The booty captured was substantial, Lancaster chartered Dutch and French ships that were also present there thus making the expedition a military and financial success.

[2][3] By virtue of the Iberian Union, the Anglo-Portuguese Treaty of 1373 was in abeyance, and as the Anglo–Spanish War was still ongoing, attacks on Portuguese shipping and colonies were a fair target for the English.

Remaining there until September, Portuguese and Spanish ships were plundered which although highly profitable had been a near disaster in terms of lives lost to storms and disease.

The place is surrounded by many small coral islands and rivers while Recife itself is protected by Fort São Jorge which lies on a spit of land which leads directly via a sandy isthmus to the next port of Olinda.

[3]: 51 [11] Now in possession of the area, Lancaster knew the Portuguese were preparing a counterattack so he strengthened Fort São Jorge (using the captured ordinance), which connected Recife with Olinda.

[10] The Portuguese however intended to drive the English away so made several attempts at retaking the town, but each time assaulting the fortified isthmus they were repelled with heavy losses.

[2][3]: 57  As well as Brazil wood the carracks cargo consisted of pepper, cloves, indigo, cinnamon, mace, Benzoin resin, frankincense, gum-lac, aloes, calicoes, silks, and rutile quartz blonde stones.

[1] Also of importance were new Portuguese rutters captured at Recife; Lancaster would use them to great effect for the first ever English East India company expedition in 1601.

[6] Philip II of Spain on hearing the news of the raid, as well as Walter Raleigh's capture of the settlement of Trinidad and the sack of Caracas by George Somers and Amyas Preston was enraged.

He held the notion that any attack must be answered by an appropriate response, since a failure to act would be taken by friends and foes alike as a sign of weakness, and lead ultimately to the ruin of his states.