three o'clock in the afternoon
Thanks to the care with which the provisions had been husbanded , and to the manner in which the officers and volunteers had from their private means supplemented the scanty stores , there was still a week 's provisions on board , and this , it was hoped , would suffice for their needs . The scanty supply of ammunition was a greater source of anxiety ; but they hoped that fresh supplies would be forthcoming , now that even the queen could no longer close her eyes to the urgent necessity of the case . As soon as the news arrived all the gentlemen in the town flocked on board the ships , and on the night of the 19th the queen 's ships and some of the privateers went to moorings behind Ram Head , so that they could make clear to sea ; and on the morning when the Spaniards sighted the Lizard , forty sail were lying ready for action under the headland . At three o'clock in the afternoon the lookout men on the hill reported a line of sails on the western horizon . Two wings were at first visible , which were gradually united as the topsails of those in the centre rose above the line of sea . As they arose it could be seen that the great fleet was sailing , in the form of a huge crescent , before a gentle wind . A hundred and fifty ships , large and small , were counted , as a few store ships bound for Flanders had joined the Armada for protection .