The Spanish Armada is a name referring to the Spanish fleet of King Philip II directed against England with the purpose of overthrowing Queen Elizabeth I of England. Spanish Armada ships sailed from Lisabon in late May 1588 under the command of Medina Sidonia. Preparations for the campaign of the Spanish Armada began a few years earlier and two plans of campaign were presented to the King Philip II. In the end King Philip II decided to combine these two plans. Spanish forces marched from Lisabon were supposed to sail the English Channel and then meet with another part of the Spanish forces marching from the Netherlands under the command of the Duke of Parma. Their encounter was to take place between the English Channel and the North Sea in order to disembark together on the English mainland and invade England. However, the meeting of the two forces never took place. The Spanish and English fleets clashed on several occasions during July and August 1588 and after the battle of Gravelines there was no more conflict between the Spanish and English fleets. Although the battle was undecided, it ended with an advantage for England. After the Gravelines, the Spanish fleet began returning home over the North Sea and lost a large number of its ships due to storms and the inhospitable coast of Ireland.