To what extent was involvement in foreign war the factor most likely to bring change to a monarch’s financial position in the period 1399-1509?
During the period 1399-1509, monarchs were typically financially unstable, mainly due to maintaining the expensive Hundred Years War, which eventually failed during Henry VI’s rule. There are also, however, many other factors which were likely to bring change to a monarch’s financial position during this period, including foreign diplomacy, the monarch’s relationship with parliament and the farming of crown lands, which all greatly affected the king’s financial position.
Foreign war was perhaps one of the most significant factors to a change a monarch’s financial position, as not only was it expensive, it also greatly affected trade and relations with other countries in the long term. Several monarchs between the years 1399-1509 struggled financially due to the Hundred Years War with France, whether they were…show more content… Henry V, although being incredibly successful in this war, winning vast amounts of land which could be farmed and taxed, still struggled towards the end of his reign due to the high costs of maintaining troops and defences in France. Despite parliament being happy to grant Henry taxation, by the end of his reign, it is evident that his financial position had changed, as parliament had either refused or deferred a request for taxation, however this may not have been due to the war, but rather his relationship with parliament, which may have deteriorated due to him being in France more often than England. Henry VI’s financial position also suffered heavily as a result of foreign war, however this was more because of the land he lost in France during his reign. This loss of land meant quite a large proportion of England’s income from farming
