Henry VIII Foreign Policy Flashcards
1509 - 25 Anti-French Henrician Foreign Policy
Not racist, just don’t like ‘em.
1512 - 14 First French War
Henry invades expecting help from Ferdinand of Spain but is let down.
In 1513 Henry VIII succeeded at the Battle of the Spurs, capturing Therouanne and Tournai.
Henry is forced to make peace with France after Ferdinand and Maximilian do the same, but this was probably positive as England did not have the money to continue the campaign, and the Battle of Spurs had been successful enough to make England look like a credible military power.
HVIII kept Therouanne and Tournai, they received a pension from France, Wolsey was made Bishop of Tournai, his sister married Louis XII. Wolsey was rewarded with the masterful treaty by being made Chancellor on 24 Dec 1515.
1513 - Battle of Flodden
The Scottish attempted an invasion whilst Henry was preoccupied with the First French War. This in part was due to the long-standing alliance between the French and the Scottish against England.
The Scots were dealt a crushing defeat. 5,000-14,000 killed, and James IV and many Scottish nobles die in the fighting. James IV was succeeded by his 1 year old son, James V.
1515 - Louis XII dies childless
He is succeeded by his cousin Francis I of France (1515-1547). Louis’ death ended the alliance between England and France which had been secured through the marriage of Mary to Louis.
1516 - Ferdinand dies
His grandson, Charles I, inherited the throne of Spain.
1517 - Peace of Cambrai
Maximilian made peace with Francis around the same time of the Treaty of Noyon (Where Charles and Francis also made peace). This effectively made HVIII isolated.
1518 - Treaty Of London
Pope Leo was becoming worried about the rise of the Ottoman Empire (Turks). He wanted a Christian League of European Kings and sent Campeggio as ambassador to England. Campeggio and Wolsey worked together, to great success. Wolsey managed to largely take over negotiations, resulting in the Treaty of London: A treaty signed by over 20 rulers of Europe promising not to fight each other and to come to the aid of any member attacked by the Turks. Wolsey’s domination created the impression that England, not the Pope, had brokered the treaty and so it was a huge diplomatic success for Henry VIII. However, the treaty’s power was undermined by the death of Maximilian less than a year later.
1518 - Anglo-French agreement
2 days after the Treaty of London, there was an agreement that:
1. Tournai would be returned to France.
2. HVIII and Wolsey would receive a pension for the lost land (over the course of Henry’s reign he gained £730,000 in pension from France, but his wars with France cost him £3.5 million!)
3. HVIII’s daughter Mary would marry the Dauphin of France, renewing the marriage connection.
4. The French Duke of Albany was to be kept out of Scotland.
Charles becomes Holy Roman Emperor
Charles was already King of Spain (due to his mother Joana the Mad not being fit to rule) and he also inherited the Netherlands from his father (Philip the Handsome) in 1506. So when Charles was elected as Holy Roman Emperor following the death of his grandfather Maximilian, it was clear he would play a major role in the years to come.
1520 - Field of the Cloth of Gold
A meeting which took place over more than two weeks in June 1520 between Henry VIII and Francis I. The meeting is estimated to have cost the treasury £15,000 (the equivalent of a years revenue) and was intended to improve relations between the new Kings as Francis sought Henry as an ally against Charles however nothing much was achieved as by 1522 English armies were invading France after conflict arose from Francis and Charles.
1521 - Wolsey’s innovative Subsidy Act
England was a relatively small power in Europe and therefore (unlike France) did not have a large standing army or the financial infrastructure to support lengthy campaigns. In response to this Wolsey attempted to reform taxation and introduced a subsidy based on land value as a form of wartime tax, whilst this succeeded in generating extra revenue for the treasury it was insufficient for Henry’s grand design.
1521 - Treaty of Bruges
A secret treaty of alliance between England and Spain (Charles V) signed late in the year 1521. A pledge that:
- Henry VIII would help Charles invade France unless they made peace.
- Charles would compensate Henry (and Wolsey) if they lost their 1518 French pension for helping him.
1522 - 25 Second French War
In 1523, The Duke of Bourbon rebelled against Francis, putting England in a good position in the War. The Duke of Suffolk was ordered to march on Paris with 11,000 troops, in anticipation of meeting the forces of Burgundy and Charles. But Bourbon failed to raise enough support and fled, and England was defeated. It was a £400,000 expensive disaster.
Feb. 1525 - Battle of Pavia
The battle was a turning point, forcing England from an anti-French to pro-French diplomacy. Charles V routed the French, conquered Milan and captured Francis. Wolsey and Henry VIII tried to persuade Charles to conquer France with them, Henry could become King of France and Charles could marry Mary - but all Charles cared about was his victory in Italy.
1525 - Treaty of the More
As Charles was not looking likely to help with an invasion, England, with Wolsey negotiating, agreed to give up some territorial claims on France, receiving in return a pension from the French of £20,000 a year. England also agreed to work to secure the release of King Francis of France, then held prisoner by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain.
Sept. 1526 - League of Cognac
France, Italy, Florence, Venice and the Pope as a league against Charles. England joined as ‘protector’ but not full member, therefore not committing to any huge expenses. The Anglo-French alliance was reaffirmed with the Treaty of Westminster in 1527.
1527 - Treaty of Amiens
In May 1527, Henry made public his desire to divorce Catherine of Aragon but in that same month, Charles V sacked Rome and captured the Pope. Henry agreed with the Treaty of Amiens, to fight with Francis against Charles.
1527 - Treaty of Amiens
In May 1527, Henry made public his desire to divorce Catherine of Aragon but in that same month, Charles V sacked Rome and captured the Pope. Henry agreed with the Treaty of Amiens, to fight with Francis against Charles.
1529 - (Second) Peace of Cambrai
Ended the war between Francis I of France and the Habsburg Holy Roman emperor Charles V. Francis renounced his claims in Italy and Henry VIII was left isolated.
Henry pursues an alliance with the Schmalkaldic League
Henry had used approaches to the Lutheran German princes as means to pressure the Pope to grant the divorce (to prevent the spread of reformists).
1534 - Move to Protestantism threatens a Catholic crusade
Starts to fear of an excommunication (actually happens in 1538). The Schmalkaldic League wished for England to adopt a Lutheran doctrine in return for support, but Henry feared this would result in action from the Pope.
In July 1536 the Ten Articles were Protestant and vaguely Lutheran enough that it did not put the League off, but also obscure enough not to provoke action from the Catholic powers.
1537 - James V of Scotland marries Madeleine and then Mary of Guise (of France)
If France became hostile they had a backdoor into England.
Much of Henry’s money in the late 30s had to be dedicated to fortifying against a potential Catholic attack.
After his excommunication in 1538, Henry had to be much more wary of the potential of an invasion of England from Charles or Francis following papal calls for a Catholic crusade. The threat meant Cromwell had to spend some of the proceeds of the dissolution of Monasteries on fortifications.
June 1539 - Act of 6 Articles
Conservative in tone, transubstantiation was confirmed in all but name, the value of confession confirmed and clerical marriage condemned. This was clearly to appease Francis and Charles.
28 July 1540 - Cromwell is executed to appease Francis
Cromwell was pinned as the person responsible for Henry’s reformist policies, so Francis asked for his removal as the price for peace.
1542 - Battle of Solway Moss
The English army won a major victory at Solway Moss. James V died 5 days later, leaving his infant daughter Mary on the throne. Many Scottish nobles were captured at Solway Moss, and Henry pressed for the installation of a pro-English party in Scotland.
The Scottish nobles signed the Treaty of Greenwich, and agreed to be freed with the promised marriage of Henry’s son Edward and Mary of Scotland. But the nobles went back on the agreement and refused the marriage.
This led to the period where England tried to force Scottish co-operation, ultimately leading in increased tensions, called “the rough wooing”.
1544 - Third War with France
Henry led an army of 40,000 into France. They captured Boulogne by September, which was mainly a propaganda victory. The conquest faltered as Charles made peace with Francis.
1545 - France attempts invasion
They landed in the Isle of Wight, but not much progress was otherwise made.
