Mediterranean campaigns to Marshall de Tavannes after the
Battle of Renty, on 13 August 1554 Henry II sealed
a treaty with
Suleiman the Magnificent in order to cooperate against the Habsburgs in the Mediterranean. This was triggered by the conquest of
Mahdiya by the Genoese Admiral
Andrea Doria on 8 September 1550, for the account of
Charles V. The alliance allowed Henry II to push for French conquests towards the
Rhine, while a
Franco-Ottoman fleet defended southern France. The 1551 Ottoman
Siege of Tripoli was the first step of the all-out Italian War of 1551–59 in the European theater, and in the Mediterranean the French galleys of
Marseille were ordered to join the Ottoman fleet. In 1552, when Henry II attacked Charles V, the Ottomans sent 100 galleys to the Western Mediterranean, which were accompanied by three French galleys under
Gabriel de Luetz d'Aramon in their raids along the coast of
Calabria in Southern Italy, capturing the city of
Reggio. In the
Battle of Ponza in front of the island of
Ponza, the fleet met with 40 galleys of
Andrea Doria, and managed to vanquish the Genoese and capture seven galleys. This alliance would also lead to the combined
Invasion of Corsica in 1553. The Ottomans continued harassing the Habsburg possessions with various operations in the Mediterranean, such as the
Ottoman invasion of the Balearic islands in 1558, following a request by Henry II.
Land campaigns War of Parma On the continental front, the opening phase of the war was marked by the Parmesan succession crisis: the newly elected
Pope Julius III had confirmed
Ottavio Farnese as the Duke of Parma and Piacenza, while Charles V's Imperial troops had occupied the city in 1547 after Ottavio's father's assassination. Seeing France as his best choice against the Emperor, Ottavio Farnese signed a defensive alliance with Henry II of France on 27 May 1551, placing Parma under French protection. Charles could not accept this, and pressured the Pope into an alliance against France and Parma, causing the
War of Parma in June 1551. The main combat of this phase was the
Siege of Mirandola (1551), during which the Franco-Farnese defenders repulsed attacks by the Papal-Imperial-Spanish forces. The belligerents agreed to a two-year truce on 29 April 1552, ratified by Charles V on 10 May, which ended the War of Parma.
Schmalkaldic War and Sienese siege Meanwhile, Henry II allied with German Protestant princes against Charles V with the
Treaty of Chambord on 15 January 1552. An early offensive into
Lorraine, in the
Second Schmalkaldic War, was successful, with Henry capturing the
Three Bishoprics of
Metz,
Toul, and
Verdun and securing them by defeating the invading Habsburg army at the
Battle of Renty (12 August 1554). In 1552, an anti-Spanish revolt in the
Republic of Siena gave Henry another ally; on 17 July 1552, a Franco-Sienese army managed to expel the Spanish garrison. The Sienese welcomed a French garrison to defend the Republic against Spanish recapture attempts. A French army invaded Tuscany in 1553 in support of the Sienese Republic. In January 1554, the Spanish started besieging the city of Siena. The French troops were attacked by an Imperial‐Florentine army and defeated at the
Battle of Marciano by
Gian Giacomo Medici (2 August 1554). After an 18-month-long siege, Siena fell to Spanish forces on 15 April 1555. Although a run by exiled Sienese loyalists continued to exist until 3 April 1559, the territory of the Republic of Siena was fully annexed to the Duchy of Florence under
Cosimo I de' Medici with the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis (3 April 1559), and eventually became part of the
Grand Duchy of Tuscany (1569).
Papal front and St. Quentin A treaty in Vaucelles was signed on 5 February 1556 between Charles V and Henry II of France. After Emperor Charles' abdication in 1556 split the Habsburg empire between Philip II of Spain and
Ferdinand I, the focus of the war shifted to
Flanders. However, the truce was broken shortly afterwards.
Pope Paul IV was displeased and urged Henry II to join the Papal States in an invasion of Spanish Naples. On 1 September 1556, Philip II responded by pre-emptively invading the Papal States with 12,000 men under the Duke of Alba. Alba and his subordinates seized and sacked numerous settlements while the pope waited for French reinforcements. French forces approaching from the north were defeated and forced to withdraw at the Siege of
Civitella in August 1557. Philip, in conjunction with
Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy, defeated the French in the
Battle of St. Quentin (1557) (10–27 August). The Spanish attempted to blockade Rome by occupying the port of Ostia but were driven back by the Papal armies in a surprise attack. However, when French troops were unable to come to their aid, the Papal armies were left exposed and were defeated, with Spanish troops under the
Duke of Alba arriving at the edge of Rome. Out of fear of another sack of Rome, Paul IV agreed to the Duke of Alba's demand for the Papal States to declare neutrality by signing the Peace of Cave-Palestrina (12 September 1557). Emperor Charles V criticized the peace agreement as being overly generous to the Pope.
English entry and Gravelines A brief French-backed revolt led by
Thomas Stafford against queen
Mary I of England resulted in a three-day siege of
Scarborough Castle in April 1557. Mary declared war on France in June 1557 and English troops assisted in the victory at St. Quentin in August. But England's entry into the war provoked the French
Siege of Calais in January 1558, which was a defeat for the English. French armies plundered Spanish possessions in the
Low Countries and emerged victorious in the
Siege of Thionville (April–June 1558). Nonetheless, Henry lost gravely at the
Battle of Gravelines (13 July 1558) and was forced to accept a peace agreement in which he renounced any further claims to Italy.
Military technology Oman (1937) argues that the inconclusive campaigns which generally lack a decisive engagement were largely due to ineffective leadership and lack of offensive spirit. He notes that mercenary troops were used too often and proved unreliable. Hale emphasizes the defensive strength of
bastion forts newly designed at angles to dissipate cannon fire. Cavalry, which had traditionally used shock tactics to overawe the infantry, largely abandoned it and relied on pistol attacks by successive ranks of attackers. Hale notes the use of old-fashioned mass formations, which he attributes to lingering conservatism. Overall, Hale emphasizes new levels of tactical proficiency.
Finance In 1552 Charles V had borrowed over 4 million
ducats, with the
Metz campaign alone costing 2.5 million ducats. Shipments of treasure from the Indies totalled over two million ducats between 1552 and 1553. By 1554, the cash deficit for the year was calculated to be over 4.3 million ducats, even after all tax receipts for the six ensuing years had been pledged and the proceeds spent in advance. Credit at this point began costing the crown 43 percent interest (largely financed by the
Fugger and
Welser banking families). By 1557 the crown was refusing payment from the Indies since even this was required for payment of the war effort (used in the offensive and Spanish victory at the battle of St. Quentin in August 1557). French finances during the war were mainly financed by the increase in the
taille tax, as well as indirect taxes like the
gabelle and customs fees. The French monarchy also resorted to heavy borrowings during the war from financiers at rates of 10–16 percent interest. The taille was estimated in collection for 1551 at around six million
livres. During the 1550s, Spain had an estimated military manpower of around 150,000 soldiers, whereas France had an estimated manpower of 50,000. == Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis (1559) ==