Nittert Fox, also known as Neithart Fuchs (killed at

Foxhol Foxhol is a village in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is part of the municipality of Midden-Groningen. In 1842, the potato starch factory Eureka was founded in Foxhol by Willem Albert Scholten. Foxhol became an industrial area with factories a ...

22 July 1499) was a Saxon

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

and military commander. According to his hatchment, Fox came from an influential family from

Franconia Franconia ( ; ; ) is a geographical region of Germany, characterised by its culture and East Franconian dialect (). Franconia is made up of the three (governmental districts) of Lower Franconia, Lower, Middle Franconia, Middle and Upper Franco ...

(

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

). As a military commander he became involved in the war between the

Vetkopers and Schieringers The Vetkopers and Schieringers () were two opposing Frisian factional parties from the medieval period. They were responsible for a civil war that lasted for over a century (1350–1498) and which eventually led to the end of the so-called " Frisi ...

Friesland Friesland ( ; ; official ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia (), named after the Frisians, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen (p ...

and

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

. In 1495, he occupied

Bolsward Bolsward (, West Frisian: ''Boalsert'') is a city in Súdwest-Fryslân in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. Bolsward has a population of just under 10,200. It is located 10 km W.N.W. of Sneek. History The town is founded on th ...

and the town of

Workum Workum () is a city located in the List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân in Friesland, Netherlands. It received City rights in the Netherlands, city rights in 1399 and is one of the eleven cities of Friesland. ...

had to pay protection money. Later on Fox and his army sought shelter in

Sneek Sneek (; ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city southwest of Leeuwarden and the seat of the former municipality of Sneek in the province of Friesland, Netherlands. As of 2011 it is the seat of the municipality of Súdw ...

. The Schieringers Bokke Harinxma and

Grietman A grietman (from Old Frisian ''greta'' to accuse, to indict) was a judge and administrator of a local district; this role was partly a forerunner of the current rural mayor in the province of Friesland, and partly the forerunner of a judge. East of ...

Louw Donia tried to flee the city, but were imprisoned by Fox. Fox demanded a

ransom Ransom refers to the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extort money or property to secure their release. It also refers to the sum of money paid by the other party to secure a captive's freedom. When ransom means "payment", the word ...

for these two men. The people of

asked the

city of Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of ...

to help. Fox left the country in May 1496, after the ransom was paid. In 1498 Fox and his army raided the

Westerkwartier The Westerkwartier (; ; ; ) is a historical region in the Dutch province of Groningen, at the border with the provinces of Drenthe and Friesland. In the past the area was part of the historical region of Frisia. The West Frisian language ...

in the province of Groningen. He was employed by the Duke of Saxony, Albert III, who together with Edzard I struggled for power in the northern parts of the present

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. This led to a

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

at Noordhorn between Fox's army and the army of

. This battle was won by Fox's army, but Fox's army officer Jurjen van Reijnsberg was killed. To get revenge, Noordhorn and

Zuidhorn Zuidhorn (; ) is a town and former Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the northeastern Netherlands. The town largely depends on the city of Groningen (city), Groningen. A railway line, operated by Arriva, connects the town with Lee ...

were burned. The Saxon army also occupied the

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

Aduard Aduard (; ) is a village in the municipality of Westerkwartier, in the Netherlands. It is located about 8 km northwest of Groningen. As of 1 January 2023, it had a population of 2,095. The history of Aduard dates back to the foundation in ...

. The chieftains of the

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 ...

negotiated with Fox to avoid further destruction and paid the ransom. In July 1499 Fox clashed with the Groningers again. This time at the Vrouwenlaan (''Women's Avenue'') close to the village of

. According to tradition he was wounded, but continued to fight and was eventually killed. In recognition of his qualities as a warrior, Fox's body was buried in the church of the

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

monastery in the

by his opponents. His gravestone contained the following text: The hatchment was hung at his grave and disappeared during or before 1743, but the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

text has been preserved. According to some writers the village of

was named after Nittert Fox. But it was already mentioned as Vossehol (Foxhole) in 1460.

References

*EvF – Encyclopedie van Friesland, (Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1958) : Fox (Fuchs) Nittert. *Groninger Volksalmanak 1839, 40–50; *Hofstede de Groot, Gesch. der Broederenkerk te Groningen (Grins, 1832) 74–75, 136–138 {{DEFAULTSORT:Fox, Nittert 1499 deaths Year of birth unknown