The First Siege of Boulogne took place from 19 July to 14 September 1544 and the Second Siege of Boulogne took place in October 1544. An earlier Siege of Boulogne had taken place in 1492 when the English Tudor King Henry VII laid siege to the lightly defended lower town of Boulogne in the Pas-de-Calais, France. Fifty years later as allies of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, during the war against the French, the English returned led by Henry VII's son and heir, Henry VIII. Boulogne was fortified and defended as an English possession on the French mainland between 14 September 1544 and March 1550. First siege The siege of Boulogne took place between 19 July and 14 September 1544, during the third invasion of France by King Henry VIII of England. Henry was motivated to take Boulogne by the French giving aid to England's enemies in Scotland. In 1543 he made a new alliance with Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain, whose Roman Catholic allegiances were, for a time, overruled by the political advantages of an alliance with England against France. In early 1544, a large English force departed from the Pale of Calais. Later, this split into two parts, and one of them, under the Duke of Suffolk, marched to the coastal town of Boulogne and laid siege to it on 19 July. A few weeks later, Henry arrived to take command of the siege himself. The lower section of the town, fortified lightly, fell quickly to heavy bombardment, which continued through August. By September, the upper town was breached and taken, but the central castle still held out. The French garrison's firepower prevented any approach on foot, so the English dug tunnels under the castle, and the French surrendered on 13 September. However, the Emperor Charles V then made a separate peace with France, and the French attacked Boulogne in the Second Siege of Boulogne. Over the following years, neither England nor France found the strength to engage in all-out war with one another. French attempts to retake Boulogne failed, while English attempts to gain more territory around Calais and Boulogne also failed. Henry awaited a large French invasion fleet which never came, and subsequently much of England's military resources during his and his son's reigns were diverted to the war in Scotland. Second siege The Second Siege of Boulogne was an engagement