Assess the importance of royal marriage to foreigners in shaping Tudor foreign policy
In essence, this question as asking how important foreign marriages were as a motive in shaping
Tudor foreign policy, in comparison to other factors. Your answer will therefore look at how/when
marriage to foreigners was crucial, but it will also look at how Tudor foreign policy changed
depending upon who the monarch/heir was married/betrothed to.
Introduction
I would explain that throughout the Tudor period, Elizabeth was the only Tudor monarch who either
failed to marry a foreigner, was betrothed to one, or failed to betroth her child to one; this would
suggest that royal marriage to foreigners was seen as particularly important, however it does not
explain how marriages to foreigners shaped subsequent Tudor policy. Clearly in the case of the
betrothal of Arthur Tudor to Catherine of Aragon in 1489 royal marriages shaped Tudor foreign
policy in the long term by bringing England and Spain closer together (turning points), however there
were also other factors that influenced foreign policy, most notable the need to remove dynastic
rivals, and achieve/maintain economic prosperity.
Section 1 To what extent did marriages/marriage arrangements affect long term policy towards
the particular country in question?
Henry VII’s betrothal of Arthur to Catherine of Aragon through the 1489 Treaty of Medina Del
Campo and her subsequent marriage to Henry VIII in 1509 set in train a positive period of relations,
which ensured that on the whole, English relations with Spain would stay strong until the reign of
Elizabeth. Although there were several exceptions, most notably Henry VII’s decision to back Philip
of Burgundy instead of Ferdinand of Spain in his attempts to take Castile in 1506, and Henry VIII’s
decision to sponsor a French army marching on Spanish held Italy in 1527, the period 1489-1565 was
one where England and Spain were closely allied. This is demonstrated by the 3 joined invasions of
France under Henry VIII (1511, 1523 and 1544), the decision of Mary to side with Spain in the Italian
Wars (1557), and Spain’s willingness to take the side of Elizabeth at the 1560 CateauCambresis
negotiations. You could also look at Elizabeth’s opening of negotiations with the French Duke of
Anjou in the 1570s, however I would suggest that although this coincided with the period of good
relations with the French which would continue until the end of the period (this was shown by the
fact that in the 1590s, Elizabeth sent 10,000 troops to garrison the French channel ports to protect
them from the Spanish) it was not the marriage negotiations that led to such improvements, rather
England’s deteriorating relations with Spain.
Although most other marriages led to temporary improvements in relations between the nations, no
others had quite the same influence as the betrothal (and subsequent marriage) of Arthur (and later
Henry VIII) to Catherine. The most obvious example is the marriage of Henry VIII’s sister Mary to
Louis (Louis died after just 6 months), however further parallels can be drawn with Margaret’s
marriage to James of Scotland in 1503 which although positive in the short term did not bring good
relations after the accession of Henry VIII (as shown by the Battle of Flodden in 1513). Similarly,
Mary I’s marriage to Philip clearly influenced foreign policy in the short term (as shown by Mary’s
decision to side with them in the Italian Wars), however the long term effect of this marriage on
foreign policy was insignificant, as Elizabeth began to move away from Spain, particularly following
the escalation of the crisis in the Netherlands in the 1570’s.
It is clear that when a monarch died, any marriage arrangements made by the previous monarch lost
its significance; the new monarch did not need to be influenced by such agreements. In fact the
alliance between England and Spain collapsed at the end of Henry VII’s reign, and it was only Henry
VIII’s swift marriage to Catherine of Aragon (one of his first actions once he became King in 1509)
that quickly re established it, as can be seen with Mary who quickly draws closer to Spain after
Somerset and Northumberland had largely tried avoiding foreign entanglements (notice how this
questions the long term importance of marriage agreements in shaping Tudor foreign policy).
In a slightly different way, it is noticeable just how much Henry VIII’s foreign policy is influenced
strongly by marriage to foreigners. His marriage ties see him work largely hand in hand with the
Spanish until 1527, when he begins to realise his dynastic vulnerability, forcing him to turn against
Spain in a desperate attempt to get a divorce. Such was his desire to break his marriage with
Catherine he opted to take the desperate decision to break from Rome, forcing him into a new
foreign policy which involved him having to look further afield for new allies such as the German
Schmalkaldic League. This example of how marriage to foreigners can in fact damage relations with
the country in question, and shape foreign policy elsewhere is further reflected at the end of Henry
VIII’s reign with the “Rough Wooing”. Here Henry’s attempts to forcibly betroth his son Edward to
Mary Queen of Scots (culminating with the Treaty of Greenwich)incurred the anger of the Scots, who
were able to call on French support, forcing Henry to send troops to France 2 years later. Having
identified this trend, it may be useful to consider why was this only an issue under Henry VIII?
Use this to lead onto the influence of other motives in shaping Foreign Policy
The main motive for foreign policy was maintaining dynastic security (the marriage in itself was not
supposed to be the end product). However it is noticeable that when dynastic security is challenged,
this causes a radical shift in foreign policy. When Spain; Henry VIII’s main dynastic ally threatens to
split after the death of Isabella, he sides with Burgundy (going against his marriage ties to Spain).
Similarly, when Henry VIII was unable to produce a male heir with Catherine of Aragon, he broke
from Rome (going against his marriage ties to Spain) and was forced to draw closer with Germany.
Such actions were not desirable, and show just how important dynastic considerations werearguably outweighing the importance of marriage to foreigners in shaping Tudor foreign policy. .
Other motives- Economic considerations
National security considerations
Personal glory etc.......
When at times does the marriage to the foreigner simply confirm an existing policy?
It may be worth stressing that at times marriage to foreigners did not always signal the start of a
new direction in foreign policy; on occasions, marriage simply confirmed an existing policy, as best
demonstrated under Henry VII and Elizabeth I. Under Henry VII the marriage of his daughter
Margaret to James IV continued and confirmed the policy of friendship which had culminated in the
signing of the 1502 Treaty of Ayton. Although Elizabeth I did not marry, her marriage negotiations
with the Duke of Anjou in the 1570s were not the cause of improved relations with France. Rather,
she opted to draw closer to France in order to counter the growing power of Spain, and used the
negotiations as a way of strengthening the links between the two countries.
What themes can you see?
Who is it more/less important to? Why?