Bonaventure (also known as Elizabeth Bonaventure) was a 47-gun galleon purchased by the Royal Navy in 1567. She was the third vessel to bear the name. She was commanded by Sir Francis Drake during his 1587 attack on Cadiz, and a year later was part of the fleet to face the Spanish Armada. Service history The ship took part in the Great Expedition by privateer Francis Drake, which raided the Spanish New World in 1585 and 1586. As part of the Expedition, Bonaventure was present for Drake's assaults on Santo Domingo, Cartagena de Indias and San Augustin. Attack on Cadiz (1587) After the execution in February 1587 of Mary, Queen of Scots, Philip II of Spain decided that it was time to invade England, and started to prepare his armada. Bonaventure, under the command of Francis Drake was sent as flagship of the English fleet to try to prevent and/or delay the armada. The fleet numbered roughly twenty-six vessels, which included three more of the Queen's ships in addition to Bonaventure; Golden Lion, Dreadnought and Rainbow, three tall ships of the Levant Company, seven men-of-war of 150–200 tons and eleven or twelve smaller vessels. His orders from the Queen were: "to prevent the joining together of the King of Spain's fleet out of their different ports. To keep victuals from them. To follow them in case they should come out towards England or Ireland. To cut off as many of them as he could, and prevent their landing. To set upon the West Indian ships as they came or went." She immediately changed her mind and issued less aggressive orders, however Drake had set sail from England on 12 April 1587 before receiving these orders, and thus acted upon the first. Having heard that the ships were gathering in the harbour at Cádiz, Drake decided to hunt them there. On his arrival seventeen days later, they discovered the inner and outer harbours full of the enemy vessels. After a short discussion with his vice-admiral, Captain William Borough, Drake decided against waiting until the following morning, and led his fleet in. A squadron of galleys commanded by Don Pedro de Acuña were in a state of readiness, and spread across the harbour while one of their number sailed to challenge Drake's oncoming fleet. Before it could get close enough to hail the English, Bonaventure and possibly some of the other vessels