‘Elizabeth I’s foreign policy towards Spain was always weak and unconvincing.’ Assess the validity of this view. (25)
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AQA A Level History Breadth Study: The Tudor Dynasty - Essay Titled: ‘Elizabeth I’s foreign policy towards Spain was always weak and unconvincing.’ Assess the validity of this view. (25)
Topics Linked to Essay: Elizabeth I & Foreign Policy, Anglo-Spanish Relations
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‘Elizabeth I’s foreign policy towards Spain was always weak and unconvincing.’ Assess the
validity of this view. (25)
Elizabeth’s foreign policy appeared to be largely entangled with Spain, a country extremely
prominent during her reign. To imply Elizabeth’s foreign policy as ‘weak’ one would assume
Elizabeth lacked the ability to dictate on the international stage and achieve meaningful victories. To
describe her policy as ‘unconvincing’ implies it lacked direction and that Elizabeth did not have clear
aims that she set out to achieve. Overall, to describe Elizabeth’s foreign policy as ‘always’ being weak
and unconvincing implies that Elizabeth never had aims abroad and when she did act, she did not
succeed and this was a constant feature. Whilst there were several occasions where this was
apparent, failure and lack of direction cannot be said to be a constant feature in Elizabeth’s reign.
Whilst Elizabeth’s policy towards Spain often changed and thus lacked direction, Elizabeth was not
consistently weak in that she did give in to any Spanish attacks blocking Phillip II from having any
control over England, as most clearly demonstrated in her early and strong rejection of Phillips hand
in marriage upon ascension.
Despite this, there were parts of Elizabeth’s reign that featured a weakness and lack of direction
when regarding foreign policy towards Spain. During the early part of her reign, from 1558 to 1596,
Elizabeth aim was to establish herself both nationally and on the international stage which involved
interaction with Phillip II and Spain. In 1566 a major rebellion in the Netherlands against Phillip II
enticed Elizabeth’s support however she resisted out of fear of failing like she following the defeat of
the Huguenots in France in 1562. Even though she condemned the protestants from the
Netherlands, many fled to England in seek of refuge meaning Elizabeth became unintentionally
involved. This demonstrates weakness of Elizabeth’s behalf as she refused to support the rebels
largely out of fear of losing and damaging trading relations as 75% of England’s trade came from
Antwerp. Despite this, Elizabeth later warranted Hawkins attempt to break the Spanish monopoly in
the Caribbean in 1568 which failed miserably, only two of his ships returned and Anglo-Spanish
trading was suspended in 1569. This not only supports the idea that Elizabeth’s foreign policy toward
Spain was weak, due to its failures, but it also shows it to be unconvincing as her aims appear to be
confusing. Elizabeth appears to want to protect trading interests by withholding from intervening in
the Netherlands, but she then supported Hawkins’s attack which suspended such relations.
Furthermore, she failed to achieve the aim of establishing herself internationally as she retained few
convincing victories during this period which culminated with her Excommunication in 1570. For this
reason, Elizabeth’s foreign policy can be seen to be consistently weak and unconvincing towards
Spain during this period as it was very much responsive rather than active and saw few successes.
1570-1585 saw intensely negative Anglo-Spanish relations which featured great inconsistency from
Elizabeth in terms of her foreign policy approach. Elizabeth appears to start strong by looking to
cooperate with the Netherlands Privateers in raiding Spanish ships (1571) with the aim of
antagonising the Spanish and presenting a strong persona on the international stage without looking
for war. This poses an air of strength and conviction however this approach did not continue for
long. The Ridolfi plot of 1571 saw the peak of the deteriorating Anglo-Spanish relations, out of fear
of war Elizabeth signed the Treaty of Nygmegen 1573 which ensured the end of attacking Spanish
vessels in the Indies and support for Dutch rebels. Whilst this benefitted English merchants through
the resumption of trade, Elizabeth can still be seen to be weak in that she did not stand up to the
Spanish. Elizabeth’s policy then took another turn in 1585 when she ordered a fleet, led by Sir
Francis Drake to raid a Spanish ship off the Caribbean. She also signed the Treaty of Nonsuch the
same year in support of the Netherlands. Elizabeth sent 5000 troops and 1000 cavalry to the
Netherlands under an English commander, Leicester however she failed to support him adequately
once he arrived. The result was a breakdown of goodwill between the Netherlands and
England. Whilst Elizabeth shows strength her in the form of a more aggressive approach, she is still
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