Tudor Coursework - Elizabethan foreign policy.

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Tudor Coursework – Elizabethan foreign policy.

  1. Identify four events that influenced Anglo-Spanish relations in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

Pope created treaty of Tordesillas 1498.

Elizabeth I accepted title protector of the Netherlands and sent troops to fight in civil war 1585-86.

Drake’s “singeing of the king of Spain’s beard” at Cadiz in 1587.

2nd Spanish Armada 1588.

  1. Explain briefly why France was not a great threat to Elizabethan England.

While France did not ultimately turn out to be a great threat to Elizabethan England it certainly had the potential and initial intent to be so.  With Henri II described as a colossus straddling England with one foot in Calais and one foot in Scotland.  He above all else was the one main threat to Elizabeth I and Elizabethan England.  With his death in 1559 the Colossus was no more and the immediate threat from France and was gone.  However her army, in Scotland on behalf of Mary Stuart was still there and under the leadership of Mary of Guise it should have been a powerful threat.  However in February 1560 Scottish Protestants rebelled against Mary of Guise.  The ensuing struggle took part between French troops and Scottish Protestants with the help of English troops.  With the death of Mary of Guise in June 1560 the French troops were swiftly forced to sign the treaty of Edinburgh and leave Scotland.  This worked out well for Scotland, as James Stuart became the regent in Scotland.  It also worked out well for England as the threat from France via Scotland was neutralised again lessening the threat of France to Elizabethan England.

France again lessened its threat to Elizabethan England when, in 1562 the first civil war of religion was started.  This lessened the threat from France to England as the main French army controlling family, the Guise were heavily involved in the first civil war of religion.  They had infact started the war by slaughtering French Huguenots for worshipping publicly.  This was a misguided step as the Huguenots were a fast growing, self-arming militant group who by 1560, had become a state within a state.

France was yet again made even less of a threat for England when, in 1572 the two countries signed the treaty of Blois.  This was a reaction to the ever-growing threat from powerful Spain, recognised by both countries.  The treaty of Blois was a defensive alliance stating that if one country got in to trouble (with Spain) the other county would help defend their ally.  This alliance although unrealistic was largely kept alive by the suggestion of marriage between Elizabeth I and Alencon, Catherine di Medici’s son.  The marriage was an unlikely prospect although the treaty helped keep France from being a threat towards England.  

  1. To what extent did religion determine Elizabeth I’s relations with Philip II of Spain?

During the reign of Elizabeth I religion was a very important factor.  It was of crucial importance in her relationship with Philip II.  However, there is some debate over the extent to which religion determined Elizabeth’s relationship with Philip and to whom religion was more important.

From 1558 to 1568 Elizabeth I really had no choice but to form an alliance with Philip II.  At the time the biggest threat to England was France.  In order to keep France a bay an alliance was essential.  However, when Philip II proposed marriage to Elizabeth she rejected him as her virginity and status of being single were the strongest cards she had.  However, Elizabeth largely lost these when England turned Protestant under the church settlement.  This event was clearly defined by religion and works to worsen Elizabeth’s relationship with Philip II.  The relations were weakened as Elizabeth can no longer suggest Philip II marry her instead of invading her.  This move sparked Philip II to start backing rebels in Scotland and France as in his eyes England should be a Catholic country and Mary Stuart should be its Catholic queen.  These events, closely linked with religion only worsen relations between Elizabeth I and Philip II.

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Another area that featured strongly in relations between Elizabeth I and Philip II was trade.  The main areas for trade during Elizabeth I’s reign were the Netherlands, for the wool trade and the New World, for gold from the Aztecs and the West Indies.  Both of these main trade areas had fallen under Spanish rule.  The Netherlands through marriage and the New World through discovery, population and the treaty of Tordesillas.  The initial problem between Elizabeth I and Philip II may have been that, whilst Elizabeth represented a Protestant country and Philip represented a Catholic country Elizabeth tended to ...

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