foreign affairs Flashcards
(31 cards)
the significance of marriage issues?
Elizabeth as a single woman meant that she did not have a secure heir, people were keen that she should marry to prevent a Catholic monarch, though the queen felt hat the matter fell within the royal prerogative- the willingness of the councillors to acknowledge this would cause difficulty
Robert Dudley (the preferred choice of E), Cecil was horrified as how now power would have been eroded. This marriage would have created many political risks, especially with the death of Amy
Philip of Spain- he was catholic
Ferdinand and Charles- both were catholic
Erik of Sweden, a protestant suitor Elizabeth gave little encouragement
the significance of the death of Amy Dudley
1560
it was assumed that she was murdered on the orders of her husband, this meant that the royal marriage of Elizabeth and Dudley was impossible.
the significance of the marriage, succession and parliament
The issue of marriage was raised in 1559, Elizabeth had small pox in 1562 and it seemed that she might die which made the matter of succession very real this was heighten in 1563
There was no clear plan of who the successor might be.
in 1566 the matter was brought up again, Elizabeth was furious and banished Leicester from the chamber
1579- Elizabeth was declared capable of still being able to carry a child, Duke of Anjou was suggested, people did not want a child that was under the influence of the French.
the significance of the final succession
There were more disadvantages if Elizabeth were not to marry, James 6th had the best hereditary claim to the throne.
The councillors of Elizabeth started to woo Elizabeth, Essex in particular
to the end, Elizabeth did NOT name a successor and there is no evidence that she named James.
the significance of Mary, queen of Scots
The issue of succession, meant that MQS and Elizabeth were linked, Mary was implicated in the murder of her husband earl of Darnley, her marriage to the Earl of Bothwell- who was the supposed murderer meant that Frau was forced to flee to England in 1567
She continued to pose a problem
Mary’s role in the plots meant that the treason law was tightened
MQS and the Catholic plots against Elizabeth?
1571, Ridolfi- conspiracy for Mary to marry the Duke of Norfolk and overthrow Elizabeth
Ensured the execution of Norfolk for treason
1583, Throckmorton- foreign landing in Sussex followed by the overthrow of Elizabeth and her replacement by Mary
Foiled by Sir Francis Walsingham- this led to the creation of the bond association, worsened anglo-spanish relations and tightened conditions of Mary’s captivity
1585, parry- plot to assassinate the queen- led to an acceleration of parliamentary proceedings.
1586, Babington- marry complicit in a plot to assassinate Elizabeth, exposed by Walsingham code breaker- enabled Burghley to secure Mary’s execution.
Mary’s trial and execution?
Elizabeth was reluctant for Mary to be executed as she was a monarch, the judges commissioned to kill Mary pleaded illness- fear that to kill a monarch would work against them
Elizabeth refused to sign the death warrant for Elizabeth until 1st February 1587
Catholics believed that Mary had died a martyr for the Catholic faith
significance of relations in the 1560s? the detonation of anglo-spanish relations?
1, teh trading activity of John Hawkins, he attempted to break the Spanish trading monopoly in the Caribbean, September 1568 his fleet was blocked in a Mexican port
2, the situation in the Netherlands, Phillip 2nd wanted tighter form of political organisation. Though Elizabeth came under pressure from protestant councillors to aid the dutch protestants who feared danger, she had qualms about aiding rebels
3, Elizabeth found opportunity to harass the Spanish, November 1568 a storm forced a Spanish ship carrying goods intended to pay for the Spanish army had to take shelter in an English court
Phillip was also involved in the plots against Elizabeth
the significance of the Netherlands, Spain and declining relations from 1570-85?
in 1572 Elizabeth expelled sea beggars from English ports, they had to land in a dutch port and they were unchecked by the Spanish garrison which led to a revolt
by 1576 the provinces of the Netherlands had risen against what they saw to be atrocities by the Spanish army, they called for the expulsion of all foreign troops and the restoration of the autonomy was favoured by Elizabeth
Though, the provinces quarrelled amongst themselves and the French were prepared to invade the Netherlands, which was not what Elizabeth had hoped for
For the English, this got worse as the provinces divides into Catholic and protestant
what took place in 1580 and what was the significance of that?
Spanish gained power with the annexation of Portugal in 1580, Elizabeth adopted a more anti-spanish position
Supported the Portuguese pretender Don Antonio
knighting Francis Drake on circumnavigating the globe
treating the Spanish ambassador contemptuously
how did relations worsen after 1580?
Parma’s reconquest of the North gained momentum, the rebel leader William of Orange was assassinated in 1584
Phillip second and the Catholic league in France came to an agreement with the treaty of Joinville in 1584, this concerned Elizabeth as with the Guise family- Philip no longer had a political motive to stop him from MQS
the significance of Portugal and the claim of Don Antonio
Portugal was a key ally but it came under the Spanish rule in 1580, this gave Phillip a key benefit
how did Elizabeth try to counteract the treaty of joinville?
Elizabeth made an alliance with the dutch protestant rebels with the treaty of Nonsuch 1585 and sent troops to the Netherlands under the command of the Earl of Leicester.
Though, the troops were ill-disciplined, the dutch felt deserted when two officers joined Parma
The English commanders quarrelled among themselves
Leicester quarrelled with the Dutch
Leicester resigned his command in January 1588
the significance of the Spanish Armada?
the organisation of the armada against took over two years to come to fruition, Phillip believed that he was involved in a Catholic crusade. The English attack on the harbour at Cadiz in April 1557 meant that the Armada was delayed, it finally set sail in 22nd July 1588
The objective was to reach the port of Gravelines, though on the 29th July it was sighted of the coast of Cornwall, the Spanish ships were eventually forced to head back to Spain
the significance of the continuing war?
peace was not concluded until after the deaths of both of the monarchs
Elziabeth’s main priority was national security, this was agreed among the Elizabethan court
Though, how this would be achieved differed
why was the Armada defeated?
the strategy which required a fleet to land in the Spanish Netherlands so that Parma’s army could be taken on board was flawed, the leadership of the Armada might be questioned
the significance of war at sea?
from 1595 England made 3 attacks on mainland Spain and its colonies
Hawkins and Drake advocated for an attack on Panama, but the attack failed and both of the men died at sea
The capture of Cadiz humiliated Phillip 2nd, in a 1596 he ordered a fleet to invade England.
The threat to England remained clear
The Spanish also tried to exploit a rebellion in Ireland for their own needs, the Earl of Essex sought to attack the Spanish fleet, though his fleet was driven back to Plymouth by adverse winds.
the key international situation 1558-1570-1
1558- Catholic France is ascendent
1559- Spain and France end decades of warfare with the treaty of Cateau-Cambresis, England is represented as the peace conference as an ally of Spain
1560- to prevent the French restoring Mary of Guise to power in Scotland, Elizabeth sends an army to help the protestant lords.
1562- Violence breaks out in France between the Catholics and the Huguenots, Elizabeth will send aid to the Huguenots. The relationship with Spain will begin to deteriorate, this is due to Phillip and his tendency to rule the Netherlands as a province of Spain
1563- a trade embargo is declared between the Netherlands and England
1567- Elizabeth allows the dutch sea beggars to use English harbours, they attack Spanish shipping in the Channel.
1568- Cecil orders a bullion to be unloaded from Spanish ships sheltering in English ports and pirates, trade between England and Spain stops. This comes after the Spanish fleet attacks Hawkins.
international situation 1572- 1589
1572- a mutual defence treaty, the treaty of Blois is signed between England and France. Elizabeth orders the sea beggars to leave the ports
1573- negotiations Alva lead to the restoration of trade between England and the Netherlands, this is renewed with Henry 3rd in 1574
1577- Drake begins the voyage of circumnavigation, he is knighted in 1581
1584- William of Orange, the leader of the rebels in the Netherlands is assassinated
1585- Elizabeth signs the treaty of nonsuch and sends an army to help the Dutch rebels
1586- the treaty of Berwick is signed, this guarantees James an English pension of £4000 per annum
1587- Drake destroyed the Spanish ships being constructed in the Cadiz harbour
1588- the Spanish Armada is defeated by the English navy in the battle of the grave lines.
the international situation 1589- 1603
1589- an English expedition under the command of Drake, fails to comply with Elizabeths orders
1591- Elizabeth sends an army to Brittany under Sir John Norreys, an army under Earl of Essex, sent to Normandy
1595- an expedition led by Drake and Hawkins sails to attack Parma, the centre of the Spanish bullion route, this fails and Hawkins and Drake both died.
1596- a bankrupt Phillip 2nd launches a second armed but is destroyed by the gales
1597- Essex given command to intercept a third armada, he sails to the Azores after the Spanish treasure fleet- the 3rd armada fails.
1601- A spanish force lands at Kinsale in Ireland but is defeated by moutjoy
the debate over whether England should intervene in the Netherlands?
1578- Elizabeth and Leicester
E- the invasion would be viewed as hostile, the rebels a doing a good job keeping Spain occupied, intervention would be very expensive.
L- be able to encourage Dutch state to rally under William of Orange. Intervention would show England’s solidarity with other protestant countries.
1584- Elizabeth and Walsingham
W- need to support the rebels to prevent the expansion of Spanish control. Potential to leave England isolated, the death of William of Orange leaves the rebels without an effective leader.
E- the cost of the intervention, rebels have managed for a year without a strong leader.
was Elizabeth successful with her policy towards the Netherlands?
few doubt that the decision to go to war in 1585 was correct, yet the way that the war was handled has been called into question. There was Tudor propaganda that worked hard to portray Elizabeth as the heroine of her country, Elizabeth did lose the control and popularity that she had gained in previous decades.
Doran- “she was only too well aware, however of the limitations of her purse”
Haigh- “she was at the mercy of her generals”- her gender worked against her
Wernham- “belonged to that older generation when the king of Spain had been a necessary ally”
what was the significance of the detoriation of anglo-spanish relations, 1559-85?
1566-67 outbreak of the revolt of the Netherlands, Duke of Alba sent to the Netherlands to crush rioting by Calvinists and to restore firm government.
1568- the hard-line de spec becomes the English ambassador
December- Elizabeth sized bullion being transported through the Channel for Alba’s army.
1569- de spes negogaietd with the northern earls, encouraging their rebellion to place Mary on the throne
1570- Elizabeth is excommunicated
1571- Ridolfi plot
1572- treaty of Blois
1581- Elizabeth began to fund resistance to Parma in the Netherlands
1583-4 Mendoza is expelled after being implicated in the Throckmorton Plot to overthrow Elizabeth restore Mary as Queen
1584- treaty of Joinville signed between French and Spanish catholics, in the same year Elizabeth signed the treaty of nonsuch with the dutch rebels.
the key background for the Netherlands?
Antwerp- long standing trading links with England
Elizabeth is anxious to maintain the strategic status quo- as long as the Netherlands remained semi-autonomous, then it would be difficult to use the Dutch ports to launch an invasion of England,
religious situation in the Netherlands
