Diederik Sonoy or Snoey ( Kalkar (

Duchy of Cleves The Duchy of Cleves (german: Herzogtum Kleve; nl, Hertogdom Kleef) was a State of the Holy Roman Empire which emerged from the medieval . It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and ...

), 1529 - Pieterburen, 2 June 1597) was a leader of the Geuzen during the

Eighty Years' War The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) ( c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Re ...

Biography

Diderick Sonoy was born about 1529 in the

, but afterwards resided mostly in

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...

and especially at

the Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a list of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's ad ...

, where he evinced great zeal for the

reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and i ...

. He early entered military life, signed the compromise of Nobles, and was one of the most fierce advocates of the interests of the Prince of Orange. He gained the first naval victory over the Spanish fleet in July 1568. On 2 June 1572 he arrived at

Enkhuizen Enkhuizen () is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and the region of West-Frisia. History Enkhuizen, like Hoorn and Amsterdam, was one of the harbor-towns of the VOC, from where overseas trade ...

. He was provided by

William the Silent William the Silent (24 April 153310 July 1584), also known as William the Taciturn (translated from nl, Willem de Zwijger), or, more commonly in the Netherlands, William of Orange ( nl, Willem van Oranje), was the main leader of the Dutch Re ...

with a commission, appointing him Lieutenant-Governor of North Holland or Waterland. Troops under his command put both Egmond Castle and Egmond Abbey on fire in 1573. The destruction of these strategic locations prevented that the Spanish army could occupy them. When he was discharged and received a pension he and his family crossed over to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, where he endeavoured to drain some land granted him by

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...

; but failing he returned (1593) to

East Frisia East Frisia or East Friesland (german: Ostfriesland; ; stq, Aastfräislound) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia ...

, resided for some time at Norden, and died 2 June 1597 on his seat near Pieterburen. Sonoy was a narrow-minded

religious fanatic Religious fanaticism, or religious extremism, is a pejorative designation used to indicate uncritical zeal or obsessive enthusiasm which is related to one's own, or one's group's, devotion to a religion – a form of human fanaticism which cou ...

and a furious persecutor of

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. After the Geuzen captured

Alkmaar Alkmaar () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland, about 30 km north of Amsterdam. Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination. The ...

, they took prisoners five

friars A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the o ...

from the Franciscan monastery outside the city. Sonoy ordered them to be brought to

and had them hanged (

martyrs of Alkmaar The Martyrs of Alkmaar ( nl, Martelaren van Alkmaar) were a group of 5 Dutch Catholic clerics, secular and religious, who were hanged on 24 June 1572 in the town of Alkmaar by militant Dutch Calvinists during the 16th-century religious wars� ...

). Engelbert Terburg, a lay brother of the same monastery, was transferred by Sonoy to the village of Ransdorp, near Amsterdam, where he was hanged on 11 August 1572 after being subjected to

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts ...

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonoy Dutch people of the Eighty Years' War (United Provinces) 1529 births 1597 deaths