Henry VIII's Foreign Policy 1509-1547

Military Glory

Period: 1509 to 1514

The very beginning of Henry VIII's reign. Focus on military glory and establishing England as a powerful body.

Marriage to Catherine of Aragon

Jun 11, 1509

Catherine of Aragon was a Spanish princess and aunt to Charles V, King of Spain and later the elected Holy Roman Emperor.

Renewal of Treaty of Etaples

1510

The Treaty of Etaples, first established by Henry VII in 1492, was re-negotiated by Henry VIII in 1510 in an attempt to ease relations with France. However, it soon becomes clear that this is the work of his councillors, and Henry himself is intent on a much more warlike path.

Creation of Holy League

1511

In a blatant display against France, Henry encourages the formation of the Holy League. This includes Spain, Venice, and the Holy Roman Empire. Essentially, pitting the Pope against France.

First invasion of France

1512

Encouraged by Ferdinand of Aragon, the father of Catherine of Aragon, Henry sent a large force to southwest France. However, Ferdinand failed to provide troops and instead exploited the event for his own gain to conquer Navarre. This was the first of multiple 'betrayals' by the Spanish king.

Battle of the Spurs

Aug 16, 1513

The successful 'Battle of the Spurs' and subsequent capture of Tournai was in reality not a huge victory, but was pounced upon with propaganda to try and boost Henry's military ego. The capture of Tournai also becomes important later as it is returned as a bargaining chip.

Battle of Flodden

Sep 9, 1513

Scottish forces were crushed and the King himself (James IV) killed at the Battle of Flodden, leaving Scotland extremely vulnerable to a full-scale invasion had Henry taken advantage of this. However, focused entirely on France, this victory led to no real gain and was extremely costly.

Marriage treaty with France

1514

Having returned Tournai to France, an Anglo-French treaty was created involving the marriage of Henry's sister, Mary Tudor, to the French King, Louis XII. This was likely influenced by both Ferdinand of Aragon and the Holy Roman Emperor making their own individual peace with France.

Death of Louis XII

Jan 1, 1515

With Louis' death and the accession of Francis I came the breakdown of the peace temporarily formed by the marriage treaty a year earlier.

Alliance Clusterfuck

Period: 1515 to 1526

We have no idea what Henry was on. There is no clear or consistent aim in this time period- alliances are made and broken rapidly. Throughout this time period, England remained a minor power and many other powers remained at peace, such as the 'auld alliance' involving France and Scotland.

Treaty of Noyon

1516

Following the death of Ferdinand of Aragon, Charles V of Spain and Francis I signed the Treaty of Noyon, establishing peace between Spain and France.

Treaty of Cambrai

1517

The Treaty of Cambrai, establishing peace between the Holy Roman Empire and France, left England dangerously isolated. Any aggression towards either of the powers would be fatal for England.

Treaty of London

1518

Following the Treaty of Cambrai, war and conquest were no longer options. However, Henry had to ensure England remained relevant and involved, so in 1518, Wolsey negotiated the Treaty of London, later known as the 'treaty of perpetual peace' as England, France, Spain and the Holy Roman Empire all signed the non-aggression pact.

Death of Maximilian I

Jan 12, 1519

The death of Maximilian I saw the King of Spain, Charles V, take the post of Holy Roman Emperor. This made Spain extremely powerful and pushed friendship between France and England.

Field of Cloth of Gold

Jun 7, 1520

This event lasted around 2 weeks and was a meeting of Francis I of France and Henry VIII of England. It was extremely extravagant and cost Henry's treasury thousands. It was intended as a peaceful diplomatic event, however not much came out of it aside from excess financial expenditure.

Treaty of Bruges

Aug 15, 1521

Amidst conflict between Francis I of France and Charles V of Spain, Henry had motives to side with Charles - which he promptly did with the Treaty of Bruges. He hoped it would help secure better relations with the Pope, as well as territory in France and a marriage alliance between Charles and Henry's daughter, Mary.

Treaty of Windsor

1522

This treaty follows the Treaty of Bruges and confirms an alliance against France. Henry's daughter Mary is betrothed to her cousin, the Holy Roman Emperor, and agreed an invasion of France in the upcoming months.

Invasions of France

1522

Throughout 1522 and 1523, Henry and Charles attempted to invade France. These campaigns were largely unsuccessful, and Henry's parliament became more and more reluctant to finance the attempt.

Battle of Pavia

Feb 24, 1525

An eventual military success, Charles V crushed the French and captured Francis I, forcing him to agree to a series of demands. However, Henry failed to benefit from this, partially due to the minimal English contribution to the Battle. As a consequence, Mary's betrothal to Charles V was repudiated and Henry began to resent the Holy Roman Emperor for it.

League of Cognac

1526

Following the Battle of Pavia, Henry was inclined to oppose Charles and the Holy Roman Empire. He did this by supporting the League of Cognac, which was pro-French and created by the Pope to counterbalance the excessive power of the HRE following Charles' accession and the Battle of Pavia. This opposition to Charles made the King's Great Matter monumentally more difficult later down the line.

Treaty of Amiens

1527

England offers further support to France against Spain and the HRE through the Treaty of Amiens.

The King's Great Matter

Period: 1527 to 1540

Not all, but much of this time period was preoccupied with Henry's want for an annulment, which he finally got in 1533. The remainder of this time period is largely dedicated to dealing with the fallout from Henry's reformation of the Church and break from Rome.

Sack of Rome

May 6, 1527

In retaliation to the Pope's involvement in the League of Cognac against the HRE, troops from Spain, Italy, and other countries under the influence of Charles V violently looted and pillaged Rome. As a consequence, the Pope was forced to surrender to Charles V and essentially became his puppet.

Peace of Cambrai

1529

The Peace of Cambrai, also known as the Treaty of Cambrai, solidified relations between the HRE and France. It showed just how much the papacy depended on the Holy Roman Emperor, as well as how influential the Emperor himself was.

Fall of Wolsey

1529

Following the repeated assertion of power of the Holy Roman Emperor, it became clear that the King's quest for annulment was doomed to failure. Having spent the best part of a decade trying to pick up the pieces of Henry's incompetence, Wolsey was blamed for the repeated diplomatic failures and fell from power in 1529.

Defensive Alliance with France

1532

Unable to touch the papacy and HRE, a tentative treaty was made with France in 1532. However, France was also in an equally weak position, so even together there could be no real pressure put on the Emperor. The weakness of this alliance was furthered by the French king seeking a marriage alliance with his son and the Pope's niece.

Break with Rome begins

1533

With no other choice, Henry begins the break with Rome, the papacy and his reformation of the Church in order to achieve his annulment. He technically marries Anne Boleyn towards the beginning of this year, but his marriage to Catherine isn't voided until a few months later.

French/Spanish conflict

1536

The renewal of fighting between France, Spain and the Holy Roman Empire comes at a very fortunate time for Henry- England's isolation is no longer quite as dangerous and the papacy's attention is diverted away from Henry's break from Rome.

Execution of Anne Boleyn

May 19, 1536

The execution of Anne Boleyn only three years after her marriage to Henry alongside the death of Catherine of Aragon was fortunate as it opened up a potential for alliances and peace with the Holy Roman Emperor again. This opportunity was very short-lived.

Treaty of Nice

1538

Charles V and Francis I once again came to peace agreements and mutually agreed to sever connections to England in the Treaty of Nice. Once again, England was isolated and all focus had to be on mitigating the response of foreign powers toward Henry's break from Rome.

Papal Bull

1538

A decree by the Pope deposes Henry and rouses support from both France and Scotland for a Catholic crusade against Henry. This likely influenced Henry's consistent indecision while reforming the Church, such as the Six Articles of 1539, as he had to keep foreign powers convinced of his Catholic alignment while still getting what he wanted.

Threat of Catholic Crusade

1539

As Henry reforms the Church in England and solidifies his split from Rome, his internal policies are inconsistent and frequently go back on themselves as he tries to juggle appeasing the Holy Roman Empire enough to prevent a crusade with making the changes he actually wants.