A More Personal Union

[The Professor]

Intriguing.

Looks like a Gallican Church is on its way. Probably not as extreme as the Anglicans in that the French Sovereign won't be Head of the Church, but the Primate of France [1] as a Pope-in-exile along Avignon lines is more likely.
If permanent then the French Pope will attract allegiance from anti-Spanish Catholics.
If temporary this could be the spur towards a more federal Roman Catholic Church repudiating the Counter-Reformation in favour of Internal Reformation which would likely dampen and reduce the External Reformation movement (i.e. Protestants).

[1] I assume that with Reims (Charles de Guise) in disgrace the Archbishop of Lyon Antoine d'Albon would be created this as the French Church distances itself from Rome. Or is Antoine too pro Rome?

 

[SavoyTruffle]

If this keeps up I can see the Church becoming little more than a Habsburg puppet.

 

[Shawn Endresen]

Good stuff.

 

[Thespitron 6000]

September 1564: Philip II’s emissaries are sent out to Lisbon, Naples, Palermo, Florence, Turin, and Vienna, in the hopes of negotiating a “Catholic league” to deal with the rising tide of Protestantism. It is clear to Philip that France cannot be trusted to maintain the Faith, and therefore must be opposed; all of the above powers--Portugal, Naples, Sicily, Tuscany, Savoy, and the Holy Roman Empire--stand to gain much from the defeat of France, both in terms of prestige and land.

What Philip does not share with his would-be allies is his own plan for France. Ambitious in the extreme, Philip sees a final end to the Valois-Hapsburg rivalry. He has convinced himself that Francis no longer has a valid claim to the throne; his failure to defend the Faith means he has, in effect, abdicated--at least his responsibilities. His brothers--Charles, Henri, and Francis--likewise are unfit for rule, and his “son” Henry Philip is convinced is a bastard.

France needs a ruler who is a Valois, a Catholic, and an ally of the Church. Philip has, in his mind, the perfect candidate: his own 18-month-old son, Ferdinand of Uceda. Ferdinand is a Valois through his mother, Elisabeth, who is Francis II’s sister. Of course, as an infant Ferdinand cannot wield supreme executive power, and so would need a regent: Philip. The fact that the Salic Law means Ferdinand has no claim to the throne through his mother means nothing to Philip, who is ambitious enough to desire to add the crown of France to the Hapsburg pile, and ruthless enough to manipulate every other Catholic power into helping him achieve his desire.

October 1564: Philip receives tentative agreements from Savoy, the Empire, and Tuscany, although Portugal has given a polite but firm “no” and Naples and Sicily are reluctant to commit themselves. It seems that a “Catholic league” is likely to be formed.

On October 2, a force of eight hundred Spanish cavalry disguised as bandits crosses the Franco-Spanish border north of Pamplona and attacks and sacks the French city of Bayonne. Bayonne, which has declined in importance over the past century, is nonetheless an important target on the borders, and although the raid is short and damage only modest, and the Spanish deny any involvement, it marks the first shots fired in the Franco-Spanish War, the so-called “War of Religion.”

 

[Elfwine]

Philip's ability to turn himself into a real ass after sufficient rationalization is showing. Interesting.

 

[SavoyTruffle]

Ha, a "War of Religion" that for all intents and purposes is a reversal of the War of the Spanish Succession.

Also, Naples and Sicily would have not much of a choice with regards to foreign policy; both were parts of the Spanish crown at this point.

Edit: If things come to worse then cue everyone's jaws dropping at England possibly siding with France.

 

[Thespitron 6000]

Ha, a "War of Religion" that for all intents and purposes is a reversal of the War of the Spanish Succession.

Also, Naples and Sicily would have not much of a choice with regards to foreign policy; both were parts of the Spanish crown at this point.

Edit: If things come to worse then cue everyone's jaws dropping at England possibly siding with France.

Re Naples and Sicily: They're more concerned about the Turkish menace in the Mediterranean than in crushing France, and de Ribera, the Viceroy of Naples, and de la Cerda, the Viceroy of Sicily, have a history of quasi-independent action, including in de Ribera's case a refusal to allow Philip II to introduce the Spanish Inquisition into Naples.

 

[SavoyTruffle]

Re Naples and Sicily: They're more concerned about the Turkish menace in the Mediterranean than in crushing France, and de Ribera, the Viceroy of Naples, and de la Cerda, the Viceroy of Sicily, have a history of quasi-independent action, including in de Ribera's case a refusal to allow Philip II to introduce the Spanish Inquisition into Naples.

Ah. The fact that they're still parts of the Spanish Crown stands, however.

 

[Thespitron 6000]

November 1564: A small but fast-moving Spanish force again crosses into France, this time near Limoux, under the guise of “bandits.” However, they encounter a small force of pikemen and crossbowmen which has been sent south by Montmorency for precisely this contingency, and a brief, inconclusive battle is joined. The Spanish are repulsed, and the French pursue them for two days before giving up, during which time they inadvertently cross into Catalonia.

Philip II, upon receiving news of the battle, immediately denounces the move as an act of unprovoked aggression. “The King of France hath, in his foolishness, let loose brigands and wastrels of all sorts in the land north and east of the Pyrenees, and now, in his ill-timed attempts to put them [down], hath invaded and ransacked Spain,” he writes to de Guzman. He portrays the stalking-horse Spanish “bandits” as French, and the French royal troops as being ruthless pillagers, sacking and burning the Catalonian village of Prats-de-Mollo. The village was sacked, but if anyone sees fit to ask the villagers, they would find out the despoilers spoke Spanish, not French.

Declaring war, Philip writes to Adrian VII, informing him that he intends to put “the Church a-right” in France, and that Francis II is no longer fit to rule France. His letter is stark:

He hath forfeited the right, for his land is now lawless. He hath repudiated the Holy Church. He hath interfered in the duties of God’s holy servants, insofar as he hath interfered in the rights of the Holy Office. He hath insulted your Holiness, by disavowing your Holiness’s election through the persons of the cardinals he hath corrupted. He hath disavowed his oath, taken upon his accession, that he should find it fit to defend the Faith. He hath allowed his wife to take many numerous lovers, and to place as heir to the throne of the ancient kingdom of the French a bastard. He hath permitted the trafficking of heresy, and hath promoted heresy in his realm. He hath consorted with the notorious witch and Machiavell Katerina de Medici, and conferred upon her uncounted powers, so that it is now said that she rules, and not the King. He hath affronted the Holy Sacristy, by allowing heretics to worship the devil in the very shadow of Christ’s holy Cathedrals. He hath a temerity in him, that he holdeth Colloquies in his realm that deny the traditions of the Church and the sacraments.

He hath invaded the kingdom of Spain. He hath despoiled the villages and fields thereof. He hath broken the peace betwixt our two realms, and hath done so careless of his own throne, for he hath placed in command of his forces in Catalonia, and in Occitania, the notorious husbander of heretics Henri de Montmorency, who is a heretic and a warlock. He hath made advances of alliance toward the notorious heretic Elizabeth of England.

In every decent thing he hath, in truth, been a viper, and so let there be war between France and Spain, such that the French shall be returned to the warm bosom of the Church.

Sooth, I am saddened; to make war upon my fellow man pains me. But it shall be a short war, for that old house that calleth itself France hath decayed so great a distance into corruption that one kick of the Spanish boot, and the rotted wood shall surely collapse into dust.

December 1564: Pope Adrian VII issues Sum Promptum, warning Francis II that he may lose his throne if he does not work assiduously to champion Catholicism and put down Huguenotism in France.

 

[Thespitron 6000]

December 1564: Elizabeth’s court is lodged at Hatfield, her favorite house, and the Christmas season is very merry indeed. Captain John Hawkyns, a trader and sometime pirate, arrives with the hope of the Queen backing him on his new venture. In 1563, he successfully sold slaves at Santo Domingo that he had obtained attacking and looting Portuguese ships. He wants the Queen to finance him on another voyage, this time to Africa, where he hopes to acquire African slaves at the source, believing that slavery has a future in the New World. And if he can snag a few Portuguese ships along the way, then so much the better.

Upon hearing his plan, Elizabeth is appalled. Not about the slavery part, but rather Hawkyns’ notion of looting Portuguese ships. The continental intrigues between France and Spain have the Queen worried; it’s entirely possible England may find herself friendless and surrounded by pro-Spanish powers if Spain wins its war with France. She has heard rumors of Adrian VII’s bull excommunicating her; right now, the last thing she needs to do is antagonize the Portuguese by looting their ships or the Spanish by trading slaves at their ports.

After some thought, she presents Hawkyns with a different proposal. For decades, Spain and Portugal have split the new world between them; both France and England have looked on enviously as the Iberians loot and colonize to their hearts’ content. But so far the English especially have not had success in their colonizing efforts; the Spanish have too much of a head start.

Now, though, with Philip distracted, it may be possible to plant the English flag in the New World. Elizabeth tasks Hawkyns with planning and developing an English expedition to start a colony in the New World. It will be many years before such a colony will be successful; a more immediate concern is gaining adequate maps and information of the American continents. Hawkyns, although disappointed that his African expedition has been declined, nonetheless sees opportunities for huge profits in being one of the first Englishmen in the New World, and readily agrees to the Queen’s proposal.

A preliminary mapping expedition is planned for the spring of 1566.

 

[Space Oddity]

Yay! It continues!

I rather enjoy Philip's using the fallout of his failed preliminary invasion to justify his next invasion. Classic him. And somehow, I'm left thinking this is going to turn into another running sore for a man who has too many already...

 

[Elfwine]

France is too powerful to be pushed over, and Philip too stubborn to quit.

Perfect running sore material.

 

[Thespitron 6000]

January 1565: The increasingly ailing Emperor Ferdinand I has responded enthusiastically to his nephew Philip II’s conception of a “Catholic league” to put down Protestantism in France. Ferdinand himself is rather liberal towards religion, regarding it as being beyond politics; although a Catholic, in 1555 Ferdinand helped pass the Peace of Augsburg, which gave limited freedoms to Lutherans in the Empire. However, he and the other Hapsburgs have long held a rivalry with the House of Valois, and the thought of bringing them low is almost too tempting. For months now Ferdinand has been championing his son Charles of Austria as a suitor for Elizabeth of England, in the hopes of encircling France with a web of Hapsburg powers, and it seems his efforts are proving fruitful.

There is one sticking point, though.

Portugal has long cherished its independence from Spain, and is leery of binding themselves too closely with the Spanish cause. Their decline of Philip’s invitation into the League is typical. But Ferdinand is convinced he can bring them around, and believes that some adroit diplomacy will do the trick. In particular, he wants to put a Hapsburg--or at least a Hapsburg knock-off--on the Portuguese throne. Since 1559, Ferdinand has been angling for an advantageous marriage for his granddaughter Elisabeth of Austria, negotiating with France, Portugal, and Denmark. With France hopelessly anti-Hapsburg, and Denmark now Protestant, that leaves Portugal, which helpfully slots right into Ferdinand’s foreign policy agenda. The Emperor now steps up his diplomatic campaign, hoping the eleven-year-old King Sebastian of Portugal will be charmed into marrying his granddaughter and be pulled into the Hapsburg diplomatic orbit.

 

[Space Oddity]

Ahh, the Hapsburgs. A family talented enough to come within a hairsbreadth of ruling Europe, and dysfunctional enough to choke in the clutch...

 

[Elfwine]

Ahh, the Hapsburgs. A family talented enough to come within a hairsbreadth of ruling Europe, and dysfunctional enough to choke in the clutch...

In fairness to the dynasty, they did get a lot of opposition that was significant enough to balance out even their vast resources.

 

[Space Oddity]

In fairness to the dynasty, they did get a lot of opposition that was significant enough to balance out even their vast resources.

Oh, I'd hardly deny that. And in contrast to most of their rivals, the Hapsburgs at least seemed to be able to comprehend the idea of working together... But there always seemed to be just enough personal problems to add a bit more difficulty than they needed.

And that was before the whole 'inbreeding' thing REALLY started to kick them.

 

[Elfwine]

Oh, I'd hardly deny that. And in contrast to most of their rivals, the Hapsburgs at least seemed to be able to comprehend the idea of working together...

Yeah.

But as you said...the Habsburgs seem to have been not quite good enough for the task.

Good enough to be a formidable threat, but not able to close the gap of "almost".

Philip seems bound and determined to make this timeline even worse in that regard by his picking a fight with France (though its not as if Francis is blameless, Philip is the one bringing this to the point of war).

 

[Thespitron 6000]

And that was before the whole 'inbreeding' thing REALLY started to kick them.

I'd say they comprehended the idea of working together a little too well.

 

[Elfwine]

I'd say they comprehended the idea of working together a little too well.

The only way this could be more disturbing is when it devolves into a punning contest.

 

[SavoyTruffle]

So far it's France versus Spain, in a seeming epilogue to the Italian Wars.

When will the other parts of each alliance coalesce?