prime favourite, had made
up his mind to see some fun, and had fled against the Queen's orders. No one
had seen him of course, but the Swiftsure, with Sir Roger Williams, the
general second in command of the army, mysteriously left the harbour as
soon as Knollys had told his tale. But a few hours later the Earl of
Huntingdon came with warrants of arrest and all manner of peremptory
papers, and Drake saw the matter was serious. Boats were sent scouring after
the Swiftsure, but could get no news of the missing earl. The other ships
stayed in Plymouth ten days longer for a fair wind, but the Swiftsure came
back no more until the expedition was at an end. Drake and Norris wrote
nearly every day until they sailed disclaiming any knowledge of Essex or his
intention to join the force, and expressing their deep sorrow; but the Queen
did not believe them, and from that time had nothing but hard words and
sour looks for an adventure that had robbed her of her favourite. At length,
on the 13th of April 1589, (O.S.), the expedition finally left Plymouth, but
even then it was only a feint in order that the men might be kept together and
not stray on shore and get out of hand. "The crosse windes held us two daies
after our going out, the Generalls being wearie thrust to sea in the same
wisely chosing rather to attend a change out there than to lose it when it
came by having their men on shoare."

Knocking about in the Channel in bad weather was, however, not to the
taste of some of the ruffians who thought they were bound over summer seas
to a paradise of plunder; and three thousand men in twenty-five ships,
probably most of them owned by the recalcitrant Dutchmen, deserted and
were heard of no more—at least so far as the expedition was concerned. This
desertion to some extent explains the divergence between the accounts given
of the numbers of the expedition.

The rest of the fleet on the third day caught a fair wind and stretched
across the Bay of Biscay in fine spring weather. They were four days before
their eyes were gladdened by the sight of Cape Finisterra, but in the week
they had been at sea their provisions were running out. Murmurs at the short
commons were heard on all the ships, and it was seen that the only way to
keep the scratch crews from open mutiny was to give them a chance of
plunder.

So, instead of obeying the Queen's strict injunctions—for Drake was a far
better hand at commanding than obeying—and landing poor Dom Antonio
on the country he assured them was yearning for him, they bore down upon
Corunna, on the north-west coast of Spain. For months before this, as the
difficulties attending the fitting out of a new Armada became more evident,
terror-stricken rumours had pervaded Spain that the dreaded Drake, who had
now become a sort of supernatural bogey to the Spanish people, was about to
descend upon this or the other place on the coast and wreak a terrible
vengeance for the Armada. Early in January even false news came to Madrid
that an English fleet had appeared outside Santander, and at the end of the
month the Venetian ambassador in Madrid writes to his Doge that news had
just arrived from Lisbon that forty sail of English ships were out, divided
into squadrons of eight or ten ships each, and were doing much damage. It
was feared, he said, that they would all unite under Drake and make an
attempt first upon Portugal and then will go to the Azores, and finally to the
Indies. The fitting out in Spain of fifty ships to protect the seas was hurried
on; but, says the Venetian, "it is thought that two months must elapse before
they can be ready, and then one does not see what they can do against such
light ships as the enemy's."

Philip was dangerously ill and sick at heart. Fear reigned supreme in his
councils—fear that Drake the terrible would ravage the coasts whilst Henry
of Navarre crossed the Pyrenees. The Portuguese nobles were known to be
disaffected, and a rising in favour of Dom Antonio was feared. Philip, with
the energy of despair, did what he could, ill as he was, immersed in
mountains of papers dealing with trivial detail. But he could do little. The
Portuguese nobles who were at all doubtful were ordered to come to Madrid,
the Spanish grandees were enjoined to raise and arm their followers and hold
themselves in readiness to march either towards the Pyrenees or to Lisbon.
Then rumours came that the Moorish King of Fez was to act in concert with
the English, and seize the Spanish possessions on the African coast opposite
Gibraltar.

It will thus be seen in the distracted condition of affairs that Spain was
practically defenceless against a sudden descent on the coast, but most
defenceless of all at the extremely remote north-west corner of Spain, where
Drake decided to land. The fear was mostly for Portugal, where, we are told,
"the population is so impatient of the present rule that neither the severity of
penalties, garrisons of soldiers, nor the ability of governors have succeeded
in quieting the contumacious spirits. This causes a dread lest Drake who is
acquainted with those waters may furnish pretexts for fresh risings and they
(the Spaniards) wish to be ready to crush them."[19] The troops they raised,
says the Venetian ambassador, were inferior in quality of horses and men:
raw levies pressed unwillingly into the service, whilst Portugal was in
violent and open commotion awaiting the arrival of Drake the deliverer.
 But whilst all panic-stricken regards were directed upon Portugal, Drake
and his joint-stock Armada suddenly appeared where they were least
expected, before Corunna, and cast anchor; and the men, nothing loath, were
put on shore in a little bay within a mile of the town. There was no one to
stay their landing, and they had come nearly to the gates before a hasty
muster of townsfolk met them. These, all unprepared and surprised as they
were, soon retreated when they saw the force that was coming against them,
and shut themselves up behind the gates and walls of the town. The place
was weak and ill-garrisoned, commanded by the Marquis de Cerralba, and
could not hope to hold out against a regular siege, but there were three
galleons loaded with arms in the harbour, which the new commander-in-
chief in Madrid, Alba's son Fernando, said would be a much greater loss than
the town itself. The English slept the first night in the cottages and mills
belonging to a hamlet on the bank of one of the small streams discharging
into the bay, and out of gunshot of the walls. They were, however, quite
unmolested by the terrified townsfolk, although the galleon San Juan and her
consorts in the harbour kept up a fire upon them as they passed to and fro.

The place indeed was utterly taken by surprise. The Cortes of Galicia
were in session at the time, the people peacefully pursuing their ordinary
avocations; the soldiers of the garrison were nearly all on furlough, scattered
over the province; "and, in short, every one was so far from expecting an
attack that they had no time to turn the useless out of the town nor put their
dearest possessions in safety." The wife and daughter, indeed, of the
Governor Cerralba at the first alarm fled in their terror two leagues on foot,
through the night, to a place of safety, but after that none dared to move. The
lower part of the town fronting the harbour was protected on the land side
only by weak walls, and was unfit for protracted defence. The townspeople
therefore agreed that if the place were attacked on the water side it would be
untenable, and arranged that as soon as those in the higher town on the hill
should espy the English boats approaching they were to signal the low town
by a fire, so that the people below might make their escape to the better
defensible upper portion of the town. Some artillery was landed by the
English to stop the fire of the Spanish ships, and on the morning of the
second day the town was attacked simultaneously by 1,200 men in long
boats and pinnaces under Captain Fenner and Colonel Huntly; and by
Colonels Brett and Umpton on one side, and Captains Richard Wingfield and
Sampson on the other by escalade. The people in the upper town, either from
panic or oversight, neglected to give the signal, and those below, thinking
they had only to deal with an escalade on their walls by Captain Wingfield,
fought desperately until they found two other forces had entered at other
points, and then panic seized them, and, as Pricket (or Wingfield) describes
it, "The towne was entered in three severall places; with an huge crie, the
inhabitants betooke them to the high towne which they might with less
perrill doo for that ours being strangers knew not the way to cut them off.
The rest that were not put to the sword in furie fled to the rockes in the iland
and hid themselves in chambers and sellers which were everie day found out
in great numbers." A perfect saturnalia seems to have been thereupon
indulged in by the English troops. Here was the fruition of all their golden
dreams—a flying, panic-stricken foe, ample provisions to loot and to waste,
and, above all, wine without limit. "Some others (i.e., Spaniards) also found
favour to bee taken prisoners but the rest falling into the hands of the
common soldiers had their throates cut to the number of 500.... Everie seller
was found full of wine whereupon our men by inordinate drinking both
grewe senseless of the danger of the shot of the towne which hurt many of
them, being druncke, and took the first ground of their sickness, for of such
was our first and chiefest mortalitie."

Great stores of provisions were found in the lower town, and many were
also captured as they were brought in by Spanish ships. These provisions
were alleged by the English to have been collected for the purpose of a new
attack on England, and it is quite probable that such was the case, although
the evidence on the point is insufficient. At all events, the destruction of
these stores is the only act which in any sense justified the expedition sent
out by the adventurers.[20]

The next few days were spent by the invaders in desultory attacks on the
upper town, burning a monastery and scouring the country round by Colonel
Huntly, who "brought home verie great store of cowes and sheep to our great
reliefe." A great crowd of country people, two thousand strong, came down
with a run one day, armed with rough weapons, to see what manner of men
were these who raided their cattle and burned their poor huts, but a discharge
of musketry killed eighteen of them and sent the rest scampering away.[21]
On "our side" we hear of an improvised gabion battery being shaken down
by the first fire, and Master Spenser, the lieutenant of the ordnance, and
many others killed by the enemy's guns as they stood all exposed. But brave
Sir Edward Norris held his ground manfully until his orders came to cease
firing and retire. Captain Goodwin makes a mistake of a signal and
prematurely attacks the upper town, getting shot through the mouth as a
reward, and the "common sort" drop off by drink, pestilence, and bullet
plentifully enough, but unrecorded. Norris and Drake sent home by Knollys
flaming accounts of their success, and still asked for more provisions from
England and more money; but Queen Bess was in a towering rage, and was
not to be appeased. She could not forget or forgive the loss of her favourite.
Raleigh and Blount were very well in their way, but she wanted Essex, and
suspected Drake and Norris of being parties to his escape. On the 4th of May
(O.S.) she wrote to them a remarkable letter, showing that she had tidings of
Essex's being on board the Swiftsure, and demanding dire vengeance on Sir
Roger Williams, who helped to hide him.[22]

After four days of fruitless pottering the troops were presumably sober
enough to attempt an attack upon the upper town, and the guns being pointed
against it, the general sent a drummer to summon it to surrender before he
opened fire. The summons was answered by a musket-shot that laid the poor
drummer low, but immediately afterwards a pole was projected over the
town wall, and from it there dangled a man hanged by the neck. This was the
man who had fired the dastard shot. And then the Spaniards called a parley,
and begged that the war might be fair on both sides, as it certainly should be
on theirs. Considering that five hundred of their brethren had their throats
cut ruthlessly, after they had submitted, this was magnanimous at least; "but
as for surrendering the towne, they listened not greatly thereunto."

So Norris banged away with his cannon for three days to make a breach
in the wall of the high town, and at the same time set men to work to bore a
mine in the rock beneath the gate, and at the end of the time, all being in
readiness, and his men, under the gallant brothers Wingfield, with Philpot,
Sampson, and York, waiting to storm the two breaches, the mine turned out a
dismal failure, and nothing was done. The next day they tried again, and this
time with such success that one half of the gate tower was blown up, and the
other half left tottering. On rushed the assailants. Some few got into the
town, but as the officers and their immediate followers set foot on the breach
and waved their men onward, down came the other half of the tower upon
them, and crushed them beneath the ruins. Two standards were lost, but
captured again, and scores of men were killed. In the dust and terror the
unpractised soldiery thought they were the victims of some stratagem of the
enemy and fled, leaving the officers and gentlemen volunteers to extricate
themselves as best they could. Poor Captain Sydenham "was pitifully lost,
who having three or foure great stones on his lower parts was held so fast, as
neither himself could stirre, nor anie reasonable companie recover him.
Notwithstanding the next day being found to be alive there was 10 or 12 lost
in attempting to relieve him."

On the other side of the town the breach made in the walls by the
culverins was too small, and when brave Yorke had led his men to push of
pike with those who stood in the breach, the slope of rubbish on which they
mounted suddenly slipped down, and left them six feet below the opening,
and so they had to retreat too, through a narrow lane exposed to the full fire
of the enemy, and thus the attack failed at both points.

In the meanwhile all Galicia was arming, and a prisoner brought in by the
cattle raiders gave news that the Count de Andrada, with 8,000 men, was at
Puente de Burgos, six miles off, which was said to be only the beginning of a
great army being got together by the Count de Altamira. On the next day,
May 6th, it was determined to attack them, and nine regiments of English
marched out to the fray. The vanguard, under Sir Edward Norris, was
divided into three bodies under Captains Middleton, Antony Wingfield, and
Ethrington, respectively, and attacked the enemy in the centre and both
flanks simultaneously, routing them at the first charge. They only stopped
running when they came to a fortified bridge over a creek of the sea, on the
other side of which was their entrenched camp. Sir Edward Norris, with
Colonel Sidney, and Captains Fulford, Hinder and others, always in front,
fought hand to hand over the bridge and into the trenches, under "an
incredible volie of shot for that the shot of their armie flanked upon both
sides of the bridge." But the earthworks were soon abandoned, and Sir
Edward Norris, in his very eagerness to be first, tumbled over his pike and
hurt his head grievously. The officers of the vanguard were nearly all more
or less hurt, but when the enemy had fled the usual amusement of the
"common sort" commenced. All round for miles the country was burnt and
spoiled, and the flying countrymen were slaughtered without mercy or
quarter. "So many as 2,000 men might kill in pursuit, so many fell before us
that day"; and after that was over and the men were returning, hundreds of
cowering peasants were found hidden in hedges and vineyards, and their
"throates" were cut. Two hundred poor creatures took refuge in a "cloyster,"
which was burned and the men put to the sword as they tried to escape. "You
might have scene the countrie more than three miles of compasse on fyre,"
says the English eye-witness, and he grows quite hysterical in his laudation
of the English valour; but the Spanish accounts tell how the Netherlands
wars, and the fears for Portugal and the French frontier, had denuded all
north-western Spain of soldiers, Count de Andrada's force only being a hasty
levy of undrilled and practically unarmed countrymen, who were easily
routed.

The next day the English began to ship their artillery and baggage and
made ready to depart, after again unsuccessfully trying to fire the upper
town. They managed indeed to burn down every house in the lower town,
and they set sail on May 9 (O.S.), 1589.

In the meanwhile utter dismay reigned at Madrid. What was left of the
fleet was acknowledged to be powerless for defence, and none knew for
certain where the blow was to fall. The accounts from Corunna were
intercepted by the Government, and were surmised to be worse than they
really were; but still the general opinion was not far out in supposing that
Drake could not do much permanent harm on the open places on the coast,
but would eventually attack either Lisbon or Cadiz. Fernando de Toledo was
appointed commander-in-chief, but soldiers could not be got together.[23]
Pietro de Medici was hastily ordered to raise 6,000 mercenaries in Italy; and
Contarini writes from Madrid to the Doge: "It is true that for want of soldiers
they have adopted a plan which may prove more hurtful than helpful; they
have enrolled Portuguese, and so have armed the very people whom they
have cause to fear, but perhaps they think that as they have destroyed the
leaders they have made themselves safe."

Norris was almost as much dreaded as Drake himself, and his skill and
daring suggested to the terrified Court that he might intend to cut through the
neck of land upon which Corunna stands, and entirely isolate the town,
which he might then make into a great depot for an English fleet. Philip, we
are told, was in great anxiety, "not so much on account of the loss he suffers
as for the insult which he feels that he has received in the fact that a woman,
mistress of only half an island, with the help of a corsair and a common
soldier, should have ventured on so arduous an enterprise, and dared to
molest so powerful a sovereign."

The bitterest blow of all to Philip was the knowledge that Spain's
impotence was now patent to the world, and that the mere presence of Drake
was sufficient to paralyse all resistance. When the English force re-embarked
at Corunna, says Contarini, they were not even molested, so glad were the
besieged to be rid of him at any cost. "Whilst Drake was at Corunna he was
so strongly entrenched that he suffered no loss at all. If he had remained a
few days longer the place would have fallen for the reliefs were not as ready
as was rumoured. Drake occupied the place called the fishmarket. He
knocked down houses, seized cattle, killed soldiers, released officers on
ransom, and by pillage of the suburbs and the burning of monasteries
seemed to care more for plunder than for glory."[24] As we have seen, in
fact, Drake's sole reason for going to Corunna at all against his mistress'
orders was to satisfy with loot the mutinous rabble on board his ships, but of
this the Spaniards were naturally ignorant.

The fleet sailed out of Corunna on the 9th of May, leaving smoking ruins
behind them for many miles around; but contrary winds drove the ships back
again and again. At last, on the 13th of May, the truant Swiftsure hove in
sight, "to the great delight of us all," bringing the Earl of Essex, Sir Roger
Williams, Master Walter Devereux ("the Earl's brother, a gentleman of
wonderful great hope"), Sir Philip Butler ("who hath always been most
inward with him"), and Sir Edward Wingfield.

However glad the men of lower rank may have been to see the dashing
young nobleman, Drake and Norris can hardly have been overjoyed. They
knew by this time that Elizabeth was in earnest about it, and that the purse-
strings would be drawn tighter, and the censure be stricter, whilst her errant
favourite was with the expedition; and some inkling of this even reached the
writer of the English account of the expedition. "The Earle," he says,
"having put himself into the journey against the opinion of the world, and as
it seemed, to the hazard of his great fortune, though to the great
advancement of his reputation (for as the honourable carriage of himself
towards all men doth make him highlie esteemed at home, so did his
exceeding forwardness in all services make him to be wondered at amongst
us) who I say put off ... because he would avoide the importunity of
messengers that were daily sent for his return and some other causes more
secret to himself."

The earl's first request was that he should always be allowed to lead the
vanguard of the army; "which was easilie granted unto him, being so
desirous to satisfie him in all things": and thenceforward to the end of the
expedition he marched at the head with Major-General Sir Roger Williams,
who seemed, by the way, "not one penny the worse" for her Majesty's
anathemas.

Early in the afternoon of May 16th (O.S.) the fleet cautiously approached
the town of Peniche, in Portugal. Drake had learnt on his way that a great
galleon from the Indies with a million crowns in gold had taken refuge under
the guns of the fortress, and doubtless hoped to net so big a prize. But the
Archduke Albert in Lisbon was also looking anxiously for the gold, and sent
his galleys, under Bazan, to bring the galleon into the Tagus just before the
arrival of the English at Peniche. The town of Peniche was held by
Gonsalves de Ateide with a body of Portuguese who could not be trusted,
and some Castilian reinforcements sent to him under Pedro de Guzman; but
the fortress was commanded by a Captain Araujo, who was known to be
secretly in favour of Dom Antonio. Here it was determined to land the force,
and Ateide drew up his men at the landing-place before the fortress and
opened fire upon the ships as they entered the bay. On the other side of the
harbour, half a league off, the surf was running high, and a landing there was
looked upon as impracticable, so that the shore was left undefended.
Suddenly, when least expected by the Spaniards, Norris began to land his
men on this side. Hot-headed Essex would not even wait for his boat to
reach land, but jumped into the beating surf breast high with Sir Roger
Williams and a band of gentlemen, and so struggled ashore to protect the
landing of the rest. By the time Ateide and his 350 Castilians had reached the
spot 2,000 English had landed on the beach of Consolation as it was called.
Some slight show of resistance was made, and fifteen Spaniards fell at the
push of the English pike; but the Castilians were out-numbered and nearly
surrounded, and were forced to retire precipitately inland to a neighbouring
hamlet to await reinforcements from Torres Vedras. When Norris had landed
12,000 or 13,000 men, with the loss of several boatloads in the surf, but
without further molestation from the Spaniards, he summoned the
Portuguese commandant of the fortress to surrender. He replied that he
refused to surrender to the English, but would willingly do so to his lawful
king, Dom Antonio. So the poor pretender, "bigger of spirit than of body,"
landed with his son Manoel, and his faithful bodyguard of a hundred
Portuguese, to be received once more on his own land as a sovereign. He
found all things ready for him: his canopy of state erected, plate for his table
set out, and kneeling subjects seeking for his smiles. He spoke smoothly and
fairly, we are told, to the country people, taking nothing from them, but
giving, or at least promising, much, and assuring them all of his protection.

But if their new sovereign was chary of oppressing them, no such

scruples afflicted their Castilian masters. My Portuguese diarist says that the
Spaniards retaliated for Araujo's treachery in surrendering Peniche by
stealing everything belonging to the Portuguese they could lay their hands
upon, and he cites one case in which they took the large sum of two
thousand crowns from one of the most influential friends of the Spanish
cause. "But," he says, apologetically, "in confused times such as these
soldiers will act so."

Dom Antonio's bodyguard was armed with muskets and pikes from the
castle, and here the poor King kept his rough-and-ready Court for two days.
He was tenacious of his regal dignity, and had many a little wrangle with the
English about the scant ceremony with which they treated him. But greater
disappointments were yet in store for him. The friars and peasants flocked in
to salute their native king, but, alas, Antonio hoped and looked in vain for
the coming of the lords and gentry from whom he expected so much. Wily
Philip had been once more too cunning for his enemy. At the first whisper of
the expedition he had banished to distant places in his own dominions every
Portuguese noble—seventy of them in all—who was not pledged hard and
fast to the Castilian cause. One of Antonio's false friends, too, had escaped at
Corunna, and had gone straight to Philip and divulged all the pretender's
plans and the names of his supporters still in Portugal who were to help him
into Lisbon. Their shrift, as may be supposed, was a short one, and when
Antonio came to his kingdom he found none but monks and clowns to greet
him. Such of the gentry as he approached were usually too panic-stricken to
side with him, seeing the fate of others of their class, and my Portuguese
scoffs at the insolence of the idea that Antonio and the English could hold
Lisbon, even if they won it against all the might of Spain, or of the common
Portuguese rising without the "fidalgos," and courting the ruin that would
befall them if the "heretics" got the upper hand without the fidalgos to
restrain them.

But Antonio put a brave face on matters, and was all eagerness to push on
to his faithful capital of Lisbon, which he was confident awaited him with
open arms. His confidence to a certain extent seems to have been shared by
Norris, and here the second great mistake of the expedition was made. The
first vital error was the fruitless waste of time at Corunna; the second was
the resolution now arrived at by Norris, entirely against Drake's judgment, to
march from Peniche overland forty-two miles to Lisbon. Drake, true to the
sea and to the tactics by which he had so often beaten the Spaniards, was in
favour of pushing on to Lisbon by sea, letting three or four fireships drift
about the castle of São Gian, which commanded the entrance to the harbour,
so that the smoke should spoil the aim of the guns, and then make a dash for
the city—and doubtless, thought Drake, for the galleon, with its million gold
crowns, lying in front of the India house. Dom Antonio, whose one idea was
to keep foot on the land where he was king, sided with Norris. In vain Drake
pointed out that they had no baggage train or proper provisions for a march
through an enemy's country; that they had only one weak squadron of
cavalry, of which the cattle was out of condition; that they had no fitting
field artillery; and that once inland they would lose the support and
protection of the fleet.

It was all of no avail; Dom Antonio and Norris had their way, and a single
company was left to garrison Peniche,[25] supported by six ships, whilst the
whole of the land forces were to march to Lisbon, and Drake undertook to
bring the rest of the fleet to Cascaes, at the mouth of the river, when the
weather would allow him to do so.

During the night after the landing, some cavalry under Captain Alarcon
had joined the Spaniards, and a force of Portuguese militia had also been
sent in by Don Luis Alencastro, but they soon deserted their colours and left
their officers to shift for themselves. The next morning at four o'clock
Captain Alarcon and a few of the Spanish cavalry reconnoitred the position
at Peniche, but found the enemy too many for them, and could only scour
back as hard as they could ride to Luis Alencastro, the Grand-Commander of
the Order of Christ, who was endeavouring to reorganise a body of
Portuguese a few miles off, on the road to Lisbon. But terrible tales of the
strength of the English had already spread; and when Alarcon and Guzman
reached the Grand-Commander they found his hasty levies in a panic at the
story that Drake had brought with him nine hundred great Irish dogs as
fierce as lions, and "capable of eating up a world of folks." So they flatly
refused to stir; and the Grand-Commander could do no more than hasten
back to Lisbon to inform the Cardinal-Archduke Albert of the state of
affairs, whilst Guzman, with the troops, fell back upon Torres-Vedras, to
hold if possible the road to Lisbon.

In the meanwhile the capital was in a state of intense excitement. The

native inhabitants, with a lively recollection of the sacking of the city by
Alba, flocked to the other side of the Tagus, notwithstanding the strict orders
of the Cardinal-Archduke to the contrary. Provisions and munitions of war
were hastily sent from Spain, and the Prior Fernando de Toledo was already
on the move, slowly bringing such troops as he could muster for the relief of
Lisbon, whilst the castles and walls of the city were put into a state of
defence. The Castilians, few in number and intensely hated by the townsfolk,
knew that in a fight the brunt would fall upon them, and that the Portuguese,
even though they might not help the enemy, and this was by no means
certain, would not raise a finger to support the dominion of Philip. The
priests went from house to house, strong adherents of Dom Antonio almost
to a man, whispering that the English were not, after all, such bad people;
that there were many Catholics amongst them who were better Christians
than the Castilians themselves, and, as the Spanish diarist says, other things
of the sort which will not bear repeating. To the well-to-do they said that as
soon as a native king was on the throne their wealth would enormously
increase, whilst the poor were told that "fishing in troubled waters was
profitable to the fisherman."

On the other hand, the Archduke, knowing the people with whom he had
to deal, established a veritable reign of terror, and sacrificed without mercy
—often without evidence—any person who was even suspected of open
sympathy with the invaders, although it was well known in Madrid that the
populace of Lisbon had tacitly agreed to open the gates to Dom Antonio and
to massacre the Spaniards on his approach. Some Portuguese nobles had left
the Archduke on the first landing of Dom Antonio, but, finding that most of
their order had been terrorised into quiescence, returned to Lisbon and
tendered their submission. They were at once beheaded or imprisoned, and
the rest became more slavish than ever in their professions of attachment to
the Archduke. Terrible stories were spread at the same time of the "impious
abominations" of the English heretics, and the dreadful fate that awaited all
Catholics if the invader succeeded, until, as my Portuguese diarist says,
"there was not even a loafer on the quay who did not know that he would be
cast out or ruined if the English came." But it was all insufficient to make
them willing to fight. The exodus still continued, and under cover of night
the people stole across the river by thousands, and a boat whose usual freight
was two ducats could not now be hired under fifty, whilst a bullock-cart and
bullocks which could be bought right out in normal times for fifty ducats
now charged sixty for a single journey to Aldea Gallega, on the other side of
the Tagus. The people of the provinces, says my Portuguese diarist,
oppressed the flying citizens more than the English, until the scandal became
so great that the Archduke had to interfere and check their rapacity. Under
some excuse or another every Portuguese was anxious to get away and leave
the fighting to be done by some one else. The Portuguese diarist stoutly
denies that his countrymen were cowards or traitors, but always explains that
the common people could not have risen without the lead of the native
nobles; and we have seen the methods by which they were terrorised and
made powerless. The Spaniard, on the other hand, makes no secret of his
contempt for the white-livered Lisbonenses, and uses much strong language
about them. My Portuguese diarist greatly resents this feeling, and gives a
little personal experience of his own to show how harsh were the words used
by the Castilians towards the craven citizens. "On the morning," he says,
"that the enemy fled I went up to the castle to get some things of mine out of
my boxes which I had left there in the rooms of one of the officers, where I
had determined to await my fate if things came to the worst. As I was on my
way down to the palace again the rumour spread that the enemy was
retreating, whereupon some soldiers ascended the watch tower to enjoy the
sight. I asked them when they returned if the good news were true that the
enemy was really flying, and one of them answered me roughly that they
who were flying were not the enemy but those who still stay in Lisbon. To
which I answered him not a word but God be with ye."

But by terrorism, energy, and promptness the Archduke at length got the
city into a state for defence both against the enemy from without and the
probable enemy within. The city water-tanks were locked and the supply
brought from outside, so as to save the precious liquid for the coming siege.
The resident Spaniards formed themselves into a bodyguard of 150 men,
"very smart and well armed," and, as in duty bound, the Germans and
Flemings offered two hundred harquebussiers in good order, whilst many
Portuguese "fidalgos" slept in the corridors of the palace to protect the
Archduke in the hour of need. Four colonels were appointed to organise
bands of the inhabitants for the defence of the city, and Matias de
Alburquerque, a famous sea-captain, took charge of the twelve war galleys
in the Tagus and armed thirty merchant ships which were lying in the
harbour. The defensive works round the city were divided into sections and
apportioned to the command of officers of tried fidelity, whose names need
not be recorded here, the river front being mainly entrusted to Portuguese,
who evidently considered theirs the post of danger, as they had not the walls
to protect them along the quay side. The Castilians, however, made no secret
of the fact that they were placed there as no attack was expected from the
river. The parts most strongly guarded, almost entirely by Spaniards, were
the quarters of St. Catalina, San Antonio, and San Roque, facing the north
and west, from which quarters the English were expected to approach.

The English army, by all accounts twelve thousand strong, marched out
of Peniche on the 17th of May, with the Earl of Essex and Sir Roger
Williams leading; and Drake, accompanying them to the top of a hill at some
distance off, greeted each regiment as it passed him with kindly words, and
hopes of success, which he could hardly have anticipated.

Soon the English soldiery began to show their true metal. Strict orders
had been given that the property and persons of Dom Antonio's faithful
subjects were to be respected; but as soon as they got clear of Peniche
housebreaking and pillage became rife, and Norris had to order his provost-
marshal, Crisp, to hang a few of the malefactors before he could obtain
obedience.

The Archduke had sent three squadrons of Spanish horsemen to reinforce

Pedro de Guzman at Torres Vedras, block the road to Lisbon, and harass the
English. They went out to reconnoitre the enemy at various points after he
left Peniche, but they did not like the look of him, and fell back again to
Torres Vedras, whilst messengers were hourly sent to the Archduke begging
for more men, whom he could not send. At first it was rumoured amongst the
English that a stand would be made at a village near Peniche, but when they
arrived there the last Spanish horsemen were just scampering out of it. The
next day it was said that certainly a great stand would be made at Torres
Vedras, and this undoubtedly was the Archduke's intention; but even the
almost impregnable Torres Vedras was untenable with a few hundred horse
and a body of militia, who, if they fought at all, would fight on the other
side; and the Spanish forces, for fear of being cut off from their base, hastily
evacuated Torres Vedras and fell back gradually, harassing the flanks of the
enemy as much as they could and cutting off stragglers.

And so the main body of Morris' force, with the Earl of Essex and Sir
Roger Williams always leading, moved rapidly and peacefully towards
Lisbon, whilst the panic in the capital grew greater as the English came
nearer. Peaceably—but hungry—for the land was bare, and the English, we
are told, "found our food dry and tasteless and hankered after their own fat
meats and birds, comparing our barrenness with the abundance of their own
land." There was little or no money in the host, and nothing was to be taken
from the Portuguese without payment. There was in any case very little to
take, for most of the people along the road had fled or had been stripped
clean by the Castilian soldiers who had gone before. Drake's predictions of
trouble in moving an army without a baggage train began to come true, and
at last starvation was breeding open mutiny in the English host. Norris was
then obliged to tell Antonio that unless food were forthcoming more
plentifully the soldiers must be allowed to shift for themselves. The poor
pretender could only beseech his controller, Campello, to scour the country
far and wide for delicacies for the English, "who are naturally dainty and
exquisite in their food"; but he could only pay in promises, and the land was
bare, so the invaders still marched a hungry host towards the larders of
Lisbon.

From day to day they were told that the Spaniards would certainly stand
and fight to-morrow, but they were continually disappointed, as indeed was
the stout-hearted Archduke in his palace, who received with dismay the
constant news that his forces were falling further and further back towards
the capital without fighting.

Whatever country people had remained on the road welcomed the

invaders with cries of "Viva el Rei Dom Antonio!" but the poor King still
looked in vain for the promised gentlemen. His desire to please his rustic
adherents was almost pathetic. He condescended, we are told, to caress and
embrace the "commonest little people"; and in order to make as brave a
show as possible before the English, picked out any countryman who was
decently fair-spoken to be paraded before them as some grand gentleman in
disguise. But however hopeful he might show himself, he could not conceal
the fact that not a dozen men-at-arms had joined him, and his only chance
now was that Lisbon itself should declare in his favour. But the native
citizens were distracted and divided. The judges and magistrates had
abandoned their posts, the shopkeepers had deserted their stores, incendiary
fires and pillage were of hourly occurrence, and the Archduke alone kept his
head. Even he was not free from danger of attack, for more than one attempt
was made to assassinate some of his chief officers.

On one occasion a large number of men were caught deserting their posts
and escaping in a boat to the other side of the Tagus. When they were
brought to the Archduke for punishment he said if they were too cowardly to
fight in defence of their God and their fatherland they were useless to him
and could go. This he knew, that even the Castilian women would mount the
walls and fight with stones, if need be, in such a cause. Albert required all
his firmness and nerve, for one sign of weakness from him and his handful
of Spaniards, would have given heart to the craven Portuguese within and
without the walls, who were thirsting for their blood.

Three-quarters of the Portuguese in Lisbon had fled or were in hiding,

and the rest were in Spanish pay or watched day and night by jealous eyes.
But watched as they were, and few in numbers, their hopes were still high,
and amongst themselves their speech grew bolder. They got news daily from
English prisoners and others of the approach of their king, and plotted
together how they would serve the hated Castilians when the English
deliverers came.

The rumour ran that the city would be surrendered to the invader on
Corpus Christi day, and not a Spaniard was to be left alive, and much more
to the same effect. But, alas! on one occasion when a few English prisoners
were being brought in a panic-cry arose that the invaders had entered the
city, and then each man fled to hiding to save his own skin rather than to his
post, and the few Spanish guards that remained had to drag them out of
cellars and lofts by main force, kicking and cuffing them for a set of cowards
for not helping the defenders. The Count de Fuentes, once on a false alarm,
was sent out of the city with every man who could be spared to Orlas, three
leagues off on the road to Cascaes, where it was expected the enemy would
pass; but the English went by Torres Vedras, and Fuentes had to hurry back
into Lisbon again the same day, to avoid being cut off and the gates being
shut against him.

On the 19th of May Norris and his troops marched into Torres Vedras,
where Dom Antonio was received with regal honours, and the oath of
allegiance taken to him. He was desirous of making a detour to Santarem,
through, as he said, a rich country favourable to him, but Norris knew the
danger of delay, and insisted upon pushing forward to Lisbon.

Guzman and his Spanish horsemen had fallen back during the previous
night to Jara, nearer Lisbon, but he had left Captain Alarcon, with two
companies of horse, to hang on the skirts of the enemy. The next day Captain
Yorke, who commanded Norris' cavalry, determined to try their metal, and
sent a corporal with eight men who rode through forty of the enemy, whilst
Yorke himself, with forty English horse, put to precipitous flight Alarcon's
two hundred. On the following day, May 21st, the English, disappointed
again of a fight, were lodged in the village of Louvres, not far from Lisbon,
which Guzman had hurriedly evacuated after being very nearly surprised by
Norris. The village was small and the accommodation poor, so Drake's
regiment, thinking to better their quarters, went to sleep at a little hamlet a
mile off. In the early dawn a cry was raised of "Viva el Rei Dom Antonio!"
which was the usual friendly salutation of the country folk. The young
English sentries fraternised with those who approached, and admitted them
into the sleeping-camp. It was an ambuscade, and many of the English were
slain, but the enemy was finally driven off by two companies of Englishmen
who were lodged near. The next day, at a village near Lisbon, a large number
were treacherously poisoned by the bad water from a well, or, as some said,
by the honey which they found in the houses. This was three miles from
Lisbon, at a place called Alvelade, and at eleven o'clock at night Essex left
the camp with Sir Roger Williams and 1,000 men to lie in ambuscade near
the town. When they had approached almost to the walls a few of them
began banging at the gates and otherwise trying to alarm those within and
provoke a sally. But the device was too transparent, and a few men shot and
a sleepless night were the only result. When the English had arrived at
Alvelade, Count de Fuentes, with the main body of Spaniards, was at
Alcantara, a mile or so nearer Lisbon. Thither Albert hastily summoned a
council of war, and urged his officers at last to make a stand at once before
the English could co-operate with their friends within the walls of Lisbon.
Fuentes and the other Spanish commanders were of the same opinion, but
the Portuguese Colonel, Fernando de Castro, made a speech pointing out that
the English were short of stores, cut off from their base, and weakened by
sickness and short commons. "Let us," he said, "fall back into the city and
conquer them by hunger and delay. Behind our walls they will be powerless
to injure us, whilst we can draw abundant supplies from across the river, and
they cannot blockade us even by land with less than 40,000 men." This
exactly suited the other Portuguese, who were never comfortable unless they
had a good thick wall between themselves and their enemies. The opinion of
the Spaniards was overborne, and the defending force entered the gates of
Lisbon on Corpus Christi day, midst the ringing of bells and the more or less
sincere rejoicing of the populace. Lisbon feasted and welcomed its
defenders, whilst poor Dom Antonio, we are told, at Alvelade just outside,
had not a fowl or even a loaf of rye bread to eat. "You may guess how he is
hated by the Portuguese," says my Portuguese diarist, "that he being so near
his native Lisbon not even a costermonger or a down dared to send him a
meal, whilst we in the city had plenty."

Most of the houses adjoining the walls had been blown up, but the
monastery of the Trinidade, down the hill towards the river, still remained.
The prior was understood to be in favour of Dom Antonio, as were nearly all
churchmen, and Ruy Diaz de Lobo, one of the few nobles with Dom
Antonio, undertook to negotiate with him to admit the English to the city
through the monastery garden. By the aid of two sympathetic monks he
obtained access to the prior. But the latter had been gained over by the
Spaniards, and a few hours afterwards the pale heads of Ruy Diaz de Lobo
and the two monks were grinning with half-closed, lustreless eyes from the
top of three poles on the great quay, whilst Sir Roger Williams and his men,
when they approached the monastery in expectation of a friendly reception,
were received with a shower of harquebuss balls, and fell back. The rest of
the day, now that the main body of English had come up, was spent in
quartering the men in the suburbs of the city, entrenched camps being
formed, protected by breastworks of wine-pipes filled with earth. Tired with
their six days' march and their labour in the trenches, Norris' little army were
glad to pass their first night before Lisbon in such peace as the besieged
would allow them.

If the enterprise was ever to succeed this was the moment. The English
were more numerous as regards men bearing arms, but they had come upon
their wild-goose chase against a fortified city without any battering artillery
or proper appliances for a siege, whilst the Spaniards were behind strong
walls, with unlimited sources of supply from the river front across the Tagus.
Norris, on the other hand, was short of supplies, with fifteen miles of
defensible country between him and Cascaes, the point where the fleet was
to await him. The advantage, therefore, was clearly on the side of the
besieged, but for the one element of the disaffection of Lisbon itself from
within, and in this lay Dom Antonio's last chance. A letter written by Don
Francisco Odonte, adjutant-general in Lisbon, on the day following the
arrival of the English forces before the walls, gives a vivid description of the
state of affairs there at the time.[26]

"Dom Antonio," he says, "spent the night in the house of the Duke
d'Aveiro, and then early in the morning completed the investment of the city
and continued his search for some secret gate by which he might enter. But
the garrison harassed him as much as they could. Don Sancho Bravo and
Captain Alarcon have been skirmishing all day outside the city, and have
sent in 25 or 30 English prisoners who have been consigned to the galleys;
and if they could only do the same by all those who are really fighting us,
whilst feigning to be our friends, they might man more galleys than are to be
found in all Christendom this day, for those who have shown their colours
during the last three days, and that without a blush, are simply infinite, nor is
there any wonder that Dom Antonio has attempted this enterprise, owing to
the promises held out to him; for from the moment he disembarked, he has
been supplied with abundance of provisions,[27] whilst not a man has
offered us his services. All the aldermen of the city are against us but two,
the rest are all in hiding, and some even have supplied Dom Antonio's
troops, with as little shamefacedness as if they had come from England with
him. In this quarter of the city there is not a man left. Some have fled across
the river, some are hidden, some have joined Dom Antonio. The troops
under the four colonels publicly declare they will not fight. Dom Antonio
was certain the moment he appeared the city would rise, and on this account
we are in great alarm and have passed a very bad night. God help us!"
 But the English did not sleep tranquilly either. In the first hours of the
morning of the 25th of May Don Garcia Bravo, with 500 Spanish troops
from Oporto, arrived in Lisbon. They were hungry, ragged, and weary, but
they were eager to meet the foe, and barely gave themselves time to snatch a
hurried meal before sallying from the gate of San Anton and up the hill to
the quarters of Colonel Brett in the farm of Andres Soares. Another force at
the same time came from the gate of Santa Catalina and forced Brett's
trenches from that side. The long rows of windows of the monastery of San
Roque on the hill were lined by Spanish musketeers, who kept up a deadly
fire on the English, whilst two of the great guns of the castle were brought to
bear upon one exposed side of the invaders' camp. The attack was made
before dawn, and Brett had hardly time to muster his men in the darkness
and confusion, when a cannon-shot from the walls laid him low. Captain
Carsey and Captain Carr were mortally wounded, and 200 other officers and
men slain. The rest of the English forces were aroused, and came to the
rescue under Colonel Lane and Colonel Medkirk, and "put them to a sodain
fowle retreate, insomuch as the Earle of Essex had the chase of them even to
the gates of the High towne, wherein they left behind them many of their
best commanders." A body of Spanish horse, sallying from the gates of San
Anton to support their comrades, met the latter in full retreat in a narrow
lane, and unwillingly trampled them down; thus adding to the confusion,
which was completed by a flank charge upon the struggling mass by Yorke's
cavalry. The English chronicler claims that the Spanish loss tripled ours, but
my diarists say that they had only twenty-five killed and forty wounded, and
the Portuguese tries to account for the heavy loss of wounded by accusing
the English of using poisoned bullets. The next day the English tried to get
in through the monastery, but they found the city forewarned and on the
alert, although the monks had done their best for them. The day after they
bribed a Portuguese captain in charge of the wall at the nearest point to the
river to let them pass round at low tide, but the spies told the Archduke, and
the English found their ally replaced by a Spaniard with a strong force, who
sent them flying back again. And so three days passed in constant
skirmishes, whilst Norris was chafing and helpless without. The fatal
mistake he had made in leaving the fleet was now apparent. The time, too,
they had lost at Corunna was irreparable. Fernando de Toledo was
approaching with relief, and the first dismay in Spain had now given way to
desperate energy. The loss of men in the English camp from sickness and
wounds was terrible, supplies and munitions were desperately short, there
was no medical aid or transport for the sick and disabled, whilst the
Portuguese in Lisbon, from whom everything had been hoped, still made no
sign.

Dom Antonio still put a brave face on the matter, but his heart was
sinking. For the first two days he had lodged in the rear of the English camp,
outside Santa Catalina, but on the third, says my Portuguese diarist, he began
to fear for his safety, and, wearied of low fare and the sound of musketry,
sought refuge in the house of a Portuguese gentleman on the road to
Cascaes. But he was repulsed and barely escaped capture, and thereafter
could but cling desperately to the English force. In vain he looked now for
the general rising in his favour, for the promised nobles who never came,
and hour by hour the prospect darkened. The Earl of Essex, young,
inexperienced, hot-headed, was for assaulting all sorts of impossible places
with pike and musket, but Norris knew better, and sadly acknowledged to
himself that the expedition had failed.

Drake, with the fleet, had in the meanwhile reached Cascaes with
everything he could lay hands on in the form of prizes. He had cast anchor
on the very day twelvemonth that the great Armada had first sailed out of
Lisbon, and the townspeople of the capital were full of portents which they
saw in this coincidence. Every one in Lisbon by this time feared that he
would sail up the river and enter the harbour; and such was the dread of his
name that if he had done so he might have turned the tide of victory. But his
advice had been rejected, and he would not venture under the guns of the
forts with an under-manned fleet and no soldiers. So he remained at Cascaes
and left Norris to get out of the hobble as best he could. When he arrived he
found the town almost abandoned, for the citizens had fled in terror at his
very name. My Portuguese says that Cardenas, the commander of the
fortress, "a great gentleman," was deceived by a monk (or, as he says, the
devil in disguise of one) into the belief that Lisbon had fallen, and he
accordingly gave up the fortress, and himself took to flight. The Castilian
and the Englishman tell the story somewhat differently, and say that
Cardenas was an adherent of Dom Antonio, and stipulated that a show of
compulsion should be used before he surrendered the fortress. The result in
any case was the same to him, for the "great gentleman's" head soon
afterwards adorned one of the Archduke's poles on the quay at Lisbon.
 Drake had therefore established himself without difficulty at Cascaes, and
patiently awaited the result of the land attack on Lisbon.

If the English outside the walls of the capital were in a bad way, the small
force of steadfast Spaniards inside were not much better. They knew that the
Portuguese citizens around them were hourly watching for an opportunity to
cut their throats and let in the native pretender. Panics of treason and
treachery were of hourly occurrence, and on several occasions only the
coolness of the Cardinal-Archduke averted disaster. Every day men of the
best blood of Portugal, often taken from the immediate surrounding of the
Archduke, were seized for assumed treason, the policy being to deprive the
disaffected populace of native leaders. To further terrorise the citizens, and
prevent them from plucking up heart to open the gates, a great review of all
the Spanish troops was held in an open space where the enemy could see as
well as the wavering townfolk. My Spanish diarist says, "With the sun
flashing on shining morions and the brave show of arms and men all were
convinced, friends and enemies alike that the success of our cause was
certain."

Boldness and firmness won the day. The next morning Norris called his
colonels together to seek their advice and consult with Dom Antonio. He
said that as the besieged stood firm and the populace made no move, the
English force must have artillery and munitions if they were to succeed, and
asked their opinion as to whether he should wait for Dom Antonio's forces,
which came not, and meanwhile send a detachment to Cascaes for
munitions, or raise the siege altogether. Many were for sending 3,000 men to
Cascaes at once. They had given the enemy a good drubbing, they said, and
they would sally no more; but Norris had lost hope in Portuguese promises,
and was not quite so contemptuous of the enemy as some of them, and he
decided that he would wait only one day more for Dom Antonio's levies. If
3,000 came in that night he would send a like number of English to Cascaes
for the munitions, otherwise he would raise the siege and leave before
daybreak. In vain Antonio prayed for a few days' longer grace. In nine days
all Portugal would acclaim him. Lisbon was wavering already, and would
turn the scale. But all his prayers were in vain; and before dawn the English
army was mustered and ready for the march. Essex was disgusted at the turn
things had taken, and went up to the principal gate (he and Williams being
the last men to leave) and broke his lance against it, crying out that if there
was any within who would come out and have a bout with him in honour of
his mistress let him come, and he gave them all the lie to their teeth. And
then he turned away and followed the army, no doubt much relieved in his
mind.

During the day that Norris was awaiting the arrival of Dom Antonio's
troops the English had not left their trenches, and the defenders feared that
some deep design lay behind this. Were they mining, or was Drake sending
up some heavy guns? they thought. So when the dawn of the 27th of May
showed that the main body of the English was already on its way to Cascaes,
Count de Fuentes still doubted whether it was not all a feint to draw him out
from the shelter of his walls, and peremptorily refused permission to Count
Villa Dorta to follow them up and engage them. The way of the retreating
force lay along the shore, but to avoid the fire of the galleys which followed
their movements they chose the rough by-paths where possible. And so, all
undisciplined, sick, and starving, they wandered and struggled on as best
they could, four hundred at least of stragglers and sick being killed or
captured by Villa Dorta, who hung upon the rear, notwithstanding his chief's
prohibition. Later in the day Fuentes so far conquered his suspicion as to
lead his army out to Viera, half-way to Cascaes, but he had barely sighted
the enemy than some rumour or suspicion reached him of an intended rising
in Lisbon during his absence, and he hurried back again to the city. My
Portuguese diarist ridicules the suggestion of such a danger as unworthy of
any sensible man; but the utter futility of the English and Portuguese
proceedings from the first was such as well might excuse Fuentes for
thinking that some deeper design must surely lay behind. The suspicion of
the Portuguese on the part of the Spaniards at this time is illustrated by an
anecdote given by the Portuguese diarist. Alvaro Souza, the captain of
Philip's Portuguese guard, with five companions, accompanied Sancho
Bravo, who took out a force to harry the English on their way to Cascaes.
Souza straggled and was captured by Spanish soldiers, who did not know
him. They were near the castle of São Gian at the mouth of Lisbon harbour
and knowing that Pero Venegas, the commandant, was a friend of his father,
Souza sent a messenger to him begging him to answer for his loyalty.
Venegas declined to reply, and Souza was lead off under arrest. On the way
he met the famous Alvaro de Bazan going to his galleys. He was a friend,
and Souza appealed to him to stand by him and his companions, "but he
answered coldly that he knew him not, nor was this a time to recognise any
one." He had, he said, recently answered for some Portuguese fidalgos in the
palace, and a few hours afterwards they were arrested for treason.

Fifteen weary miles over rough ground, and with Villa Dorta's troops
harassing their flank and rear, the English managed to cover during the day,
and at last, late in the evening, they marched into Cascaes.[28] We may well
imagine that the meeting between Drake and Norris was not very cordial.
The officers threw the whole blame for failure upon Drake for not coming
up the river to support them before Lisbon; the sailors, on the other hand,
saying that the march overland was against Drake's advice, and that his
ships, without men-at-arms to defend them and work the guns, would have
been at the mercy of the enemy. At all events, it was clear they had failed in
two of the objects of the voyage—namely, to burn the King of Spain's ships
and restore Dom Antonio; and one other only remained to be attempted,
which was to take the Azores.

I have already said that the raising of the siege of Lisbon took the
defenders by surprise. They fully believed it to be an attempt to draw the
Spanish troops out of the town in order that the citizens might rise and
massacre the few Spaniards left. So certain were they of this that an
unfortunate Portuguese noble—Count Redondo—who arrived that day and
went to pay his respects to the Archduke, was immediately seized and
beheaded pour encourager les autres. As soon as they saw the English had
really gone, Count de Fuentes with his six or seven thousand men again
made a reconnaissance almost to the English position at Cascaes, and finding
the invaders well entrenched, with the fleet behind them, decided that it
would be too risky to attack them, and hastened back again to Lisbon. News
of the nearness of the Spaniards was brought in by some friars, of whom
great numbers hung about Dom Antonio's quarters, and Norris and Essex
each promised the messengers a hundred crowns if they found the enemy in
the place reported, as they were spoiling for a fight in the open before
embarking. But Fuentes had gone to Lisbon, and the friars lost their reward.
Norris, however, still eager, sent a page who spoke French, and a trumpeter,
post-haste to Lisbon, with a challenge to Fuentes and his army to come into
the open and fight. The opportunity was too good for Essex to miss, so he
too sent a cartel by the page on his own account, giving every one the lie in a
general way and offering to fight anybody in single combat. The messenger
came back again without an answer, only that the Spaniards had threatened
to hang him for bringing such vapouring insolence to them; but the Spaniard
tells the story in another way, less honourably for himself. He says, whilst
the messengers were being entertained "as if they were great gentlemen" at
breakfast by some of the captains who spoke French, the letters (which they
had said could only be opened by the Archduke's permission) were
surreptitiously steamed, read, and re-sealed, and handed back again as if
unopened, with the reply that his Highness would not allow them to be
opened. So Norris and Essex had their bravado for nothing, and went
without their fight.

In Lisbon the common people were as disturbed as ever, doubtless feeling

that their chance of freedom was slipping away from them, and alarms were
constantly raised that the English were returning. But Spanish
reinforcements were arriving now. The Duke of Braganza, head of the
Portuguese nobility, arrived in royal state with a great body of retainers to
help the Archduke, and all hope for Dom Antonio gradually ebbed away.

The English commanders in Cascaes began now to think it high time to

put themselves right with the angry Queen, who continued to send furious
messages about their disobedience and about Essex and Sir Roger Williams.
On the 2nd of June they wrote from Cascaes a full account of all that had
happened in the best light they could devise, and saying they knew not what
to do unless supplies came at once from England. Everybody was terribly
seasick, they said, and well-nigh starving. Seeing that no more provisions
could be expected, they wrote, on the 5th of June, that they had decided to
go to St. Michaels; and then, for the first time, they confessed that Essex was
with them. They had met him, they said, to their great surprise, off Cape
Finisterra, but could not send him home before, as they could not spare the
Swiftsure; but still no word about Sir Roger Williams.[29]

If Drake could not or would not burn the Spanish fleet on this occasion,
he was always a splendid hand at plundering merchantmen, and during the
six days that his fleet lay before Cascaes he scoured the sea for miles round
in search of prizes, taking as many as forty German hulks loaded with
Spanish merchandise. Into these prizes the men from the Dutch flyboats
were transhipped, and the Dutch captains sent off without being paid their
freights, glad, no doubt, to get away from such company on any terms.
 In the meanwhile Lisbon was gradually settling down. People who had
been hiding in churches and cellars for the last ten days crept out, nearly all
under the impression that the Spaniards had all been murdered, and that
King Antonio had come to his own again. Dire was their disappointment
when they found that they were not the only people who had skulked in
hiding, and that none of all the city had dared to strike the blow that would
have made Portugal free again. So they patiently bent their neck to the yoke
and cheered his Highness the Archduke at the top of their voices as he went
in state to the cathedral to hear a solemn Te Deum of victory.

The Spaniards did their best to follow up the enemy. The ships in the
Tagus were fitted out to watch Cascaes and follow the English fleet, doing
all the damage they could, and Don Pedro de Guzman was sent to cut off the
English garrison left at Peniche. They urged the horses, says the Spanish
diarist, until they were ready to drop, but arrived too late to stop the
embarkation, except of about 200 men, who were put to death.

On the 8th of June the English fleet set sail, pursued and harassed by the
galleys from Lisbon in nearly a dead calm. Three of our ships were taken or
sunk and one burned, by her captain, Minshaw, after a desperate resistance.
A wind sprang up, however, and the Spanish galleys were left behind; but
soon the fleet got scattered, the men died, and were thrown overboard by the
hundred from scurvy, starvation, and wounds; but, notwithstanding all, after
sailing ostensibly for the Azores, Drake turned back again and, picking up
twenty-five of his ships which had been separated from him, sailed up the
bay and attacked Vigo. He had only 2,000 men fit to fight: sickness and
privation had thinned them down to that, but with those few men, finding
Vigo deserted, the English burnt and wasted the town and all the villages
around. "A verie pleasant rich valley but wee burnt it all, houses and corne,
so as the countrey was spoyled seven or eight miles in length." Then they
decided to drop down to the isle of Bayona, and there put the pick of the
men and stores on twenty of the best ships for Drake to take to the Azores,
whilst the rest returned to England. But for some reason Drake broke the
agreement and passed Bayona without even calling, and the thirty ships that
were awaiting him there were left to their fate. Beset with tempest and
pestilence, without a commander, it was decided by those on board to make
the best of their way to England, in terrible distress as they were for
provisions and water. After ten days' voyage they arrived at Plymouth on the
2nd of July, and found that Drake had already arrived there with the Queen's
ships, having abandoned his voyage to the Azores. Most of the remaining
ships had sought other ports in preference, in order to sell their prizes
without having to share the proceeds with others.

Such of the soldiers as came to Plymouth were sent grumbling home with
five shillings each for their wages and the arms they bore. The English
chronicler thinks that this was "verie good pay, considering they were
victualled all the time." Such, however, was not the opinion of the
unfortunate men themselves, who had not been allowed to loot as much as
they thought fit in Portugal. They said that if they had been permitted to
march as through an enemy's country, they would have come back the
richest army that ever returned to England. Not more than 5,000 of them
ever came home; but their story was so dismal a one that all England rang
with reprobation of the bad management and parsimony that had brought the
expedition to so inglorious a conclusion.

The first and third objects of the expedition—namely, the burning of the
Spanish fleet and the capture of St. Michaels—were never even attempted,
but the second object was very nearly being attained, and the restoration of
Dom Antonio, practically as a vassal of England, might have been effected a
dozen times over if the Portuguese in Lisbon had not been an utterly terrified
set of poltroons. On various occasions, when Count de Fuentes and his
troops were outside, a few dozen daring men might have seized the gates and
have turned the tide in Antonio's favour. It was not to be, however, and the
poor King wandered a poverty-stricken fugitive yet for a few years before he
died, but his desperate struggle for sovereignty ended with the ignominious
failure of the English attempt to avenge a great national injury by a joint-
stock enterprise.

[1] For the sake of uniformity, throughout this narrative the dates are given in the
"old style," then used in England, ten days earlier than the dates cited by the
Spanish and Portuguese authorities.

[2] Venetian Calendar of State Papers.

[3] Ibid.

[4] In a subscription reprint of sixty copies of this tract published in 1881 under the
editorship of the Rev. Alexander Grosart, the authorship appears to be ascribed, I
know not on what grounds, to a certain Robert Pricket who served probably as a
gentleman volunteer and follower of the Earl of Essex. He had seen previous
service in the Netherlands, and was the author of several poetical works, one being
a panegyric on the Earl of Essex. The tract is entitled "A True Coppie of a
Discourse, written by a gentleman employed in the late voiage of Spaine and
Portingale. Sent to his particular friend and by him published for the better
satisfaction of all such as having been seduced by particular report have entered
into conceipts tending to the discredit of the enterprise and Actors of the same. At
London. Printed for Thomas Woodcock, dwelling in Paules Churchyard, at the sign
of the blacke Beare 1589."

[5] It is called "Relacion de lo subcedido del armada enemiga del reyno de

Inglaterra a este de Portugal con la retirada a su tierra, este año de 1589." MS.
Gayangos Library. Transcript in possession of the author.

[6] "Memoria do successo da vinda dos Ingreses ao reino de Portugal." Biblioteca

National, Lisbon. Pombalina, 196, fol. 271. Transcribed by the author.

[7] Mendoza, writing to Philip from London, August 8, 1582, gives one instance of
this amongst several. He says: "The Queen lent Dom Antonio £3,000 when he was
here, and I understand she peremptorily demands payment of the sum, taking
possession of the diamond which was pledged here for a sum of £5,000 lent by
merchants, who offer to relinquish their claim to the Queen, if she will lend them
£30,000 free of interest for six years out of the bars brought by Drake, which they
will repay in five yearly instalments of £6,000 each. So far as I can learn, this talk
of the loan is a mere fiction and a cloak under which the Queen may keep the
diamond for the £8,000 on the ground that the merchants advanced the £5,000 by
her express order, without which they would not have done so. This plan was
invented by Cecil in order to prevent Dom Antonio from getting his diamond back
again."

This diamond is probably identical with the celebrated stone given by Charles I.
when Prince of Wales to the Count-Duke of Olivares, favourite of Philip IV., when
Charles and Buckingham went on their foolish visit to Madrid. A contemporary
account (Soto's MS. in the Academy of History, Madrid) describes the diamond as
being of the purest water, weighing eight carats and called "the Portuguese," from
its having been one of the crown jewels of Portugal. It had a great pearl pendent
from it.
[8] See Calendar of Spanish State Papers of Elizabeth, vol. 3, for particulars of
them.

[9] The first of these, in 1582, commanded by Strozzi, consisted of 55 ships and
5,000 men. Terceira, which was held for Dom Antonio, welcomed it at once, and in
the midst of the rejoicings to celebrate the event the Spanish fleet under Santa Cruz
appeared and scattered the French like chaff, Strozzi being killed, Antonio barely
escaping, and the fleet almost entirely destroyed. The second expedition in the
following year under Aymar de Chastes with 6,000 men was, curiously enough,
beaten by Santa Cruz in the same place and under exactly similar circumstances
("Un pretendant portugais du xvi. siècle").

[10] It is a curious co-incidence that this gem was long afterwards carried away
from England by another fugitive King, James II., who sold it, as Antonio had
done, to provide for his needs. It had formerly belonged to Charles the Bold of
Burgundy, the great-grandfather of Philip II.

[11] After the return of the expedition Lopez writes (July 12, 1589) to Walsingham,
deeply regretting that the Queen had been induced by his advice to spend so much
money to no purpose, and hinting that he had intimated to Dom Antonio that he
and his Portuguese were not wanted in England. On the same day he himself
craves for help in his need and again asks for a thirty years' monopoly of the
import of aniseed and sumach into England. He was executed in 1592, and was in
high favour almost up to the day of his arrest. In the Mendoza Papers in the
National Archives in Paris, to which I have had access, are documents proving that
he made a regular trade of poisoning—or attempting to poison, as he does not
seem to have been very successful in the cases recorded.

[12] It is certain from letters of Dom Antonio's friends in London, now in the
Archives Nationales (K 1567), that it was not until the end of December that
Antonio was confident that the fleet was really intended to aid him.

[13] There is a rough memorandum in Burleigh's writing, September 20, 1588, in

the Record Office, setting down the details of the proposed expedition, in which he
mentions that four thousand men are to be sent for from Holland, as well as two
thousand horsemen volunteers. At the foot of the memorandum Burleigh sets down
the "Articles of offers from King Antonio.

"1. To attempt to burn ye shippes in Lysbon and Civill."

"2. To tak Lysbon."
"3. To tak the Hands."

[14] Calendar of State Papers (Domestic). Record Office.