The Conspiracy of Nobles (French: ''La conspiration des nobles'') was a plot in 1632 to divide the

Spanish Netherlands The Spanish Netherlands (; ; ; ) (historically in Spanish: , the name "Flanders" was used as a '' pars pro toto'') was the Habsburg Netherlands ruled by the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs from 1556 to 1714. They were a collection of States of t ...

between the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

and the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

. The Belgian

aristocrats Aristocracy (; ) is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. Across Europe, the aristocracy exercised immense economic, political, and social influence. In Western Christian co ...

behind the plot were frustrated at their exclusion from the decision-making process by

Gaspar de Guzmán, Count-Duke of Olivares Gaspar de Guzmán y Pimentel, 1st Duke of Sanlúcar, 3rd Count of Olivares, , known as the Count-Duke of Olivares (taken by joining both Count of Olivares, his countship and Duke of Sanlúcar la Mayor, subsequent dukedom) (6 January 1587 – 2 ...

, who was a

chief minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union ter ...

to the

Philip IV of Spain Philip IV (, ; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered for his patronage of the ...

, sovereign ruler of the

. Among the conspirators were Counts Hendrik van den Bergh and

René de Renesse, 1st Count of Warfusée René III of Renesse, Viscount of Montenaecken, Baron of Gaesbeeck, Lord of Elderen (ca. 1580 – Liège, 17 April 1637) was a Dutch nobleman, who became the 1st Count of Warfusée in 1609. He acquired Gaasbeek Castle in 1615. Family He was ...

, the only two of the conspirators to act. The plan came to nothing, but the existence of the conspiracy had a major impact on subsequent political developments, and the defection of Hendrik van den Bergh was a serious blow to the military leadership of the

Army of Flanders The Army of Flanders (; ) was a field army of the Spanish Army based in the Spanish Netherlands between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was one of the longest-serving field armies of the early modern era, being founded in 1567 and disbanded in 170 ...

and the prestige of the Habsburg dynasty. Only in 1634 did the Spanish government begin to gain a picture of the extent of the plot, through revelations made by Balthazar Gerbier,

Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. Charles was born ...

's resident agent in Brussels. On the basis of Gerbier's denunciations,

Albert de Ligne, Prince of Barbançon Albert de Ligne (1600–1674), Prince of Barbançon and Arenberg, knight of the Golden Fleece, was a Netherlandish nobleman and military commander in the Thirty Years' War and the Eighty Years' War. Life Ligne was the son of Robert de Ligne, Baron ...

, spent eight years in prison (1634–1642) without being brought to trial.

Guillaume de Melun, Prince of Espinoy Guillaume de Melun (1588–1635) was a nobleman in the Spanish Netherlands, Governor and Grand Bailiff of the County of Hainaut, and Constable of Flanders, who conspired against the government. Life Guillaume was the son of Pierre de Melun, Prince ...

, fled to France and was sentenced to death for high treason ''in absentia''. The

Duke of Aarschot The Duke of Aarschot (or ''Aerschot'') was one of the most important aristocratic titles in the Low Countries, named after the Brabantian city of Aarschot. The title was held by the House of Croÿ and the House of Arenberg. The present Duke is Leo ...

, who had known of the plot but had dissuaded the conspirators, spent his final years under house arrest in Madrid for having failed to denounce it.

Sources

* Paul Janssens, "L'Échec des tentatives de soulèvement aux Pays-Bas sous Philippe IV (1621–1665)", ''Revue d'histoire diplomatique'' 92 (1978): 110-129. * Paul Janssens, "La fronde de l'aristocratie belge en 1632", in ''Rebelión y Resistencia en el Mundo Hispánico del Siglo XVII'', edited by Werner Thomas with Bart De Groof (Leuven University Press, 1992), pp. 23-40. * René Vermeir, "Le Duc d'Arschot et les conséquences de la conspiration des nobles (1632-1640)", in ''Beleid en bestuur in de oude Nederlanden: Liber Amicorum Prof. Dr. M. Baelde'', edited by Hugo Soly and René Vermeir (Ghent, 1993), pp. 477-489. 1632 in the Habsburg Netherlands 1632 in politics {{belgium-hist-stub