Mary I - Foreign Policy

What was the 1558 Militia Act?

- This laid down a system of Commissioners of Muster

- They were responsible for organising the recruitment of regional militias in wartime

What was the Arms Act of 1558?

- This established better procedures for supplying weapons to the royal forces

What were the weaknesses in Mary's defences?

- Standards of maintenance of the royal fleet had been allowed to slip

What was wrong with Mary's navy defences?

- She only had 3 serviceable warships as the others had been decomissioned

What did Mary do to improve the Navy?

- She began a major programme of rebuilding and refitting

How far did Mary improve the Navy?

- By 1558 there had been a return to the fleet level under Henry VIII

- 6 new ships were built and there was an annual peacetime payment of £14,000

What was the Treaty of Vaucelles?

- This was a truce between France and the Hapsburgs

When was the Treaty of Vaucelles?

- February 1556

What caused the Treaty of Vaucelles to end?

- September 1556

- Philip attacked the anti-Spanish Pope Paul IV, who was allied with the French

- England was immediately drawn into the war

What happened regarding the war in January 1557?

- 6,000 troops were sent to the Netherlands to help resist the French attack

- French provoked Mary into joining the war

What happened regarding the war in April 1557?

- French openly tolerated exiled English Protestants

- Rumours regarding the recapture of Calais

- French supported the invasion attempt of Protestant exile Thomas Stafford

How can the French invasion attempt be considered?

- Less powerful than the Mary Rose attack

- Arrested in 3 days

When did England declare war on France?

- June 7th 1557

What happened regarding the war in June 1557?

- Navy cleared the channel and patrolled the Atlantic

- Garrisons in Scotland were strengthened

When did Scottish Raids in England begin?

- July 1557

What happen regarding the war in August 1557?

- Troops were put on standby at the Calais Pale

How many troops were sent to aid the Spanish in August 1557?

- 7,000 to aid the 70,000 Spanish

When was the Battle of St Quentin and what happened at this battle?

- 10th August 1557

- Philip/Spanish defeated the French army

- Minimal English support needed

What did the French do in January 1558?

- Launched a surprise attack across the frozen marshes at Calais

How did the English forces compare to the French forces at Calais?

- 2000 English to 27,000

How was Calais taken?

- Taken in 3 weeks

- English sent 7000 and a fleet of 140 ships to attack

- only succeeded in capturing Le Conquet

What happened regarding the war in October 1558 - April 1559?

- Philip looked to bring the conflict to an end due to finances

Where did peace talks happen?

- Cateau-Cambresis

What was significant about Philip and the peace talks?

- He did not attempt to recover Calais for England

- Mary was dead at this point

What were the economic effects of the loss of Calais?

- P.S. Crowson argued that it was a 'crippling blow' for England due to the loss in trade

- Robert Titler argues that this is a vast exaggeration as the importance of stable merchants in Calais had been brought to an end by the long term decline in international markets.

What were the effects on image and morale due to the loss of Calais?

- Kings of England has claimed this land since 1347 - humiliating

- Protestant propagandists were quick to blame Mary, Catholicism and the marriage for this

- Without this propaganda the loss would be recovered from a lot quicker

What were the territorial effects of loosing Calais?

- Calais was the last territory on the French mainland that England controlled

- Little could be gained from owning it, and it was a questions as to when the French would take it back

What were the military effects of loosing Calais?

- Calais was used as a springboard to launch Henry VIII's attacks in the 1520s and 1540s

- Was difficult to maintain and expensive due to a permanent garrison

What were the diplomatic effects of loosing Calais?

- Often associated with the failed Anglo-Hapsburg alliance

- Mary was seen to betray England by relying on Spanish advisors