Henry VII’s main aim in foreign affairs was to avoid war. How far do you agree?

Advice on answering this type of question, pay attention to 'how far'. The question encourages you to explore both sides of the argument, e.g. both the reasons why his main aim in foreign affairs was to avoid war, and some other factors that influenced his foreign policy. It is important to remember that there is no set answer to this question, you just have to justify your view.If you thought that Henry VII's main aim in foreign affairs was to avoid war, then you could consider answers such as that warfare was very dangerous, and Henry knew this because he himself had gained the throne by war. You could also argue that warfare was costly and would disrupt trade, and for these reasons should be avoided as much as possible. He also wanted to avoid war with France because they were not only financially stronger than England, but were also allied with England's neighbour, Scotland. After arguing these points, it would be wise for you to write: however. This is where you would explain that there were other factors that influenced Henry VII's foreign policy. For example, he was concerned with dynastic security because he had a weak claim to the English throne, and Yorkist threats were said to exist overseas, e.g. Perkin Warbeck who was sheltered in Burgundy. Henry needed foreign recognition of his claim to the throne because of how weak it was, and he did this via marriage alliances. Marriage alliances bolstered his claim to the throne against foreign invasions which supported Yorkist pretenders/claimants. You can grab the top marks by definitively judging what you believe Henry's main foreign policy aims were from the answers given above. This would be written in the conclusion. For example, you could end your answer by writing that 'While other factors influenced Henry's foreign policy, the need to avoid war was his main aim because war could cause him to lose the throne to a pretender that was being supported by a foreign nation, such as Perkin Warbeck'.