Anglo-Spanish War (1625–1630)
Encyclopedia
The Anglo–Spanish War (1625–1630) was fought by the Spain
against the Kingdom of England
and the United Provinces
. The conflict formed part of the Eighty Years' War and the Thirty Years' War
.
reigned in Spain, with the Count-Duke of Olivares as his favourite. The War of Flanders had reignited after the Twelve-Year Truce, and Spain's finances flowed from Spain's imports of silver from its American colonies. James I
was King of England, Scotland and Ireland, with his son Charles, Prince of Wales
, as his heir. At this time the Kingdom of England
had military ties with the United Provinces
, which they had assisted in the War of Flanders.
Around this time a series of events unfolded resulting in the resumption of hostilities between the two countries. During the Thirty Years' War
which broke out in Europe, Frederick V of the Palatinate
and his wife Elizabeth Stuart
, the daughter of the King of England, were defeated and dispossessed by the Spanish Tercios
.
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
, accompanied the Prince of Wales
on a trip to Madrid
to arrange the details of the proposed wedding between Charles and Maria Anna of Spain, however these negotiations proved unsuccessful.
In March 1624, James I, previously a pacifist, declared war on Spain with the support of the House of Commons
; the House of Commons appropriated funding for the prosecution of the war. The next year James I passed away following a bout of dysentery
. His successor pushed forward the preparations for war against Spain, even before he was crowned as king, with the assistance of the Duke of Buckingham.
besieged by his forces. The city of Breda
was heavily fortified and defended by a garrison of 7,000 Dutch soldiers. The Spinola rapidly gathered his defences and drove off a Dutch relief army under Maurice of Nassau
, the Prince of Orange
, who was attempting to cut off his supplies. In February 1625, another relief force, consisting of 7,000 English soldiers under Sir Horace Vere
and Ernst von Mansfeld
, was also defeated.
Finally, Justin of Nassau surrendered Breda
to the Spaniards in June 1625 after an eleven-month siege.
. An alliance with the Dutch had also been forged, and the new allies agreed to dispatch an additional fifteen warships commanded by William of Nassau, to assist in guarding English Channel
in the absence of the English main fleet. Sir Edward Cecil, a battle-hardened soldier veteran of combat in service with the Dutch, was appointed commander of the expedition by the Duke of Buckingham
. This choice of commander proved to be ill-considered. Though Cecil was a good soldier, he had little knowledge of the matters nautical.
The planned expedition involved several elements, including overtaking Spanish treasure ships coming back from the Americas loaded with valuables, and then assaulting Spanish towns, with the intention of assailing the Spanish economy by weakening the Spanish supply chain and consequently relieving the military pressure on the Palatinate.
The entire assault descended into a farce. The English forces assaulted and captured an old and dated fort, thus giving Cádiz the time to fully mobilize behind its defence against the attack and allowing merchant ships in the bay to make good their escape. The city's modernized defenses were a vast improvement upon those of Tudor times resulting in a successful defense for the Spanish. Meanwhile, the body of English forces which had landed further down the coast intending to march on the city also became side-tracked as a result of poorly disciplined troops; Eventually, Sir Edward Cecil, the commander of the English forces, facing dwindling supplies, decided that there was no alternative but to return to England, having captured few goods and having had no substantial impact on Spain. And thus in December, a battered fleet returned home.
Charles I of England
, to protect his own dignity and Buckingham, who had failed to ensure the invasion fleet was well supplied, made no effort to inquire as to the cause of the failure of the Cadiz Expedition
. Charles turned a blind eye to the debacle, instead preoccupying himself in the plight of the French Huguenots of La Rochelle. However the House of Commons proved less forgiving. The parliament of 1626 initiated the process of impeachment against the Duke of Buckingham, prompting Charles I chose to dissolve parliament rather than risk a successful impeachment.
The failure of the attack had severe consequences for England. In addition to the economic and human loss, it hurt the reputation of the English Crown, creating a serious political and financial crisis in the country.
, in exchange for French aid against the Spanish occupying the Palatinate, but the Parliament of England
was disgusted and horrified at the thought of English Protestants fighting French Protestants. The plan only fuelled their fears of crypto-Catholicism
at court. Buckingham himself, believing that the failure of his enterprise was the result of treachery by Richelieu, formulated an alliance among Cardinal Richelieu's many enemies, a policy that included support for the very Huguenots whom he had recently attacked.
The English force commanded by the Duke of Buckingham
was defeated by the French Royal troops at the Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré
and at the Siege of La Rochelle
. In this campaign the English lost more than 4,000 men of a force of 7,000 men. On August 23, while organising a second campaign in Portsmouth
, England
in 1628, Buckingham was stabbed to death at the Greyhound Pub
by John Felton, an army officer who had been wounded at the Siege of La Rochelle.
In 1629, a Spanish naval expedition
, commanded by Admiral Don Fadrique de Toledo
, was sent to deal with the recently established Anglo-French colonies on the Caribbean islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis
. The territories were regarded by the Spanish Empire as its own since the islands were discovered by the Spanish in 1498 and the English and French colonies had grown sufficiently to be considered a threat to the Spanish West Indies
. In the Battle of St. Kitts
, the heavily armed settlements on both islands were destroyed and the Spanish seized the islands.
and Lord Craven to Germany
in support the thousands of Scottish troops already serving under the Crown of Sweden
in that conflict. Hamilton's levy was raised despite the end of the Anglo-Spanish War.
In 1630, Philip IV of Spain
and Charles I of England
signed the Treaty of Madrid ending the war which had proven a costly fiasco for England and Scotland, but merely a minor distraction for the Spanish and French who were occupied by the wars engulfing Europe. In England, the war costs and mismanagement fueled the fire of disputes between the Monarchy and Parliament which had begun prior to the English Civil War
.
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
against the Kingdom of England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
and the United Provinces
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
. The conflict formed part of the Eighty Years' War and the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
.
Background
In 1620, Philip IVPhilip IV of Spain
Philip IV was King of Spain between 1621 and 1665, sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands, and King of Portugal until 1640...
reigned in Spain, with the Count-Duke of Olivares as his favourite. The War of Flanders had reignited after the Twelve-Year Truce, and Spain's finances flowed from Spain's imports of silver from its American colonies. James I
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
was King of England, Scotland and Ireland, with his son Charles, Prince of Wales
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, as his heir. At this time the Kingdom of England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
had military ties with the United Provinces
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
, which they had assisted in the War of Flanders.
Around this time a series of events unfolded resulting in the resumption of hostilities between the two countries. During the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
which broke out in Europe, Frederick V of the Palatinate
Frederick V, Elector Palatine
Frederick V was Elector Palatine , and, as Frederick I , King of Bohemia ....
and his wife Elizabeth Stuart
Elizabeth of Bohemia
Elizabeth of Bohemia was the eldest daughter of King James VI and I, King of Scotland, England, Ireland, and Anne of Denmark. As the wife of Frederick V, Elector Palatine, she was Electress Palatine and briefly Queen of Bohemia...
, the daughter of the King of England, were defeated and dispossessed by the Spanish Tercios
Tercio
The tercio was a Renaissance era military formation made up of a mixed infantry formation of about 3,000 pikemen, swordsmen and arquebusiers or musketeers in a mutually supportive formation. It was also sometimes referred to as the Spanish Square...
.
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham KG was the favourite, claimed by some to be the lover, of King James I of England. Despite a very patchy political and military record, he remained at the height of royal favour for the first two years of the reign of Charles I, until he was assassinated...
, accompanied the Prince of Wales
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
on a trip to Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
to arrange the details of the proposed wedding between Charles and Maria Anna of Spain, however these negotiations proved unsuccessful.
In March 1624, James I, previously a pacifist, declared war on Spain with the support of the House of Commons
House of Commons of England
The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of Great Britain...
; the House of Commons appropriated funding for the prosecution of the war. The next year James I passed away following a bout of dysentery
Dysentery
Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...
. His successor pushed forward the preparations for war against Spain, even before he was crowned as king, with the assistance of the Duke of Buckingham.
Siege of Breda
In August 1624, Spanish General Don Ambrosio Spinola ordered the Dutch city of BredaBreda
Breda is a municipality and a city in the southern part of the Netherlands. The name Breda derived from brede Aa and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. As a fortified city, the city was of strategic military and political significance...
besieged by his forces. The city of Breda
Breda
Breda is a municipality and a city in the southern part of the Netherlands. The name Breda derived from brede Aa and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. As a fortified city, the city was of strategic military and political significance...
was heavily fortified and defended by a garrison of 7,000 Dutch soldiers. The Spinola rapidly gathered his defences and drove off a Dutch relief army under Maurice of Nassau
Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange
Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange was sovereign Prince of Orange from 1618, on the death of his eldest half brother, Philip William, Prince of Orange,...
, the Prince of Orange
Prince of Orange
Prince of Orange is a title of nobility, originally associated with the Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France. In French it is la Principauté d'Orange....
, who was attempting to cut off his supplies. In February 1625, another relief force, consisting of 7,000 English soldiers under Sir Horace Vere
Horace Vere
Sir Horace Vere, 1st Baron Vere of Tilbury was an English military leader during the Eighty Years' War and the Thirty Years' War, a son of Geoffrey Vere and brother of Francis Vere. He was sent to the Palatinate by James I in 1620...
and Ernst von Mansfeld
Ernst von Mansfeld
Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld , was a German military commander during the early years of the Thirty Years' War.-Biography:...
, was also defeated.
Finally, Justin of Nassau surrendered Breda
Breda
Breda is a municipality and a city in the southern part of the Netherlands. The name Breda derived from brede Aa and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. As a fortified city, the city was of strategic military and political significance...
to the Spaniards in June 1625 after an eleven-month siege.
Cádiz Expedition
By October 1625, approximately 100 ships and a total of 15,000 seamen and soldiers were readied for the Cádiz ExpeditionCádiz Expedition (1625)
The Cádiz Expedition of 1625 was a naval expedition against Spain by English and Dutch forces.The plan was put forward because after the Dissolution of the Parliament of 1625, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral wanted to undertake an expedition that would match the exploits of the heroes of...
. An alliance with the Dutch had also been forged, and the new allies agreed to dispatch an additional fifteen warships commanded by William of Nassau, to assist in guarding English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
in the absence of the English main fleet. Sir Edward Cecil, a battle-hardened soldier veteran of combat in service with the Dutch, was appointed commander of the expedition by the Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham KG was the favourite, claimed by some to be the lover, of King James I of England. Despite a very patchy political and military record, he remained at the height of royal favour for the first two years of the reign of Charles I, until he was assassinated...
. This choice of commander proved to be ill-considered. Though Cecil was a good soldier, he had little knowledge of the matters nautical.
The entire assault descended into a farce. The English forces assaulted and captured an old and dated fort, thus giving Cádiz the time to fully mobilize behind its defence against the attack and allowing merchant ships in the bay to make good their escape. The city's modernized defenses were a vast improvement upon those of Tudor times resulting in a successful defense for the Spanish. Meanwhile, the body of English forces which had landed further down the coast intending to march on the city also became side-tracked as a result of poorly disciplined troops; Eventually, Sir Edward Cecil, the commander of the English forces, facing dwindling supplies, decided that there was no alternative but to return to England, having captured few goods and having had no substantial impact on Spain. And thus in December, a battered fleet returned home.
Charles I of England
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, to protect his own dignity and Buckingham, who had failed to ensure the invasion fleet was well supplied, made no effort to inquire as to the cause of the failure of the Cadiz Expedition
Cádiz Expedition (1625)
The Cádiz Expedition of 1625 was a naval expedition against Spain by English and Dutch forces.The plan was put forward because after the Dissolution of the Parliament of 1625, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral wanted to undertake an expedition that would match the exploits of the heroes of...
. Charles turned a blind eye to the debacle, instead preoccupying himself in the plight of the French Huguenots of La Rochelle. However the House of Commons proved less forgiving. The parliament of 1626 initiated the process of impeachment against the Duke of Buckingham, prompting Charles I chose to dissolve parliament rather than risk a successful impeachment.
The failure of the attack had severe consequences for England. In addition to the economic and human loss, it hurt the reputation of the English Crown, creating a serious political and financial crisis in the country.
1627–1628
The Duke of Buckingham then negotiated with the French regent, Cardinal Richelieu, for English ships to aid Richelieu in his fight against the French HuguenotsHuguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
, in exchange for French aid against the Spanish occupying the Palatinate, but the Parliament of England
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...
was disgusted and horrified at the thought of English Protestants fighting French Protestants. The plan only fuelled their fears of crypto-Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
at court. Buckingham himself, believing that the failure of his enterprise was the result of treachery by Richelieu, formulated an alliance among Cardinal Richelieu's many enemies, a policy that included support for the very Huguenots whom he had recently attacked.
The English force commanded by the Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham KG was the favourite, claimed by some to be the lover, of King James I of England. Despite a very patchy political and military record, he remained at the height of royal favour for the first two years of the reign of Charles I, until he was assassinated...
was defeated by the French Royal troops at the Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré
Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré (1627)
The Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré, also Siege of St. Martin's , occurred in the French isle of Ile de Ré around the fortress of the city of Saint-Martin-de-Ré, when Duke of Buckingham tried to occupy the island in 1627...
and at the Siege of La Rochelle
Siege of La Rochelle
The Siege of La Rochelle was a result of a war between the French royal forces of Louis XIII of France and the Huguenots of La Rochelle in 1627-1628...
. In this campaign the English lost more than 4,000 men of a force of 7,000 men. On August 23, while organising a second campaign in Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in 1628, Buckingham was stabbed to death at the Greyhound Pub
Greyhound Pub
The Greyhound was a Public House , in High Street, Old Portsmouth, famous as the site of the murder of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham in 1628.-In Letters:...
by John Felton, an army officer who had been wounded at the Siege of La Rochelle.
St. Kitts and Nevis
Battle of St. Kitts (1629)
The Battle of St. Kitts or St. Cristopher was a successful Spanish expedition that seized the islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis from the English and French during the Anglo-Spanish War .-Background:...
, commanded by Admiral Don Fadrique de Toledo
Fadrique Álvarez de Toledo y Mendoza
′Fadrique Álvarez de Toledo y Mendoza , was a Spanish noble and admiral.He was a Knight of the Order of Santiago, a Spanish Admiral, and Captain General of the Spanish Navy at the age of 37....
, was sent to deal with the recently established Anglo-French colonies on the Caribbean islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Kitts and Nevis
The Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis , located in the Leeward Islands, is a federal two-island nation in the West Indies. It is the smallest sovereign state in the Americas, in both area and population....
. The territories were regarded by the Spanish Empire as its own since the islands were discovered by the Spanish in 1498 and the English and French colonies had grown sufficiently to be considered a threat to the Spanish West Indies
Spanish West Indies
The Spanish West Indies was the contemporary name for the Spanish colonies in the Caribbean...
. In the Battle of St. Kitts
Battle of St. Kitts (1629)
The Battle of St. Kitts or St. Cristopher was a successful Spanish expedition that seized the islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis from the English and French during the Anglo-Spanish War .-Background:...
, the heavily armed settlements on both islands were destroyed and the Spanish seized the islands.
Aftermath
Following these defeats, England would alter her involvement with the Thirty Years War, by negotiating a peace treaty with France in 1629. Thereafter expeditions were undertaken by the Duke of HamiltonDuke of Hamilton
Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that Peerage , and as such its holder is the Premier Peer of Scotland, as well as being head of both the House of Hamilton and the House of Douglas...
and Lord Craven to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in support the thousands of Scottish troops already serving under the Crown of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
in that conflict. Hamilton's levy was raised despite the end of the Anglo-Spanish War.
In 1630, Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV was King of Spain between 1621 and 1665, sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands, and King of Portugal until 1640...
and Charles I of England
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
signed the Treaty of Madrid ending the war which had proven a costly fiasco for England and Scotland, but merely a minor distraction for the Spanish and French who were occupied by the wars engulfing Europe. In England, the war costs and mismanagement fueled the fire of disputes between the Monarchy and Parliament which had begun prior to the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
.
External links
- http://books.google.es/books?id=mDPF4ILESaUC&pg=PA305&lpg=PA305&dq=Treaty+of+madrid+1630&source=bl&ots=XD264Th-DF&sig=E2o006Zey8r-ol1d6ZfhxMl3hKk&hl=es&ei=hERsTLHLF4qOjAe1ja3nAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CDwQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=Treaty%20of%20madrid%201630&f=false European Treaties Bearing on the History of the United ..., Issue 254,Volume 2, Frances Gardiner Davenport.