How successful a King was Henry VIII during the period of 1509-1514? Essay Example

France was a rich and powerful country and Henry recognised without any army he would need allies if he were to have any success in Europe. Allies would also be useful when it came to preventing the nobles revolting with support from Europe. One of his main achievements in securing relationships with Europe was his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. Spain was under the rule of Ferdinand and Isabella and was a strong Catholic power. Ferdinand had been disputing with France for many years over land in Southern Italy and the Pyrenees.

In addition, the Hapsburg family who controlled substantial amounts of Southern Germany and the Burgundian lands, as well as holding the title of the Holy Emperor, were arguing with France over Milan. This alliance could have been a playing card for Henry and a major success. However, Henry underestimated how unreliable his allies would be; in particular Ferdinand of Spain, who was dishonest and tricked Henry. In truth, Ferdinand and Maximillian manipulated Henry into following a military strategy which was to their advantage. They wanted to expand the Hapsburg Empire. These efforts to form an alliance against France turned out to be expensive and were eventually ruined by bribery from the supposed victim. His attempt at finding allies was a disaster; he was taken for a fool and did not command the respect that a King should.

Henry first went to war with Ferdinand in 1512 on behalf of the Holy League in order to conquer Aquitaine. The English government sent an expedition under the Marquis of Dorset to help the Spanish, which landed in Northern Spain. Henry thought that he was returning his 'rightful'

territory which England had owned for much of the middle ages. However, Ferdinand showed his true colours by using Henry to distract the French while he pursued his own business in taking over the small kingdom of Navarre. The English forces gave up waiting and went home in disgrace. This was highly embarrassing for King Henry, he was made to look unwise and lacking in good judgement as a King should.

In 1513 he returned back to France, independent. This was a wise choice of Henry's; he was quick to learn as knew he could not trust his allies. Henry besieged the minor town of Therouanne. Henry went on to capture Tournai. This was the 'major' achievement of the campaign. Tournai held no industry or particular financial value. However, it was a famous name that would bring Henry the title or 'War Hero' that he was desperate for. Although, the amount of 'battle' which went on is debateable. Furthermore, Henry did not attend the 'battle'; he was not with the army at the time. The battle was named the Battle of the Spurs. This war had given him the military recognition he sorted after, he had led an impressive, strong army to victory. The land he had come home with would impress the nobility who would now support their King.

However, the battle did not affect the French at all. They had not become weaker by the battle. The French had more important matters to attend to than fraternize with small, insignificant countries like England who was merely an irritating fly which would not go away. They let Henry keep the small villages Tournai and Therouanne to

keep him content. However, Henry spent all the money from his father's war chest and his territorial gains were insignificant. In fact, these territorial gains would prove in the long run to be a continuous drain on finances in England because they needed permanent security. They did not weaken France in any way. Henry did not come home with the French Crown like Henry V has done and was now bankrupt. The Battle of the Spurs was pointless and proved his critics right, he was na�ve and made rash decisions. It cost copious amounts of money and left England in severe debt.

In 1514 Henry was to be tricked once again by his allies, they both agreed to fight with him against France. However before the end of 1514 they made peace with Louis XII. Henry was left alone. He was forced by his ministers to sign a peace treaty with France in August 1514 which allowed him to keep him overseas gains and restored his French pensions. The marriage between Mary and Louis was also arranged; this meant that his sister was now Queen of France. This was a successful peace with France and helped secure the Tudor dynasty.

While Henry was dallying in France the Scots saw a perfect opportunity to attack. The relationship between James VI and Henry had got progressively worse since Henry had come to the throne. The second English army defeated them and removed the aggressive Scottish threat. The Battle of Flodden was considerably more important because it got rid of a significant threat, neutralised Scotland and secured the borders by killing James VI. Scotland was before a live threat. France

was never a threat. Henry left his sister Margaret to look after England's interests in Scotland. Henry just wanted to be noticed. Some might argue that because he was so young, his decisions reflected a child. The Battle of Flodden was not publicised or exploited like the Battle of the Spurs because Henry was not there and it would look bad on him. This was a failure of King Henry the VIII's.

When Henry came to power in 1509 he had to face allegations of tyranny of his father's later years and the work of the Council Learned with its use of bonds and recognisances which aimed at keeping the nobility in order. He coped with these allegations decisively and cleverly, this was a major success. He knew that he needed to be popular with his subjects and keep the nobility on his side because they controlled the commons and governed parts of the country. He decided that he would he would behead Richard Empson and Edmund Dudley who were the two main hated enforcers. This was a dramatic publicity stunt. Henry showed that he respected his nobility and trusted them. It gained mass support and popularity for the new King. However, in truth Henry did not get rid of all bonds and recognisances. He kept them for subjects who he did not trust. He also kept most of his father's councillors. His success in this area brought his extra support from his nobility which is perhaps why he managed to make such blunders in France.

Henry was an ideal Renaissance prince- well educated, a sportsman, and interested in music and the arts. Henry made some blunders

as a young King for example his war against France. However, he never lost control of his nobility and there was never a revolt against him. By 1514 there was peace in the Tudor dynasty and they were now related to royal families of both France and Spain. The most lasting result of the war with France was the emergence of Wolsey who had proved himself to be fantastic diplomat. Henry may have made mistakes, but he came out as a strong King who was popular with his nobility, they had the War they had craved under Henry VII.