Great carlton beacon

Image: © Chris Taken: 13 Mar 2016

In 1588, when the 151 ships of the Spanish Armada arrived off the coast with the intention of invading England and overthrowing Queen Elizabeth I, it is said that beacons – that is, bonfires – were lit throughout the country to warn of attack, the news spreading from hilltop to hilltop from the coast where the Armada was first sighted to London and throughout the rest of the country. Later, when Sir Francis Drake and the small fleet of English ships vanquished the Spaniards, hilltop bonfires were set to celebrate the victory. The lighting of bonfires throughout the UK has been used for other national celebrations, including Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897, marking her 60 years on the throne, the 400th anniversary of the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1988, Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden (50 years) Jubilee in 2002, and her Diamond Jubilee. I'm not sure on which of these later occasions this Carlton beacon appeared, but there is a similar one at Burton upon Stather, see Image See https://theyearoflivingenglishly.wordpress.com/2012/06/05/beacons-across-britain-the-spanish-armada-and-the-queens-jubilee/

Images are licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0