THE BRITTANY CRISIS

DEVELOPMENT OF CRISIS

• Brittany was semi-independent area of French Crown. Ruled by Duke Francis II

• Duke had no sons - Daughter Duchess Anne was only heir but women couldn’t rule.

• When Duke died - France eager to claim Brittany and strip independence. In 1487, France invaded

HENRY’S ACTIONS

• Alarmed by French actions - summoned parliament

• Parliament granted extraordinary revenue to raise an army.

• H felt obligation to the Bretons as they took him in when he was exiled but also feared what a French-dominated Brittany could mean for England.

TREATY OF REDON

• Feb 1489

• England x Brittany

• Duchess Anne (leader of Brittany) agreed to pay Henry to rise small army to defend from French

TREATY OF DORDRECHT

• Feb 1489

• England x Maximilian (HRE)

• Maximillian interested in Brittany situation, Henry leveraged that to own advantage through friendship treaty:

  • H agreed to send 3k troops to help Max’s troops (under siege from French)

  • HOWEVER, Max didn’t keep up his side of the bargain to help Henry save Brittany. By July - Max had deal with King Charles VIII of France, leaving Henry isolated.

TREATY OF ETAPLES

• Nov 1492

• England x France

• Henry announced intention to assert claim to French crown - Charles cared more about promising Italian states and signed peace treaty 9 days after English arrival.

  • promised to not assist anymore English rebels and pay H 5k a year - approx 5% of his annual income.

Henry’s FAILURES dealing with Brittany pressures

• ABANDONED BY ALLIES:

  • Once Anne of Brittany married Charles of France - HRE lost interest in crisis and withdrew troops. Maximillian decided new target (Italian states) were more important.

  • Spanish decided fighting muslim moors were greater priority. They withdrew.

• Having spent a significant amount of money (taxes), English would’ve been angry if H didn’t spend it fighting French

• Ultimately, Brittany was lost

Henry’s SUCCESSES dealing with Brittany pressures

• Proved to nobility he was ready to fight french

• Cost of troops in Brittany had been met by Anne

• Attacking French late into campaigning season = England not dragged into long conflict.

• Gained financially in settlement with France