The siege of Niezijl was a siege of the town of Niezijl that took place between 3 and 24 October 1581 in the Dutch States, 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 Refo ...

and the

Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604) The Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604) was an intermittent conflict between the Habsburg Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of England. It was never formally declared. The war included much English privateering against Spanish ships, and several wid ...

. The Spanish under Colonel

Francisco Verdugo Francisco Verdugo, Spanish military commander in the Dutch Revolt, (born in 1537 in Talavera de la Reina, province of Toledo, died in Luxembourg, 1595), became ''Maestre de Campo General,'' in the Spanish Netherlands. He was also the last Spanish ...

laid siege to the place after his victory at the

battle of Noordhorn The Battle of Noordhorn, fought on 30 September 1581, was a pitched battle of the Dutch Revolt, fought between a Spanish army commanded by Colonel Francisco Verdugo – consisting of Walloon, German, Spanish, and Albanian soldiers – and a ...

but the siege failed and Verdrugo retreated leaving the English and Dutch under

John Norreys John Norreys may refer to: *Sir John Norris (soldier) or Norreys (c. 1547–1597), the son of Henry Norris, 1st Baron Norreys, a lifelong friend of Queen Elizabeth *Sir John Norreys (Keeper of the Wardrobe) for Henry VI of England (c. 1400–1466) ...

and William Louis respectively the victors. John Norreys

Count Rennenberg,

Stadtholder of Friesland This is a list of stadtholders ( nl, stadhouders, german: Statthalter) or governors (french: gouverneurs) in the Low Countries, or historical Netherlands region. This includes all the territories in the Low Countries that were acquired by the H ...

, had betrayed the cities of

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...

Oldenzaal Oldenzaal (; Tweants: ''Oldnzel'') is a municipality and a city in the eastern province of Overijssel in the Netherlands. It is part of the region of Twente and is close to the German border. It received city rights in 1249. Historically, the city ...

Coevorden Coevorden (; nds-nl, Koevern) is a city and municipality in the province of Drenthe, Netherlands. During the 1998 municipal reorganisation in the province, Coevorden merged with Dalen, Sleen, Oosterhesselen and Zweeloo, retaining its name. In Augu ...

, and

Delfzijl Delfzijl (; gos, Delfsiel) is a city and former municipality with a population of 25,651 in the province of Groningen (province), Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. Delfzijl was a sluice between the Delf (canal), Delf and the Ems (riv ...

to Spanish control and himself became a

turncoat A turncoat is a person who shifts allegiance from one loyalty or ideal to another, betraying or deserting an original cause by switching to the opposing side or party. In political and social history, this is distinct from being a traitor, as the ...

. As a result Catholics would no longer be trusted with high posts in the States army. The Spanish Army of Flanders led by Francisco Verdugo, was succeeded as governor of the Northern Provinces, advanced south of the

Lauwerszee Lauwersmeer () is a man-made lake in the north of the Netherlands, on the border of the provinces of Groningen and Friesland. The lake was formed on 23 May 1969, when the dike between the bay called Lauwers Sea and the Wadden Sea was closed. It is ...

to invade Friesland and to force the Republic into signing a negotiation.van den Broek pg. 110 After their defeat at Noordhorn on 30 September the Dutch and English retreated to Niezijl where they established themselves behind the defensive fortifications. Verdugo's army, although delayed by mutinies, were in pursuit and then began to besiege Niezijl. Niezijl was the only place barring

Friesland Friesland (, ; official fry, Fryslân ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of ...

and its capture would be important to the Catholic and Spanish cause. The Dutch and English resistance was much tougher than expected, repelling assaults and withstanding a heavy bombardment. After three weeks, Verdugo who was also dealing with mutinies in his ranks decided to give up the siege. The autumnal

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

s made the Frisian land impassable for the armies, and thus Verdugo moved with his troops to the dry land of

Drenthe Drenthe () is a province of the Netherlands located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen to the north, and the German state of Lower Saxony to the east. As of Nov ...

, while Norreys kept the remains of his army behind the

IJssel The IJssel (; nds-nl, Iessel(t) ) is a Dutch distributary of the river Rhine that flows northward and ultimately discharges into the IJsselmeer (before the 1932 completion of the Afsluitdijk known as the Zuiderzee), a North Sea natural harbour ...

river. Niezijl remained the only place in 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 of th ...

that the Dutch kept, thus giving the States forces a base to use. As a consequence from 1589 William Louis and

Maurice of Nassau Maurice of Orange ( nl, Maurits van Oranje; 14 November 1567 – 23 April 1625) was '' stadtholder'' of all the provinces of the Dutch Republic except for Friesland from 1585 at the earliest until his death in 1625. Before he became Prince ...

began a laborious reconquest of the Spanish territories which only ended with the capture of Groningen on July 22, 1594.

Notes

References

* * (Dutch) * (Spanish) {{coord missing, Netherlands Niezijl 1581 in the Dutch Republic 1581 in the Habsburg Netherlands 16th-century military history of the Kingdom of England 16th-century military history of Spain Eighty Years' War (1566–1609) Niezijl Niezijl Niezijl Niezijl Niezijl Westerkwartier (municipality)