Elizabeth and the Netherlands

• Elizabeth was reluctant to help the Dutch Protestants because she wanted to avoid war with Spain:

  • if she directly supported the rebels against their lawful monarch, Phillip might do the same in England with Catholic rebels
  • Spain had backing from the Pope, and could encourage English Catholics to welcome Spanish invasion
  • Pope’s backing meant that France as a Catholic nation could side with Spain
  • it would be costly on England as their finances were not as strong as Spain
• • so, she wanted to apply pressure on Spain to encourage them to allow the Dutch to have autonomy

  Elizabeth applied pressure by:

  • indirectly helping Dutch Protestants resist Spanish
  • having privateers attack Spanish ships and colonies
  • By pursuing friendly relations with France
  • Encouraging others to fight Spanish in Netherlands
• • in the 1570s, Elizabeth offered a marriage alliance to the Duke of Alencon (heir to French throne) to alarm Phillip to give Netherlands their independence
  • when it didn’t work, she encouraged the Duke to make France fight the Spanish
• Spanish Fury and Pacification of Ghent - 1576:

  • by 1576, the Spanish government in Netherlands was running out of money
  • Spanish forces sacked Antwerp at the end of 1576, which was known as the Spanish Fury
  • the Spanish Fury led to the Dutch leader, William of Orange uniting all 17 Dutch provinces, Catholic and Protestants, against the Spanish
  • this led to the Pacification of Ghent
• Pacification of Ghent:

  • all Spanish troops were to be expelled from Netherlands
  • restoration of political autonomy
  • end to religious persecution
• • Elizabeth sent a loan of $100,000 to the Dutch rebels and agreed to send an expeditionary force to make sure the Pacification was carried out
  • the Pacification of Ghent was agreed to by the Spanish
• But, by 1579, the situation in the Netherlands was different:

  • Duke of Parma was made governor of Netherlands
  • Spanish armies went to attack the Dutch
  • Elizabeth sent armies unofficially, but they violently attacked Catholic churches in the Netherlands
  • French armies went to fight the Spanish in the Netherlands, but withdrew quickly
• • Spain gained Portugal
  • Spain’s new strength and wealth alarmed Elizabeth
• • by 1584, the Duke of Alencon and William of Orange had died
  • This led to problems for Elizabeth’s foreign policy
• impact of death of Duke of Alencon:

  • he could no longer fight the Spanish in the Netherlands
  • France‘s new heir was a Protestant, and the French Catholic formed a Catholic League to stop him
  • it led to a religious war in France, meaning France was too unstable to be a useful ally to England
• impact of death of William of Orange:

  • showed how easy for a leader like Elizabeth to be assassinated
  • Dutch Protestants needed a leader
  • without a leader, Dutch rebels could be defeated by Spain, leaving England as Phillip’s next target
• • At the end of 1584, French Catholics signed the Treaty of Joinville with Phillip II to secure his help against French Protestants
  • In 1585, the King of France supported French Catholics trying to rid France of heresy
  • This meant that that Catholic France and Spain were now allies against Protestantism