henry vii foreign policy (more in depth)

foreign policy aims

• Henry's foreign policy aims = straightforward
• no grand plans to assert English power in Europe, wanted to avoid War, more concerned with maintaining positive relations + defence.
  He wanted to ensure;

1. National Security
2. Recognition of the Tudor Dynasty
3. Defence of English trading interest

French invasion of Brittany

• Following an invasion in 1487 it looked like the French would gain complete control of Brittany
• alarmed Henry -> 1489 he summoned Parliament to grant him extraordinary revenue (£48,000) to raise an army against the French, even though he feared antagonisation so early in his reign, demonstrating why he didn't rush into it quickly

why did Henry want to help Brittany

• sense of obligation to the Bretons: Duke of Brittany offered him exile from Yorkists
• Fear that direct control of Brittany could increase a potential French threat to England; would leave France with the control of almost the entire southern shore of the channel

Treaty of Redon

England + Brittany agreed to Treaty of Redon 1489:

• Duchess Anne = pay for a small English army to defend Brittany from the French threat
• At the same time, Henry tried to strengthen his position by an alliance with Maximilian, the Holy Roman emperor elect, who had contracted a marriage-by-proxy alliance with Anne -> had no desire for the Brittany to fall into French hands

english defence of brittany

• English army went to Brittany but Anne, fearing the futility of prolonged resistance to France, surrendered and reluctantly married Charles VIII, leaving the English army marooned in Brittany + Maximillian lost interest in the matter
  --> first foreign conquest: H = suffered an immediate set back

Treaty of Etaples

• recovered by launching an invasion into France in 1492, and they quickly sought a peace settlement, as he knew Charles VIII was more interested in launching an invasion with Italy
• Treaty of Etaples 1492: Charles VIII agreed to:
• withdraw his support for the pretender Perkin Warbeck
• pay a pension to Henry to compensate him for the expense of having recruited an army for invasion (£5000 a year - 5% of Henry's annual income)
  --> Big win for Henry; ensured a period of relative cordiality in Anglo-French relations + returned home as a conquering hero

Why was Burgundy important to England?

Bulk of England's exports particularly cloth came through the ports of the Netherlands eg Antwerp + Bruges, which came under Burgundy's jurisdiction
→ important for commercial reasons that good relations were maintained

importance of Margaret of Burgundy

• the presence of Margaret of Burgundy, sister of Richard III who Henry usurped + leader of the Yorkist cause = complicated the relationship
• Margaret enlisted the support of:
• Maximilian (husband + president of the Holy Roman Empire)
• his son Phillip (handed jurisdiction of the Netherlands)
  → Anglo-Burgundy relations deteriorated as a result of the hospitality that Maximillian and Phillip were offering Perkin Warbeck

Trade embargo with Burgundy

• Henry put an embargo on English trade with Burgundy in 1492 as they were offering Warbeck hospitality
• BUT, this brought 2 of Henry's foreign policy objectives - securing the dynasty + establishing trade, into conflict with each other → showing how he was prepared to sacrifice the commercial interests of London for his dynastic interests, hurting his popularity at home

Intercursus Magnus

• Intercursus Magnus ('Great Intercourse'): after Warbeck left Burgundy, Henry and Phillip = able to agree for the trade embargo to come to an end in 1496
  = major commercial treaty between England and the Duchy of Burgundy which restored normal trading links between the two

Intercursus Malus

• 1504: death of Isabella, Queen of Castille-> Treaty of Windsor
• led to a new trade agreement, Intercursus Malus ('Evil Intercourse') in 1506, where H demanded a trade deal that would give a much stronger position to English traders in the Netherlands
• this was so unfair to Burgundians that it was never enforced
• Phillip and Maximillian agreed to hand over their Yorkist fugitive, the Earl of Suffolk, who H promptly imprisoned in the tower

Treaty of Medina del Campo

Treaty of Medina del Campo 1489: Anglo-Spanish alliance gave Henry multiple important security measures:

• offered mutual protection in the event of an attack
• Agreed not to harbour rebels/pretenders
• Arranged a marriage alliance between H's son Arthur + Catherine, Princess of Aragon
  BUT, it was not implemented smoothly;
• Ferdinand = reluctant to let the marriage go ahead as Henry's stability was threatened by Perkin Warbeck
• Arguments over the size of Catherine's dowry

death of Arthur

• While marriage between Arthur + Catherine did go ahead in 1501, Arthur's death in 1502 led to more problems;
• H immediately suggested that Catherine should marry his 2nd son Prince Henry but Ferdinand was reluctant to agree: little need for an English alliance + marriage would need an expensive papal dispensation
• H lost enthusiasm for the marriage in 1504 during the Castilian Succession Crisis when the death of Isabella made Ferdinand a less significant political figure
• During the resultant succession struggle, H chose to support Phillip + Juana > Ferdinand

Treaty of Windsor

• 1506: Juana + husband Phillip = forced to take refuge in England when their ship was wrecked at sea, and H was able to take advantage of his guests' situation
• Established Treaty of Windsor 1506 which secured a stronger relationship with J and P:
• Intercursus Malus restored Anglo-Burgundy trade relations
• Return of Earl of Suffolk further secured Henry's dynasty
• Proposed marriage alliance between himself + Phillip's sister (but never happened)

death of Phillip of Burgundy

• 1506: Phillip of Burgundy = died
• Juana = driven mad by her grief (known as 'Juana the mad')
  --> Ferdinand became regent of Castille --> H was diplomatically isolated again, marriage between H8 + Catherine = stopped

why was Scotland a threat to England?

• vast, rugged countryside made invasion difficult
• traditional French-Scottish alliance ('Auld alliance') left them vulnerable
• threat of border raids necessitated 2 costly permanent garrisons in Berwick + Carlisle

King James IV and Perkin Warbeck

• 1495/6; young King James IV came to power + offered Perkin Warbeck hospitality, receiving a pension + aristocratic marriage.
• gave him a small army to cross the border into England
• was easily defeated, BUT this attempt led H to raise a large army to launch an invasion in Scotland
  → Cornish rebellion over increased taxes the next year

improvement of Anglo-Scottish relations

• James had no use for Warbeck -> released him to his execution
• Treaty of Ayton 1497: Marriage alliance between James + Henry's daughter Margaret
• Treaty of Perpetual Peace 1502: solidified relations until the end of H's reign, though struggle picked up again for his son H8

why was Ireland a threat to England

• H's power in Ireland only extended to the Pale (the area of land which surrounded Dublin) - rest of Ireland was governed by independent chiefs
• Earl of Kildare = feared by Henry as he had Yorkist sympathies + Ireland = springboard for invasion attempts:
• Supported Lambert Simnel: crowned him King of Ireland in 1486
• Supported Perkin Warbeck in 1491

how did Henry try to secure Ireland: 1494

• Appointed his infant son Henry as Lieutenant of Ireland + Sir Edward Poynings as his deputy in 1494
• initially successful in establishing royal authority via threat of force/ use of bribery:
• 'Poynings Law' = passed by Irish Parliament in 1495: Ireland could not pass any law without English approval
• but this strategy became too expensive for H following the response to PW's invasion - forced to recall Poynings + depend on the cheap option of using Kildare as his deputy

how did Henry try to secure Ireland: 1496

• 1496: Kildare decided there was no benefit in supporting Yorkist causes and decided to serve H loyally
  --> by 1500 H had luckily managed to secure some level of authority over Ireland

Marriage alliances: Prince Arthur

• Planned to maintain an alliance with Spain by securing a marriage alliance with Catherine of Aragon
• Marriage went ahead but Arthur died a year later

Marriage alliances: Prince Henry

• Prince Henry sought a marriage alliance with Catherine of Aragon

Marriage alliances: Princess Margaret (H7 daughter)

Married to James IV of Scotland; success as strengthened Anglo-Scottish relations until the end of his reign

Marriage alliances: Princess Mary (H7 daughter)

During H8 reign, Princess Mary married Louis XII to ensure Anglo-French peace

Marriage alliances: Henry VIII

Marriage alliances between Castile, France, Aragon, Holy Roman Empire = considered but not achieved

• H gradually lost enthusiasm for the prospect of remarriage

positive evaluation of foreign policy

• Henry faced the need to secure his dynasty first and foremost, knowing that it was significantly weakened by recent deaths
• had to manipulate the international situation to enhance his security, and was arguably largely successful
• Having initially secured his dynasty, he became more ambitious and managed to engage in diplomatic policies to enhance trade + security, avoided particularly costly wars, leaving his country + dynasty internationally secure at his death
• can compare his weakness in 1485 with his strength at the end of his reign

negative evaluation of foreign policy

• It was not consistently successful; e.g. he was dangerously isolated following the death of Isabella of Castille in 1504 and did not manage to retain Brittany, used expensive measures that caused rebellions → policy CHANGED OVER TIME
• Much of his policy was purely reactionary + defensive to the situations around him rather than planned policy measures; arguably because he had to prioritise achieving security for himself and his dynasty first
• It was arguably lucky that powerful nations became so focused on Italy as it was weak, divided and going through the Italian wars, but hugely wealthy, and France and the Habsburg Empire had dynastic claims that they wished to pursue, that England remained relatively peaceful and secur