Archaeologists plan to discover whether a myth-shrouded plot of land on Northern Ireland's Causeway Coast contains the remains of hundreds of Spanish sailors who drowned when the Armada floundered.

According to local legend, an ancient graveyard near Dunluce Castle was used to give a Christian burial to more than 200 sailors whose bodies washed up on the coast when the La Girona warship sank in 1588.

Around 24 of the huge fleet Spanish King Philip II sent to invade England were wrecked in violent storms off the coast of Ireland.

Legendary: The graveyard, that could be the final resting place of hundreds of dead sailors, surrounds the ruins of St Cuthbert's, a church dating back to the 13th century (pictured)

The greatest loss of life came with the sinking of the La Girona. Of the 1,300 on board, only nine survived.

The 50 gun galley was smashed on rocks off Lacada Point near the landmark Giant's Causeway and bodies of many of the drowned sailors washed ashore along the coastline.

Archaeologists from Stormont's Department of the Environment are now planning to conduct a geophysical survey of a large unmarked plot in an old graveyard at nearby Dunluce in a bid to establish if it was used as a mass burial site for the Armada's victims.

The graveyard surrounds the ruins of St Cuthbert's, a church dating back to the 13th century.

Andrew Gault, one of the DoE archaeologists working on the project, said: 'There would have been hundreds of bodies washed up along this coastline and the local tradition is a lot of them were buried in St Cuthbert's graveyard and there's a specific area of the graveyard where local tradition would say that took place.'

Around 24 of the huge fleet Spanish King Philip II sent to invade England were wrecked in violent storms (illustrated left) off the coast of Ireland. The devastating Spanish loss was perceived as a great victory for Queen Elizabeth (pictured in contemporary painting right) and Protestantism back in England

THE SPANISH ARMADA: HOW KING PHILIP II LOST AGAINST QUEEN ELIZABETH The Spanish Armada's fleet of 150 ships sailed from Spain in July 1588. Its purpose was to boost Spain's power and overthrow Protestant England, led by Queen Elizabeth I. At the time, it was the largest fleet ever seen in Europe and Philip II of Spain considered it invincible. He intended to sail with his navy and army, a total of around 30,000 men, up the English Channel to link up with the forces led by the Duke of Parma in the Spanish Netherlands. Under the cover of darkness, the English set fireships adrift, using the tide to carry the blazing vessels into the massed Spanish fleet. Although the Spanish were prepared for this tactic and quickly slipped anchor, there were some losses and inevitable confusion (depiction of blazing ships pictured) From there they would invade England and bring the country under the Catholic rule of Spain. The Armada sailed up the Channel to Calais where it was met by a collection of English vessels. Under the cover of darkness, the English set fireships adrift, using the tide to carry the blazing vessels into the Spanish fleet. Although the Spanish were aware of this tactic and quickly slipped anchor, there were some losses. On Monday, July 29, the two fleets met in battle. The English were victorious, although the Spanish losses were not great. Three ships were reported sunk, one captured, and four more ran aground. Nevertheless the Armada's leader, the Duke of Medina Sedonia, decided that the Armada must return to Spain. But the English blocked the Channel, so the only route open was north around the tip of Scotland, and down the coast of Ireland. It was then that the English weather played its role: Storms scattered the Spanish ships, resulting in heavy losses. Half of its ships and three-quarters of its men were decimated. England's victory was understood as a sign of divine approval for the Protestant cause. Church services were held throughout the country, and a commemorative medal struck, with the words, 'God blew and they were scattered' inscribed on it. Sources: Various Advertisement

The greatest loss of life came with the sinking of the La Girona. Of the 1,300 on board, only nine survived. Its was smashed on rocks off Lacada Point (marked)

'We can see there's a very conspicuous area within the graveyard where there weren't any headstones erected and it's fairly regular and rectangular in shape and it's quite sunken and hollow.

'So that's a bit of smoking gun as to where you would expect if there was a mass grave to be it would be in that type of location.

'So we are hoping to do some further investigation in the future using geophysical survey, which is a non-destructive non-intrusive technique, to see whether there is evidence of actually a big burial cut, a big grave cut in that area.

'That will help to firm up exactly whether there is a Spanish Armada era grave in that location - so that's a really interesting part of the site's story.'

The grave examination is part of a wider project to unearth the lost history of Dunluce.

The once thriving merchant town, sitting in the shadow of the imposing medieval Dunluce Castle, was destroyed by fire in the mid-1640s and lay buried for more than four centuries before archaeologists began uncovering its secrets.

Some of the streets and homes of Dunluce have already been rediscovered and focus has now shifted to the remnants of St Cuthbert's parish church.

According to legend, an ancient graveyard near Dunluce Castle (pictured) was used to give a Christian burial to more than 200 sailors whose bodies washed up on the coast when the La Girona warship sank in 1588