Battle of Borgerhout
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The Battle of Borgerhout was a battle during the Eighty Years' War, of the Spanish Army of Flanders led by Alexander Farnese, Prince of Parma, upon a fortified camp at the village of Borgerhout, near Antwerp, where several thousand French, English, Scottish, and Walloon soldiers in service of the recently created Union of Utrecht were stationed. It took place during the reconquest by the armies of
Philip II of Spain Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...
of the Burgundian Netherlands, whose different provinces had united in 1576 under the Pacification of Ghent to drive out the foreign troops and to grant religious liberty to
Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
. Despite the rebel victory at the Battle of Rijmenam in July 1578, much of the Southern Netherlands were lost to the Spanish Army during the autumn; Brussels was menaced, and the States General were moved to the safer Antwerp. Taking advantage of the Dutch rebel army's indiscipline, Farnese decided at the beginning of 1579 to besiege Maastricht. As a feint to distract the Dutch rebels from his goal, but also aiming to scare Antwerp's inhabitants, Farnese moved with his troops to surprise the village of Borgerhout, very close to Antwerp, where a part of the Dutch States Army had its quarters, namely 3,000 or 4,000 infantry which were the backbone of the rebel army and consisted of French Calvinists under François de la Noue, and English and Scottish troops under John Norrey's orders. On 2 March Farnese deployed elements of his army in a plain stretching between his position at the village of Ranst and the Dutch camp at Borgerhout, which Norreys and De la Noue had fortified with
moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...
s,
palisade A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a fence or defensive wall made from iron or wooden stakes, or tree trunks, and used as a defensive structure or enclosure. Palisades can form a stockade. Etymology ''Palisade' ...
s, and
earthworks Earthworks may refer to: Construction *Earthworks (archaeology), human-made constructions that modify the land contour * Earthworks (engineering), civil engineering works created by moving or processing quantities of soil *Earthworks (military), m ...
. The assault was divided into three columns, each one provided with a mobile bridge to pass over the camp's moat. After one of the attacks, undertaken by Walloon troops, succeeded in securing a bridge, the Spanish forces were able to attack the States-General's soldiers inside their camp. Norreys and De la Noue's men opposed a strong defence, but Farnese, throwing his
light cavalry Light cavalry comprised lightly armed and armored cavalry troops mounted on fast horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the mounted riders (and sometimes the warhorses) were heavily armored. The purpose of light cavalry was primarily rai ...
into the battle, forced the Dutch troops to abandon Borgerhout and look for shelter under the artillery of Antwerp's walls. William of Orange, leader of the Dutch revolt, and Archduke Matthias of Habsburg,
Governor-General of the Netherlands The governor ( nl, landvoogd) or governor-general () of the Habsburg Netherlands was a representative appointed by the Holy Roman emperor (1504-1556), the king of Spain (1556-1598, 1621-1706), and the archduke of Austria (1716-1794), to administer ...
appointed by the States General, witnessed the fight from Antwerp's walls. The battle meant the destruction of the villages of Borgerhout and Deurne and saw up to 1,500 men killed between both armies. Farnese then proceeded to besiege Maastricht, which the Spanish Army invested less than a week after the battle and was taken by assault on 29 June of the same year. Farnese's successful campaign opened the way to a nine-year period of Spanish reconquest of much of the Netherlands.


Background

In 1566 the Burgundian Netherlands, Charles V of Habsburg's original realm, which had passed to his son Philip II of Spain on his abdication in 1556, were in disarray due to religious tensions between Protestants and Catholics and the nobility and cities' unwillingness of funding Philip's wars and ceding its powers to the Royal administration. In 1567, Philip sent an army to the Netherlands under
Fernando Álvarez de Toledo Fernando is a Spanish and Portuguese given name and a surname common in Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Switzerland, former Spanish or Portuguese colonies in Latin America, Africa, the Philippines, India, and Sri Lanka. It is equivalent to the G ...
, Duke of Alba, to restore his authority, but Alba's persecution of the religious and political dissenters led William of Orange, the leader of the nobility, to exile into Germany and prepare an invasion of the Netherlands to expel Alba. Orange invaded the Netherlands twice, in 1568 and 1572, but in both occasions Alba defeated him. The second time, however, the revolt spread into the provinces of Holland and Zealand, and Alba was unable to quell it. In 1576, the lack of an authority due to the death of Alba's successor
Luis de Requesens Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archai ...
, together with a Spanish general
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, led the Spanish mutinous soldiers to sack several towns, including Antwerp. In reaction, the loyal and rebel provinces united to expel the foreign troops under the Pacification of Ghent. John of Austria, the victor of Lepanto and replacement to Requesens, had no choice but to sign the Perpetual Edict in 1577, accepting the Pacification of Ghent, but later, frustrated by the intransigence of Orange and his supporters, he seized the
citadel of Namur The Citadel or Castle of Namur is a fortress in the Walloon capital city of Namur, at the confluence of the Sambre and Meuse rivers. It is originally from the Roman era, but has been rebuilt several times. Its current form was designed by Men ...
and recalled his troops. John's striking victory at the Battle of Gembloux in January 1578, was followed by a tactical defeat at Rijmenam in July, and John himself died of
plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...
in October. However, despite the Spanish failure to exploit militarily the victory of Gembloux, it rendered important political benefits to the royal cause in the Netherlands, as it shattered the unity of the Dutch rebels. As a consequence of the battle's outcome, the leaders of the main families of the Southern provinces lost faith in Orange's cause and the promises of aid made by the English queen Elizabeth I, which meant an important setback to Orange. Aiming to restore the military capability of the Dutch rebels, Elizabeth arranged with John Casimir, son of the Calvinist
Elector Palatine The counts palatine of Lotharingia /counts palatine of the Rhine /electors of the Palatinate (german: Kurfürst von der Pfalz) ruled some part of Rhine area in the Kingdom of Germany and the Holy Roman Empire from 915 to 1803. The title was a kind ...
, the raising of a German Army under English pay to assist the Dutch troops John Casimir brought to the Netherlands 11,000 men, but instead of fighting the Spanish, he sided with the Calvinist extremists at Ghent and widened the gap between the Catholic and Protestant rebels. The States General also called for help from
Francis, Duke of Anjou '' Monsieur'' Francis, Duke of Anjou and Alençon (french: Hercule François; 18 March 1555 – 10 June 1584) was the youngest son of King Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici. Early years He was scarred by smallpox at age eight, a ...
, brother and heir to the
King of France France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the Kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions. Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I () as the first ...
, who entered
Mons Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century. T ...
in July 1578, but was back in France in a short time. The Catholic nobility and southern provinces' defections, already started in the autumn 1578, expanded further when the provinces of Hainaut and Artois on 6 January 1579 concluded the Union of Arras, which
Walloon Flanders Walloon Flanders (Dutch: ''Waals Vlaanderen'', French: ''Flandre wallonne'') was a semi-independent part of the County of Flanders, composed of the Burgrave, burgraviates of Lille, Douai and Orchies. It is sometimes referred to as ''Lille–Douai ...
would soon join. The Catholic provinces of
Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...
, Luxembourg, and Limburg were already controlled by the Spanish. The Union of Arras opened talks in February with Alexander Farnese, who succeeded his uncle
John of Austria John of Austria ( es, Juan, link=no, german: Johann; 24 February 1547 – 1 October 1578) was the natural son born to Holy Roman Emperor Charles V late in life when he was a widower. Charles V met his son only once, recognizing him in a secret ...
as the Royal-appointed Governor-General of the Netherlands, to reconcile with Philip II. In response, a meeting took place in Utrecht shortly thereafter between deputies from the northern provinces of Holland, Zealand, Utrecht, Friesland, Gelderland, and
Ommelanden The Ommelanden (; ) are the parts of Groningen province that surround Groningen city. Usually mentioned as synonym for the province in the expression ("city and surrounding lands"). The area was Frisian-speaking, but under the influence of th ...
, which signed an alliance and union on 23 January. In the south, meanwhile, Farnese was planning the capture of Maastricht to use the city with its stone bridge over the Meuse as a base to conquer Brussels and Antwerp in the following campaigns. In November 1578, the Spanish Army left Namur and crossed the
Ardennes The Ardennes (french: Ardenne ; nl, Ardennen ; german: Ardennen; wa, Årdene ; lb, Ardennen ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Be ...
and Limburg. However, Farnese deemed too risky starting the siege of Maastrich at midwinter and with John Casimir's numerous cavalry in the countryside.


Campaign

For the 1579 campaign, Farnese planned two different movements. A portion of his army, under Cristóbal de Mondragón, was to clear the area between Maastricht and the German border of Dutch garrisons, while Farnese himself, ahead of the main army, decided to move against Antwerp with two objectives: to neutralize the Dutch field army, or primarily its German cavalry, before laying siege to Maastricht and to distract the Dutch from the campaign's real objective. The first part of the plan was accomplished when Mondragón took the towns of
Kerpen Kerpen (; Ripuarian: ''Kerpe'') is the most populated town in the Rhein-Erft-Kreis (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany). It is located about 20 kilometres southwest from Cologne. Division of the town The town of Kerpen was created in 1975, whe ...
, Erkelenz, and
Straelen Straelen (; Low Rhenish: ''Strale'') is a municipality in the district of Cleves, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located near the border with the Netherlands, approx. 10 km north-east of Venlo. Twinning : Bayon The Bayon ( km, ...
between 7 and 15 January. On 24 January, Farnese moved to attack the States General army, which was at Weert, east of Antwerp. Outnumbered, François de la Noue, who had taken the role of field commander of the States' army after the Count of Bossu's death, left some States' troops in the Castle of Weert and withdrew to Antwerp with his unpaid men. They asked the city council to allow them to enter the city, but it was refused, and De la Noue had no choice but to entrench his army outside the walls, in the village of Borgerhout. This was a residential area for the wealthy inhabitants of Antwerp where they had country houses and gardens, among them Peeter van Coudenberghe's botanical garden, which had more than 600 exotic plants. In the meantime, Farnese entrusted to Count Hannibal d'Altemps the capture of Weert and continued his advance upon the Dutch Army. D'Altemps encircled Weert with 6,000 men and breached its walls with a two-cannon
battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...
. The defenders of the castle
surrendered at discretion An unconditional surrender is a surrender in which no guarantees are given to the surrendering party. It is often demanded with the threat of complete destruction, extermination or annihilation. In modern times, unconditional surrenders most ofte ...
but, on Farnese orders, were hanged from the windows, which the Count willingly did because his steward had lost an eye during the siege. Farnese, instead of following the Dutch Army to its quarters, lodged in Turnhout with his troops and his court to forage. Before moving to Antwerp he dealt with John Casimir's German army. Spanish troops attacked and defeated part of the German
reiters ''Reiter'' or ''Schwarze Reiter'' ("black riders", anglicized ''swart reiters'') were a type of cavalry in 16th to 17th century Central Europe including Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Tsardom of Russia, and others. ...
near
Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,Maurice of Saxe-Lauenburg, the withdrawal of the Calvinist army, which the Spaniards allowed to leave the Netherlands freely. Once this matter was finished, Farnese advanced upon Borgerhout.


Order of battle

The Dutch States' troops quartered in the village of Borgerhout numbered 25 or 40 infantry companies which comprised from 3,000 to 4,000 soldiers, plus 100 additional mounted troops. They were the backbone of the rebel army and William of Orange referred to them as "his braves". Moreover, they were led by officers of renown such as François de la Noue and John Norreys. To confront the Spanish Army, they were detached along the village of Borgerhout, which they had fortified by digging a
moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...
and building an earth rampart around the village, from the bridge of Deurne over the Groot Schijn stream, which flowed into the Scheldt, to the road of Voetweg, which ran parallel to the canal of Herentals. Orange deployed four additional French infantry regiments and Walloon troops from the nearby garrisons of Ath and Termonde behind Borgerhout and under the protection of Antwerp's citadel and moat. The city's civic guard, numbering 80 flags of armed and trained burghers, was ready to defend the city if necessary, but not willing to go out to join the battle nor to allow the regular troops to come within Antwerp. The Spanish soldier and chronicler
Alonso Vázquez Alonso Vázquez (1565 – c. 1608) was a Spanish sculptor and painter of the Renaissance period. Vázquez was born in Ronda, and learned painting in the school of Arfian at Seville. He passed through the usual apprenticeship "sargas" (inexpens ...
claimed that Orange's army had, in all, 25,000 men. Farnese deployed a 5,000-man vanguard, both infantry and cavalry, in the plain which separated his camp at Ranst from Borgerhout. Three small battalions, not surpassing 12 companies each, but made up of chosen men, went in advance; the right was taken by the Spanish tercio of Lope de Figueroa, the center by a
Lower German : : : : : (70,000) (30,000) (8,000) , familycolor = Indo-European , fam2 = Germanic , fam3 = West Germanic , fam4 = North Sea Germanic , ancestor = Old Saxon , ancestor2 = Middle L ...
regiment under
Francisco de Valdés Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name '' Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed " Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father o ...
, and the right by a Walloon regiment under Claude de Berlaymont, known as Haultpenne. Each formation was supported by a sleeve of 100 musketeers, a group of men armed with axes to cut the palisades and a wheeled bridge to cross the moat. A corps of
light cavalry Light cavalry comprised lightly armed and armored cavalry troops mounted on fast horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the mounted riders (and sometimes the warhorses) were heavily armored. The purpose of light cavalry was primarily rai ...
led by Antonio de Olivera followed the infantry at some distance with instructions to cover its withdrawal if the attack went bad, or to follow up the victory, if it took place. According to Alonso Vázquez, Farnese made the Walloon soldiers of the Spanish army wear white shirts over their armor, a practise common in night attacks known as camisades, to distinguish themselves from the Walloons who fought for the Union of Utrecht. Thus the Walloons looked, in his words, like "a very colorful procession of clerics and sacristans". In reserve, Farnese deployed a large battalion made up by the German regiments of Hannibal d'Altemps and Georg von Frundsberg, flanked on its right by troops of reiters under Duke Francis of Saxe-Lauenburg, elder brother of Duke Maurice, John Casimir's former lieutenant, and on its left by
lancers A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance. Lances were used for mounted warfare in Assyria as early as and subsequently by Persia, India, Egypt, China, Greece, and Rome. The weapon was widely used throughout Eurasia during the M ...
under Pierre de Taxis. The remaining Spanish cavalry, led by Ottavio Gonzaga, covered the rear. Farnese led his troops personally, and before the battle was started, he scouted the Dutch position, having ordered his troops not to move until his return. On the Dutch side, while De la Noue and Norreys directed the men standing in Borgerhout, William of Orange witnessed the battle from the walls of Antwerp in company of Archduke Matthias, brother of the
Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...
Rudolf II Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Kingdom of Croatia (Habsburg), Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–160 ...
, whom the States General had elected as Governor of the Netherlands in opposition to the deceased John of Austria.


Battle

The fight started with the three battalions of the Spanish first line advancing upon the Dutch camp, each one trying to be the first to lay its bridge over the moat. Haultpenne's Walloons, headed by Sergeant-Major Camille Sacchino, moved up to Deurne, crossing the Schijn river at the small village of Immerseel. Valdés' Germans advanced frontally to Borgerhout across the
Borsbeek Borsbeek () is a municipality () located in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium, and in the Flemish province of Antwerp. The municipality only comprises the town of Borsbeek proper. On 1 January 2021 Borsbeek had a total population of 11 ...
road, and Figueroa's Spaniards took the Voetweg road to assault the Dutch camp from the south. While the sleeves of musketeers from the Spanish and German units exchanged fire with the Dutch troops covered by the rampart, Sacchino's Walloons drove the defenders of Deurne behind the Groot Schijn stream and took its bridge. De la Noue sent reinforcements there to contest the assault, but they arrived too late to prevent the Walloons from laying their bridge over the moat and began to climb the rampart, starting a close combat with the Dutch troops. In the meantime, the Spanish and German troops, supported by two or three artillery pieces, breached the rampart, crossed the moat, and also started to come inside Borgerhout, where De la Noue and Norreys' men reorganized and stood on the barricaded streets. Farnese, seeing that his attack was going well, ordered Olivera to advance with his cavalry to support the infantry's push. While the light horsemen penetrated into Borgerhout across the breach opened by Figueroa's men, Farnese himself took the command of Taxis' lancers and did the same across Valdés' path. The French and English soldiers offered a strong resistance, but after two hours of battle inside the quarters, De la Noue began to withdraw his forces to Antwerp to avoid destruction. The retreating troops set fire to their lodgements and looked for shelter under the coverage of Antwerp's artillery. Many of the Spanish soldiers went in pursuit, despite their officers orders for them to stay together, and chased the rebels until Antwerp's moat. At William of Orange's orders, the artillery of the city walls fired
shrapnel Shrapnel may refer to: Military * Shrapnel shell, explosive artillery munitions, generally for anti-personnel use * Shrapnel (fragment), a hard loose material Popular culture * ''Shrapnel'' (Radical Comics) * ''Shrapnel'', a game by Adam ...
over the Spanish troops with different results, depending on the sources. The Spanish soldier Alonso Vázquez claimed that the shots were ineffective because the battlefield was covered by the smoke produced by the fire of Borgerhout. On the other hand, the Flemish official Guillaume Baudart claimed that it was precise and made "arms and legs fly on the air". By then, Farnese, unwilling of having for a longer time his troops close to Antwerp's cannons, made drums and trumpets to call for withdrawal and gathered his men at Borgerhout. Meanwhile, people from Antwerp sallied to carry the wounded French, British, and Walloon officers and soldiers into the city to receive treatment. The Spanish soldiery, once the fire of Borgerhout was finished, looted the basements of the burned buildings and had a meal before praying to thank God. After that, the Spanish army marched across the roads of Lier and Herentals to Turnhout, where Farnese wanted to arrive the next day. Fearing a new attack, Antwerp's civic guards spent the night at their posts.


Aftermath

The number of casualties endured by both armies differs according to the authors. The Italian
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
Famiano Strada Famiano Strada (1572– 6 September 1649) was an Italian Jesuit and historian of wars in the low countries (Belgium and Netherlands) during the early part of the Eighty Years' War, starting with the abdication of Charles V in 1556 to the capture ...
noted that Farnese, in a letter to his father
Ottavio Ottavio is the Italian form of Octavius. Its feminine given name version is Ottavia. Ottavio may refer to: Given name * Ottavio Cinquanta, the President of the International Skating Union * Ottavio Leoni, Italian painter * Ottavio Piccolomini, (15 ...
,
Duke of Parma The Duke of Parma and Piacenza () was the ruler of the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, a historical state of Northern Italy, which existed between 1545 and 1802, and again from 1814 to 1859. The Duke of Parma was also Duke of Piacenza, except ...
, put the Dutch loss as 600 men killed and gave eight men killed and 40 wounded amongst his troops. Strada also mentions that other estimations pointed to 1,040 men killed in the Dutch ranks. On the other hand, the Flemish author Guillaume Baudart set the Dutch loss as 200 men killed and claimed that the Spanish army lost 500 men. The villages of Deurne and Borgerhout were seriously damaged by the fire during the battle: in 1580 Deurne had 133 standing buildings, while 146 had been destroyed by the fire; in Borgerhout 206 buildings remained and 280 were ruined. Farnese's attack achieved his goal of distracting the Dutch States forces from Maastricht. After the battle, the Spanish army moved quickly to Turnhout, taking the castle of Grobbendonk on its way and appearing before Maastricht on 8 March, just six days after the battle of Borgerhout. François de la Noue followed the Spanish till Herentals with some troops, but when he realized that Farnese was to lay siege to Maastricht, it was too late for him to reinforce the city's garrison. Moreover, mutinies and
defection In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state in exchange for allegiance to another, changing sides in a way which is considered illegitimate by the first state. More broadly, defection involves abandoning a person, ca ...
s hampered the Dutch efforts to save the city. The English soldiers under John Norrey's orders, who remained out of Antwerp, kidnapped the abbot of St. Michael's Abbey in demand for back pays, and William of Orange's had to mediate to placate them. In political terms, the battle increased the Walloon defections from the States General to the Spanish party in the following months. Emanuel Philibert de Lalaing joined the Spanish Army with 5,000 Walloon troops of the Dutch States army and expelled from Menen a garrison loyal to the States General. Farnese besieged Maastricht in command of 15,000 infantry, 4,000 cavalry, 20 cannons, and 4,000 sappers, joined later by 5,000 additional troops. In May, while the siege developed, peace talks were held at Cologne under the mediation of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf to preserve the unity of the Netherlands. However, divisions become more serious during the process. In Brussels, fight erupted in early June between Catholics headed by Philip of Egmont, son of
Lamoral of Egmont Lamoral, Count of Egmont, Prince of Gavere (18 November 1522 – 5 June 1568) was a general and statesman in the Spanish Netherlands just before the start of the Eighty Years' War, whose execution helped spark the national uprising that eventual ...
, whom the Royalist authorities had executed in 1568 and Calvinists under Olivier van den Tympel, resulting in the expulsion of Egmont and his supporters. At
Mechelen Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...
, the Catholic inhabitants forced the Dutch garrison to leave, while in
's-Hertogenbosch s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of th ...
an armed struggle resulted in the magistrates declaring support to the Royalist side. The revolt took a character of civil war, and as a result of the religious problem, the peace conference at Cologne failed. Henceforth, Farnese reconquered Flanders and the
Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...
town after town, even forcing Antwerp to surrender after a long and exhausting siege in 1585.


Notes


References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * {{cite book , last = Wilson , first = Charles , year = 1976 , title = The Transformation of Europe, 1558–1648 , url = https://archive.org/details/transformationof0000wils_w3h3 , publisher = University of California Press , location = Los Angeles , isbn = 9780520030756 , url-access = registration
Borgerhout Borgerhout () is the smallest district of Antwerp, Belgium. , the district houses 45,769 inhabitants on 3,93 km². It was an independent municipality until January 1983. The postal area code for Borgerhout is 2140. Geography Borgerhout is divided ...
Borgerhout Borgerhout () is the smallest district of Antwerp, Belgium. , the district houses 45,769 inhabitants on 3,93 km². It was an independent municipality until January 1983. The postal area code for Borgerhout is 2140. Geography Borgerhout is divided ...
1579 in the Habsburg Netherlands
Borgerhout Borgerhout () is the smallest district of Antwerp, Belgium. , the district houses 45,769 inhabitants on 3,93 km². It was an independent municipality until January 1983. The postal area code for Borgerhout is 2140. Geography Borgerhout is divided ...
Borgerhout Borgerhout () is the smallest district of Antwerp, Belgium. , the district houses 45,769 inhabitants on 3,93 km². It was an independent municipality until January 1983. The postal area code for Borgerhout is 2140. Geography Borgerhout is divided ...
Borgerhout Borgerhout () is the smallest district of Antwerp, Belgium. , the district houses 45,769 inhabitants on 3,93 km². It was an independent municipality until January 1983. The postal area code for Borgerhout is 2140. Geography Borgerhout is divided ...
16th century in Antwerp Eighty Years' War (1566–1609)
Borgerhout Borgerhout () is the smallest district of Antwerp, Belgium. , the district houses 45,769 inhabitants on 3,93 km². It was an independent municipality until January 1983. The postal area code for Borgerhout is 2140. Geography Borgerhout is divided ...