Foreign Affairs under Elizabeth

Question 1

Why did Elizabeth believe that the question of marriage was a personal issue for her?

Answer 1

She believed the issue of succession lay within royal prerogative and were not areas for discussion either in Parliament or round the Council table.

Question 2

Summarise the 4 suitors

Answer 2

1. Robert Dudley - the prospect of this horrified Sir William Cecil whose own influence would have been eroded. This marriage would have created political risks, a consequence of the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of his first wife.
2. Phillip II of Spain who offered his hand in a polite gesture to Elizabeth but probably lacked serious intent partly because of his profound Catholicism.
3. The archduke Ferdinand and Charles, sons of the Emperor Ferdinand. However they were both Catholic.
4. Prince Erik of Sweden, a Protestant suitor, to whom Elizabeth gave little encouragement.

Question 3

Why would a marriage to Robert Dudley have been unwise?

Answer 3

Because Cecil’s influence would have been eroded and it would have been a political risk, because of the circumstances with the death of his last wife.

Question 4

Why was there considerable pressure for Elizabeth to marry in 1563?

Answer 4

Elizabeth had been stricken with smallpox in October 1562 and for a time it seemed she might die, thereby creating a full scale succession crisis. If the queen died, the country could go into civil war, there could be a foreign invasion and there would be religious strife.

Question 5

How did Lady Catherine Grey disgrace herself in Elizabeth’s eyes?

Answer 5

Through a secret marriage to the Earl of Hertford and the couple were imprisoned in the Tower by Elizabeth. The marriage was annulled in 1562.

Question 6

What happened when Parliament pressed Elizabeth on the issue of marriage in 1566?

Answer 6

Elizabeth banished Leicester and the Earl of Pembroke from the Presence Chamber, publicly rebuked other members of the Council and summoned members of both Houses of Parliament.she reasserted her view that marriage and succession were matters of the royal prerogative.

Question 7

Who succeeded Elizabeth and how was this arranged?

Answer 7

The execution of her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots meant that her son, James VI of Scotland had the best hereditary claim, even though the Stuart’s had been excluded from the succession in Henry VIII’s will.

Question 8

When did Mary Queen of Scots flee to England, and why?

Answer 8

Her marriage to Earl of Darnley was a disaster, with Mary being implicated in her husbands murder. A subsequent third marriage to Darnley’s presumed murderer, the Earl of Bothwell, set off a brief civil war, the outcome of which saw Mary flee to England in 1567.

Question 9

What happened in 1570 and how did Elizabeth’s government react?

Answer 9

The problem of people wanting Mary as heir grew worse following the excommunication of Elizabeth in 1570 which in the eyes of the Catholic Church absolved Elizabeth’s Catholic subjects from the need to obey their sovereign. This frightened Elizabeth and the Council, so they tightened the treason law.

Question 10

List the Catholic plots against Elizabeth, and their significance

Answer 10

1. 1571 Ridolfi: involved a conspiracy for Mary to marry Duke of Norfolk and overthrow Elizabeth. This allowed Burghley to ensure the execution of Norfolk for treason.
2. 1573 Throckmorton: foreign landing in Sussex followed by overthrow of Elizabethand her replacement by Mary. Foiled by the efficiency of Sir Francis Walsingham’s espionage network. This led to the creation of the Bond of Association. It worsened Anglo-Spanish relations and tightened conditions of Mary’s captivity.
3. 1585 Parry: plot to assassinate the queen. Led to the acceleration of parliamentary proceedings on a bill to ensure the queens safety.
4. 1586 Babington: Mary complicit in a plot to assassinate Elizabeth but exposed by Walsinghams code breaker, Thomas Phelippes. This en

Question 11

Who was Francis Walsingham?

Answer 11

A Cambridge educated lawyer who began his royal career as a diplomat and was promoted to secretary in 1573, when he joined the Council. He was concerned with diplomacy and espionage. He was a Protestant who enjoyed close connections with many who shared his religious views.

Question 12

Why was the execution of Mary Queen of Scots not a simple affair?

Answer 12

Elizabeth was reluctant to press for the execution of another appointed monarch. Several of those commissioned to try her pleaded illness. Many feared regicide, others were concerned to condemn the mother of their future monarch to death.

Question 13

Outline the four reasons for deteriorating relations between the countries in the 1560s

Answer 13

Anglo-Spanish relations deteriorated by the end of the 1560s because:

1) Trading activity of John Hawkins. Who attempted to break the Spanish trading monopoly in Caribbean and infuriated Spanish interests that in September 1568 his fleet was blockaded in the Mexican port of San Juan de Ulúa and only two ships escaped.
2) Situation in the Netherlands. Philip II wanted tighter form of political organisation in Netherlands under more direct Spanish control, which would help to root out heresy. Liz under pressure from her Protestant councillors to aid Dutch Protestants (who feared danger), but she was reluctant to take action having suffered heavily from French adventure. She had qualms about aiding rebels who were fighting sovereign authority.
3) English found opportunity to harass the Spanish. When, in November 1568, a storm forced several Spanish vessels, carrying 400,000 florins which was intended to pay the army of the Duke of Alba, Philips general in the Netherlands, to seek shelter in English ports, Elizabeth impounded the money.
4) The breakdown in Anglo-Spanish and Anglo-Dutch trade, Philips encouragement to the Northern Rebellion in 1569 and the Ridolfi Plot in 1571, and the excommunication of Elizabeth in 1570, had all served to sour relations

Question 14

Who were the Sea Beggars and how did they cause an issue?

Answer 14

Dutch pirates licensed by the rebel leader William of Orange. They were expelled from English ports and forced to land in the Dutch port of Brielle and their occupation of the port, unchecked by Spanish garrison, sparked full scale revolt against Spanish rule.

Question 15

What happened in the Netherlands in 1576 and why did this have anything to do with Spain and England?

Answer 15

All of the provinces of the Netherlands had risen against what they saw as atrocities by the Spanish army, collectively they produced the Pacification of Ghent, which called for the expulsion of all foreign troops and the restoration of the provinces’ autonomy, a situation favoured by Liz

Question 16

Why did events in the Netherlands concern Elizabeth (how did the country become divided?)?

Answer 16

The provinces quarrelled amongst themselves and the French were prepared to invade the Netherlands. Liz did not want this, and she even contemplated marrying the French Duke of Anjou to retain English influence in the Netherlands.
The situation got worse, due to divisions among the provinces, which meant that there were two separate entities; the Union of Utrecht (northern and Protestant), and the Union of Arras (southern and Catholic).
The Spanish made their peace with the Union of Arras, thereby creating the basis by which the new governor-general, Duke of Parma, could begin to reconquest of the northern provinces.
To make matters worse, in 1580, Spanish power was strengthened by the annexation of Portugal.

Question 17

How did Elizabeth show her anti-Spanish feelings?

Answer 17

She adopted a more overly anti-Spanish position by;
1) Supporting the Portuguese pretender, Don Antonio
2) Knighting Francis Drake on circumnavigating the globe (this irritated the Spanish)
3) Treating the Spanish ambassador contemptuously
Though some may be trivial, such issues served to heighten tensions between the two countries.

Question 18

Who was Don Antonio?

Answer 18

Don Antonio was a member of the Portuguese royal family. He was a claimant to the Portuguese throne and his claim was from time to time supported by Liz. She was cynical of him, but saw him as a possible weapon against Spain. However, his claim was flawed in that he was illegitimate, which limited his usefulness to Liz.

Question 19

Why did events in the Netherlands after 1580 really start to concern Elizabeth?

Answer 19

Parma’s reconquest of the north gained momentum. Leaving only provinces of Holland and Zeeland in Protestant hands. Along with this, the rebel leader William of Orange was assassinated in 1584. Phillip II and the Catholic league in France came to an agreement in the Treaty of Joinville at the end of 1584. This alarmed Liz because the Guise Family led the Catholic league and with the Guises as his allies, Philip no longer had political motive to prevent him from supporting Mary, Queen of Scots.

Question 20

What was the Treaty ofNonsuch(1585)?

Answer 20

Alliance with the Dutch Protestant Rebels. Sent troops to the Netherlands under the command of the Earl of Leicester.

Question 21

What happened when England sent troops to the Netherlands?

Answer 21

The troops were badly and irregularly paid, and were so ill disciplined that they alienated the Dutch. The Dutch felt betrayed when two offices, Stanley and Yorke, deserted and joined Parma. The English commanders quarrelled among themselves. Leicester quarrelled with the Dutch, Dutch thought Liz was trying to do a deal with Parma behind their backs

Question 22

Describe the events of the Spanish Armada

Answer 22

Took over two years to come into fruition. Philip convinced himself he was doing Gods work, and that he was engaged in a Catholic crusade. The Spanish fleet, or Armada, was huge, with many vessels and their crews having been commandeered from the Portuguese. The sailing of the Armada was delayed as a result of a successful English attack on Spanish ships in the harbour at Cadiz in April 1587. Armada finally set sail on 22 July 1588, its objective to reach the port of Gravelines, in the Spanish Netherlands, where it was intended that the Spanish army, commanded by Parma, would board ships so that an invasion of England might be launched.

Question 23

Why did the Armada fail (there are multiple factors)?

Answer 23

Armada was sighted off the coast of Cornwall on 29 July and was engaged in indecisive battle in the English Channel from 30 July to 6 Aug. Due to unfavourable winds and bad storms, Armada was forced to try to return to Spain through hazardous route of sailing North towards Scotland and then back south to the west of Ireland. This cost many more ships lost in storms.

Question 24

What were the differences between the contrasting views on the war with Spain in the later years?

Answer 24

Many believed that England was involved in a war for both national and religious survival against a universal Catholic conspiracy. This view was shared by Lord Burghley, who saw Spain as engaged in a war of conquest. English policy makers all shared an assumption that national and/or religious considerations were paramount. However there were strategic differences. Some took a ‘minimalist’ view, which in effect concentrated limited resources in the Netherlands to confront the Duke of Parma. Others such as John Hawkins favoured a more expansive naval campaign, which they argued could be self-financing, while accepting that a land campaign in the Netherlands was also necessary.

Question 25

What happened in Cadiz and what did this do for Anglo-Spanish relations?

Answer 25

From 1595, the English made three attacks on mainland Spain and its colonies. These included a spectacular but short-lived victory with the capture and occupation of Cadiz and the sinking of four galleons. However there was no strategic follow up. Hawkins and Drake advocated an attack on Panama, which they regarded as the weakest point in the Spanish empire, but the attack failed and both died at sea.
The capture of Cadiz humiliated Philip II and prevented Spanish merchant vessels from sailing to the West Indies, which proved a blow to the Spanish. It also provoked Philip into an uncharacteristically in cautious response. In 1596 he again ordered a fleet to invade England, however by the time it set sail it was well into autumn and was defeated by storms.

Question 26

What happened in the Netherlands in the final years of Elizabeth’s reign?

Answer 26

For years after 1588, the main arena for the war on land between England/Spain remained in the Netherlands. After Leicester’s failures, relationships between the Dutch and English crown improved. In 1589, Sir Francis Vere was made commander of English forces and proved highly capable, and had a good relationship with Dutch leader Maurice of Nassau. This combined with the problems that the Spanish faced, in France, ensured that gradually the territories that had been lost to the Duke of Parma, were recovered.
The cost to the English of maintaining a force in the Netherlands was high, but the Dutch paid a share of running costs. By 1594, the Spanish had been expelled from all lands of the northern Netherlands. The Dutch revolt had proved successful and some of the credit was due to the English Crown. The northern Netherlands became an independent state; the southern Netherlands, while remaining under Spanish sovereignty, also achieved a degree of autonomy. Therefore no major foreign power was entrenched in the Netherlands