How did relations with Spain lead to war in 1588? What were key issues that impacted Elizabeth’s foreign policy aims?
• England was smaller and poorer than Spain & France • There were tensions between Protestants and Catholics at home meaning she had to be careful what she did abroad Reasons for relations to break down between Elizabeth and Philip
1. Commercial Rivalry English merchants began exploring the new world looking for new trading opportunities
Spain controlled The Netherlands (Antwerp) and much of the New World
To trade in the New World, you needed a licence from Spain. Most English merchants traded without a licence, even attacking Spanish ports and ships 2. Drake 3. Indirect intervention in the Netherlands
Following the Spanish Inquisition, they were putting Elizabeth under immense pressure to help the Protestant Dutch rebels. Will she or wont she….
Robert Dudley William Cecil Earl of Leicester Chief Advisor Write these 4 concerns of Elizabeth in rank order of most concerning to least Elizabeth was very reluctant to help the Dutch Protestants in case it started a war with Spain. Instead she hoped to apply some pressure on Spain to allow the Dutch to govern themselves without Spanish interference as had been agreed back in 1548.
• Elizabeth allowed Spanish shipping and colonies to come under attack from English privateers, this might drag away troops and resources from the Netherlands
• Pursuing friendly relations with France – She offered a promise to marry the Duke of Anjou of France, the French heir
• Encourage others (Anjou) to fight the Spanish in the Netherlands giving him £70,000
• Funding (secretly) John Casimir to attack with 6000 troops – she said he ‘volunteered’ Were Elizabeth’s actions so far acceptable? Clever? … 4. The Spanish Fury, 1576 By 1576, the Spanish were bankrupt. The Dutch wars were too much. After months without pay, Spain’s forces mutinied, attacking the town of Antwerp. The Spanish Fury united all of the Dutch, Catholic and Protestant and they drew up a list of demands known as the Pacification of Ghent.
• All Spanish troops must leave the Netherlands • The Netherlands must run its own affairs once more • The Spanish Inquisition must end
Don Juan, a new Spanish commander arrived and agreed to the Pacification of Ghent. It looked like Elizabeth’s aims had been achieved… A missed opportunity? Philip sent a new army into the Netherlands under the Duke of Parma. He was a much stronger leader.
John Casimir went to the Netherlands with 6000 English and Scottish volunteers. They attacked Catholic churches which angered the Dutch Catholics who then made peace with Philip. Elizabeth delayed making any decision about directly intervening in the Netherlands, a mistake as the Dutch rebels were doing well.
Look at this table, identify what had changed and explain if you think it was a significant change for impact on relations Spain’s fortunes restored 1580-84 Philip took over Portugal in 1580, taking their colonies and navy made Spain stronger than ever. Elizabeth was even more reluctant to directly help the Dutch now, instead giving Anjou £70,000 to take a French army to the Netherlands. He did, but failed again!
What is the view of this interpretation and do you agree? 1584: A turning point in Anglo-Spanish relations
Using this diagram, look for reasons the deaths of Anjou and William of Orange made matters worse for England and Elizabeth.
Elizabeth’s worse nightmare: By the end of 1584, France & Spain had signed the treaty of Joinville joining both together in a fight against Protestantism 1584: A turning point in Anglo-Spanish relations Indirect Intervention including Casimir Spanish Fury / Pacification of Ghent
Scale - 1. No tension – 8. Severe tension
Actions of William of Orange & Alencon Treaty of Joinville 1584 Recap: Make a note on each one if Elizabeth (E) was to blame for tensions rising or Philip (P). If you think 1570 – Papal Bull neither put (N) 1571 – Philip backs Ridolfi Plot 1572 – Drake steals £40,000 of Spanish silver from the New World 1574 – Catholic priests are smuggled into England 1576 – Spanish Fury unites the Dutch against Spain Who is most to blame? Why? 1577 – Drake begins his circumnavigation 1577 – Casimir arrives in the Netherlands with 6000 ‘volunteers’ 1579 – Duke of Parma takes control of the Netherlands for Spain once again 1580 – Drake returns from the New World with £400,000 of Spain’s money 1581 – Drake is knighted by Elizabeth on the Golden Hind 1582 – Elizabeth funds Anjou in the Netherlands 1583 – Throckmorton Plot, financially supported by Philip 1584 – Anjou dies 1584 – William of Orange is assassinated 1584 – Treaty of Joinville joins France and Spain together in a Catholic League 1585 – Treaty of Nonsuch – Elizabeth sends troops to the Netherlands 1586 – Babington Plot, supported by Philip & The Pope, with 60,000 French troops 1587 – Singeing of the King’s beard, Drake burns Spanish ships in Cadiz 1587 – Mary, Queen of Scots is executed 1588 – Philip sends the Spanish Armada
‘The decline in Anglo-Spanish relations in the years 1568-85 was caused by Elizabeth I’ How far do you agree? [16+4Spag] Immediate considerations: • Date range – make sure what you talk about is within the date range of the question (1568-85) eg: Mary, Queen of Scots & Babington Plot are not valid examples. Vs. • What ‘extent’ do you agree? Remember there has to be 2 sides to your argument but it doesn't have to be 50/50
Totally disagree Totally agree • Lesser extent Larger extent • Conclusion – Make sure you evaluate why your examples led to declining relations and why they might have had more of a role, eg… Although Philip worried about Spanish forces so close to England, that was more every paragraph her own worry, whereas Elizabeth actually directly attacked Philip by 25 Minutes: PEEL in telling Drake to attack his ships and colonies, or, Elizabeth had been niggling Philip for years… Note: These are just a selection of examples you could use Agree / Support Statement: Elizabeth’s fault Disagree: Other reasons • Encouraging Drake to attack Spanish colonies and • Dutch Revolt 1568 ships, 1570’s - £400,000 • Spanish control of Netherlands was a threat due to • Knighting Drake in 1580 after his successful raid on being so close to England the new world • Philip supported Ridolfi Plot – agreeing to send • Indirect intervention in the Netherlands (Casimir, 10,000 soldiers. He also offered financial support to Anjou), Genoese Loan & Sea Beggars the Throckmorton Plot • Direct intervention in the Netherlands (Leicester, • Pope’s excommunication of Elizabeth 1570 7600 troops etc) • Treaty of Joinville 1584 – Spain & France joined forces • Keeping Mary, Queen of Scots under arrest in a holy war against Protestants • Treaty of Nonsuch 1585 • Death of Anjou & William of Orange in 1584 led to Joinville Consider how some of these examples were in retaliation to other examples Possible paragraph style:
P- make a big point!! Use the wording of the question. In many ways the decline in relations was Elizabeth’s fault as she used Drake’s exploration of the new world to anger the Spanish. E- now back up this point with lots of evidence and examples. Show off your knowledge. for example she gave Drake secret instructions when he set off on his exploration of 1577 to attack Spanish ships and colonies. When Drake returned he had circumnavigate the globe, taken part of California (Nova Albion) in Elizabeth’s name and had 400,000 of Spanish treasure. E- now link back to the question- why would this ruin relations and why was it Elizabeth’s fault? This behaviour helped relations decline because Philip felt Elizabeth was encouraging pirate-like behaviour and was showing no regard for Spanish territory and possessions. The final straw must have been Elizabeth’s open defiance when she knighted Drake on board the Golden Hind a clearly antagonistic act to provoke Philip of Spain and totally in Elizabeth’s control. Possible structure:
PEEL: Point, Evidence, Explain, Link back to the question in EVERY paragraph CONNECTIVES: Due to… This led to… Consequently… Therefore… As a result… Significantly…
The outbreak of war with Spain, 1585-88
Treaty of Joinville 1584: France & Spain sign the Treaty of Joinville, Philip II promised to help against the French protestants. The significance of this treaty is basically France and Spain have joined forces against the Protestant religion and Elizabeth had no choice now but to get involved… Earl of Leicester (Dudley)
“You’ve been defensive long enough Elizabeth! We’ve spent years trying to put pressure on Spain and help the protestants INDIRECTLY, it’s now time for action! The Treaty of Joinville is surely the last straw!?! Come on, your privy council advises we intervene DIRECTLY! We understand your reservations, but we can’t sit back any longer”
Lord Burghley (Cecil) In the summer of 1585, the Dutch Protestants asked Elizabeth to be their queen, she refused! She did however… Treaty of Nonsuch 1585 A coin commemorating the treaty to finally support the Dutch Protestants
Elizabeth would fund an army of 7400 English troops under Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester. England was now at war with Spain. She also sent Sir Francis Drake to raid Spanish colonies in the new world to disrupt Philip’s flow of money and resources. All this did was anger Philip so much he told the Pope he would now invade England… Dudley failed, the only success was preventing the Spanish taking the port of Ostend *this will be important later…
Why did he fail? • Dudley was not given enough men or supplies to achieve much – on purpose by Elizabeth • Elizabeth was never fully behind the rebels, she still hoped to negotiate with Spain. The Dutch didn’t like this lack of commitment • Two English officers defected handing over a Dutch town to Spain, this damaged relations between Dudley and the Dutch leaders
Elizabeth and Dudley wanted different things. Elizabeth wanted the Netherlands to remain Spanish but to be free to govern themselves whereas Dudley wanted to free the Dutch completely from Spanish control! What was the ‘Singeing of the King’s Beard’?
As we know, Francis Drake has been a thorn in Philip’s side for years. Philip was very angry that Elizabeth knighted Drake publicly after he’d stolen £400,000 from Spanish ships. Elizabeth wasn’t finished with Drake just yet… Philip had been building his Armada since 1586 in preparation to invade England. In March 1587, Elizabeth ordered Drake to attack Spain’s navy in Cadiz (the most important Spanish naval port).
• Drake destroyed 30 ships • He also destroyed a great deal of provisions / supplies • He then attacked Portugal & other Spanish colonies leading to Spain stopping their Armada preparation to defend against Drake
This basically helped delay the inevitable invasion by a year, but also angered Philip even more. This attack became know as the Singeing of the King of Spain’s beard
Describe two features of Drake’s raid on Cadiz [4]
All of this culminates in the Spanish Armada in 1588… Spanish Armada 1588: Treaty of Nonsuch 1585 Leicester’s campaign in the Netherlands
Scale - 1. No tension – 8. Severe tension
Singeing of the King’s Beard Spanish Armada 1588 Possible Exam Question • Explain why war broke out between England and Spain in 1585 [12]
Philip goes to war in the Netherlands See how similar this is to
the 16 marker? Religious disputes – Protestantism Vs Elizabeth’s involvement Catholicism DIRECT & INDIRECT in the Netherlands We just need to be - Nonsuch 1585 confident on >>> - Casimir and we can answer any Q on rivalry or relations between England and Political rivalry in Europe & Americas Loss of Antwerp cloth market led to Spain explorers seeking new opportunities in the New World
Trade & commercial rivalry particularly in the New World • 12 Marker is a positive answer in that it wants to know reasons for something happening not whether it did or didn’t – This led to, due to, because of, consequently… • 16 Marker asks for agreement / disagreement to a statement that requires ANALYSIS of each factor / bullet point relating back to the statement (significantly, on the contrary, without x .., leading to… etc) Revision Summary:
Who is to blame the most for the breakdown of relations - Elizabeth or Philip? Why?