Henry VII Foreign Policy

Question 1

1487 - 92 Breton Crisis

Answer 1

The Duke of Brittany (Francis II) was old and had no male heir (2 daughters). Anne of Beaujeu, older sister acting as regent for the young King Charles VIII, wished for King Charles VIII to marry Anne Of Brittany, so as to inherit Brittany. This alarmed Europe as France was already very strong. When France sent troops into Brittany in May 1487, Maximilian sent his own (1,500) as did Spain (1,000). The Bretons and the allied were defeated by the French in July 1488. Henry owed Francis a debt of gratitude after Brittany provided him with asylum during the War of the Roses, so defending Brittany was paramount.

Question 2

Feb. 1489 - Treaty of Redon and the Treaty of Dordrecht

Answer 2

Redon - Henry agreed to send 6,000 troops to defend Breton independence. In return, Anne pledged to pay for the troops and not to marry without Henry’s consent.

Dordrecht - Henry agreed to aid Maximilian (heir to the HRE) with 3,000 troops, to relieve a garrison under siege by the French/Flemish. Maximilian did not honour his side of the bargain to help with troops with Brittany.

Question 3

1489 - Medina del Campo

Answer 3

Signed Medina del Campo with Spain (Ferdinand and Isabella), promising to defend each other, to not make separate deals with France, to not support foreign threats, to establish equal trading rights, and to set up the marriage of Catherine of Aragon and Arthur, Prince of Wales.

Question 4

WARBECK - 1490 (Burgundy)

Answer 4

Proclaimed King of England by Margaret Of Burgundy, Warbeck hides out here and receives support.

Question 5

Jan. 1491 - Maximilian marries Anne of Brittany by proxy (OR DOES HE?)

Answer 5

The situation deteriorated further when Anne of Brittany is forced to marry Charles VIII of France in December 1491.

Question 6

WARBECK - 1491 (Ireland)

Answer 6

Upon landing in Ireland, the Irish noble class - the Kildaires - proclaim Warbeck to be the King of England. He is crowned in Ireland as Edward VI.

Question 7

WARBECK - 1492 (France)

Answer 7

Warbeck arrives in France, which is promptly invaded by Henry VII. The treaty of Etaples is signed, in which France is not to harbour pretenders and must pay the English a pension - £159,000. Warbeck is forced to leave.

Question 8

(Nov. 1492) The Treaty of Etaples

Answer 8

France agrees to give financial compensation (£159,000 pension) and promises not to harbour pretenders for England to remove all their troops from French soil (except Calais). Although Brittany had been lost, France was closed off to Yorkists.

Question 9

WARBECK - 1493 (Burgundy again)

Answer 9

Warbeck returns to Burgundy. Henry VII puts a trade embargo on Burgundy in response, however this has a large negative impact domestically.

Question 10

1494 - 95 - Conflict in Italy between France and the HRE + Spain begins.

Answer 10

HRE + Spain also had an alliance of Italian powers led by Pope Alexander VI, known as the League of Venice. It was a good idea for Henry VII to let the war continue, as it distracted major powers of Europe away from him and Perkin Warbeck (who they do not have the time or funds to help challenge the English throne).

Question 11

WARBECK - 1495 (Scotland)

Answer 11

Warbeck arrives in Scotland, and is welcomed by King James IV with a marriage to his cousin, as well as the proclamation as King of England.

Question 12

WARBECK - Sept. 1496 (Invasion)

Answer 12

Scotland invades England, with Warbeck heading up the Scottish forces. England decimates them and counter-invades, however the war gets expensive and both parties call it off.

Question 13

1496 - Intercursus Magnus

Answer 13

Burgundy had previously been harboring Perkin Warbeck and so Henry retaliated with banning dutch trade which hurt English merchants due to the important nature of Antwerp’s port for the English cloth trade. Once Warbeck left relations improved and the Intercursus Magnus was signed which lifted the trade ban with favorable conditions for English merchants and had burgundy agree to stop harboring pretenders.

Question 14

1498 - Start of Italian War (again)

Answer 14

War between France and Spain over Naples begins, lasting until 1504.

Question 15

1501 - Marriage

Answer 15

Marriage of Catherine of Aragon and Prince Arthur

Question 16

1502 - RIP Arthur

Answer 16

Arthur dies, Catherine and Henry marriage proposed in 1503, Spain accepts as Franco-Spanish relations worsen.

Question 17

1503 - Scottish Marriage

Answer 17

Marriage between James IV of Scotland and Margaret Tudor (Henry’s daughter).

Question 18

1504 - Isabella of Castille Dies (Start of Castilian Succession Crisis)

Answer 18

Queen of Castille dies, succession was not clear, as it could be Ferdinand or Joanna (their daughter, who Isabella gave Castile in her will), who was married to Philip ‘The Handsome’, son of Maximilian, Holy Roman Emperor. They had a 4-year-old son, named Charles (later Charles V, king of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor). Henry decides on alliance with Philip.

Question 19

1504 - Blois Treaty

Answer 19

September 1504 - Ferdinand signs treaty of Blois with France, ending conflict in Italy over Naples. Married Louis XII’s niece in 1505. France and Ferdinand of Aragon in an alliance. With French support, Ferdinand had the potential to force the Castilian nobility to accept him.

Question 20

1504 - Blois Treaty

Answer 20

September 1504 - Ferdinand signs treaty of Blois with France, ending conflict in Italy over Naples. Married Louis XII’s niece in 1505. France and Ferdinand of Aragon in an alliance. With French support, Ferdinand had the potential to force the Castilian nobility to accept him.

Question 21

1505 - Loans

Answer 21

Henry gave massive loans to Maximilian and Philip, e.g. a loan of £138,000 to Philip.

Question 22

January 1506 - Philip ‘The Handsome’ shipwrecks in England

Answer 22

After the death of Isabella of Castille Phillip set sail with a large fleet to secure his claim there but was shipwrecked and ‘taken in’ by Henry. An alliance with Phillip was important for Henry in response to the Spanish and French alliance and Phillip held the Yorkist claimant Edmund de la Pole and trade with burgundy was important for the English economy. The resulting Malus Intercursus was signed and gave England very favorable trading rights in Burgundy, the return of Edmund de la Pole to England and Henry agreed to marry Phillip’s sister.

Question 23

1506 - Philip Dies

Answer 23

September 1506 - Philip dies of typhoid fever, leaving Ferdinand in control in Spain (he claimed Joanna had gone mad with grief and sent her to a convent) and 4-year-old Charles ruling Burgundy.