The roots of Sollomoss laid as much in Henry VIII's belief that he could flout with impunity the the authority of the Universal Church, public opinion of Christendom and the personal interests of the Holy Roman Emperor, as in James V's delusion that he could reinstate Catholicism in England. Self restraint had never been Henry's virtue and encouraged by the wealth gained from his dissolution of the lesser monasteries in 1536, the crushing of the "Pilgrimage of Grace" in 1536, which confirmed his religious authority and the birth of his male heir in 1537, Henry prepared the country for Protestantism after his death.

When Francis I, King of France and the Holy Roman Emperor,Charles V signed a 10 year treaty, ending the Habsburg-Valois war, Henry, now a widower, feared that they would join forces to enact the Papal Bull of 1530 deposing him. The first portent of trouble occurred in 1539 when a fleet of 60 ships from the Low Countries passed through the English Channel to Spain. In response Henry mobilised almost 150 ships and enacted the Navigation Act in 1540. He also began spending vast sums (an average of 29% of his ordinary revenue) on his navy and coastal defences. Henry also decided to ally himself with another European power to neutralise the threat from the 10 year treaty and found himself in a short-lived marriage to Ann of Cleves. While the marrriage negotiations were taking place, a Catholic reaction had begun in England, which lead to the Act of Six Articles and the arrest and execution of Cromwell, who had done so much to enrich and empower Henry. However by 1542, the crisis with Europe passed as the Habsburg-Valois war had broken out again between France and Charles V; Henry could turn his attention to developing his navy. While the navy had always cruised in the English channel, it was quite an achievement to sail further than the North Channel and in fact the only ship to have penetrated further north in this era was the Mary Willoughby in 1533 which had been sent to the Northern Isles and captured by the Scots who used her successfully for the next 15 years. So in 1541, Henry sent her successor the Mary Walsingham under William Woodhouse, but unfortunately the New Renaissance technology of sail and heavy gun again proved little match for the Highland galleys and she too was captured. Henry's well known arrogance was unable to brook this second sleight to his naval power and the seeds were sown for further retaliation.