Protestantism Across Europe, 1562-1569 (Edexcel GCSE History)

Protestantism & the Habsburgs in Europe - Timeline & Summary

England was not the only place that experienced Protestantism. Europe had a growing Protestant community. Due to their limited power, most European Protestants were poorly treated. 

The Habsburgs were the family dynasty that ran the majority of Europe. Habsburg power rose in the 14th and 15th centuries. By Elizabeth’s reign, the Spanish Habsburgs and the Austrian Habsburgs controlled large swathes of Europe. This included the Netherlands and sections of modern-day Germany, France and Italy. 

The House of Habsburg was zealously Catholic. In 1452, the German King Frederick V became the Holy Roman Emperor. As the Holy Roman Emperor, the Habsburg King Fredrick became the most important ruler in Europe. The Holy Roman Empire controlled a large area of Central Europe. The role of the Holy Roman Emperor, especially after the Reformation, was to unite and strengthen European Catholicism. 

Under Habsburg rule, European Protestants struggled to survive. They faced violent persecution, particularly in France and the Spanish Netherlands. Elizabeth became a figurehead for European Protestants. She had to decide the extent to which she would help European Protestants in their struggle against the Habsburgs. 

Protestantism in France

• A religious war broke out in France in 1562 between the Protestant Huguenots and the Catholic nobility

Causes of the French Wars of Religion 

• The French ruler Catherine de Médici showed more tolerance to the Protestant Huguenots

  • This angered a powerful Catholic family called the Guise. They massacred a Huguenot congregation

  • The Huguenots started an uprising

Elizabeth’s Reaction to the French War of Religion 

• In 1562, Elizabeth decided to help the Huguenots 

  • The French Wars of Religion worried Elizabeth. The war could have inspired a similar conflict in England

  • If the Protestants succeeded, Elizabeth hoped to negotiate the return of Calais to England as a reward for England’s support of their cause

• Elizabeth’s plan failed

  • The Huguenots made peace with the Catholics

  • Elizabeth signed the Treaty of Troyes (1564), which conclusively stated that Calais belonged to France

  • Spain and France were great rivals in this period. As the Spanish Habsburgs had an interest in France, her actions only achieved the annoyance of Phillip II of Spain

Protestantism in the Spanish Netherlands

• In the 16th century, the Netherlands belonged to Spain

  • It was a core part of the Spanish Habsburg territory

• King Philip II of Spain was angry with Elizabeth because:

  • Elizabeth had rejected Philip’s offer of marriage after the death of his wife and Elizabeth’s half-sister, Mary I

  • Elizabeth’s support of Protestant rebels in France frustrated Philip

• Philip’s anger resulted in a trade embargo of English cloth to the Netherlands

  • Philip believed that the cloth trade spread Protestantism into the Netherlands

  • As a consequence, Elizabeth stopped all trade with the Netherlands

    • Both countries suffered economically from this lack of trade. The trade embargo only lasted a year

• Spain’s power scared Elizabeth

  • Spain and France could ally against her

    • As both countries were Catholic, an alliance between France and Spain would have the support of the Pope

    • The Pope had asked France and Spain to depose Elizabeth’s father Henry VIII in the 1530s for creating the Church of England. It was likely the Religious Settlement in 1559 would cause the Pope to have a similar reaction to Elizabeth

England's Involvement in the Dutch Revolt

What Happened in the Dutch Revolt? 

The Duke of Alba and the Council of Troubles 

• King Phillip II of Spain sent the Duke of Alba to the Netherlands

  • His role was to end the Dutch Revolt 

  • He became governor-general of the Spanish Netherlands in 1567

• After he suppressed the Dutch Revolt in 1568, the Duke of Alba asserted his control over the Netherlands

• Alba established the ‘Council of Troubles’

  • Dutch nobles and Spanish officials sat on the Council

  • The Council ignored local law and legal processes

  • The Council condemned many thousands of Protestants to death. The Council reasoned that Dutch Protestants had attacked Catholicism. The ‘Council of Troubles’ gained the nickname the ‘Council of Blood’

• Thousands of Dutch Protestants fled to England to avoid persecution

Elizabeth’s Reaction to Spain’s Government of the Netherlands 

• Alba’s actions worried Elizabeth

  • Alba was ridding the Netherlands of Protestantism

  • The Netherlands was close to England. Elizabeth's advisers believed that Alba’s Counter-Reformation could spread to England

  • For some of Elizabeth’s subjects, this proved that Spain, as the biggest Catholic power, wanted to destroy Protestantism across Europe

• Elizabeth also wanted to avoid causing war with Spain

  • Elizabeth did not want to become a martyr for Protestantism

    • She condemned the Dutch Protestants yet they continued to flee to England

  • She did not want to anger the Catholic nations of France and Spain

    • These countries were much stronger than England in the 1560s

    • Elizabeth did not have the resources to combat a united Catholic force under the direction of the Pope

  • Elizabeth’s involvement in the conflict in the Netherlands could trigger a civil war within England

What did Elizabeth do to Help the Dutch Protestants?

• Elizabeth pursued an obstructive rather than aggressive strategy against Spain

• In 1567, Elizabeth allowed the Sea Beggars to dock in England’s harbours

  • The Sea Beggars were Dutch rebels who attacked Spanish ships. The ships they targeted contained Alba’s men and resources

• In 1568, Elizabeth triggered an event known as the ‘Genoese Loan’

  • Elizabeth allowed Spanish ships carrying gold to dock in English ports

  • The gold came from bankers from the Italian city of Genoa. Spain had requested the loan to pay Alba’s forces

  • When Elizabeth discovered the gold, she took it for herself

    • She argued that the money belonged to the Genoese bankers, not Spain

  • Philip II of Spain was incredibly angry

• Events in England made Elizabeth’s actions even riskier

  • In 1568, Mary, Queen of Scots fled to England from Scotland. English Catholics believed that she had a stronger claim to the throne than Elizabeth

    • Mary, Queen of Scots could have received support from Philip to overthrow Elizabeth

  • In 1569, The Revolt of the Northern Earls had hoped to gain support from Alba’s troops. While this help did not arrive, it showed that some English Catholics were willing to violently rebel against Elizabeth

    • If other English Catholics decided to revolt, there would be more willingness from Spain and the Pope to support Catholic plots