The siege of Venlo of 1586, also known as the Capture of Venlo, was a Spanish victory that took place on June 28, 1586, at the city of

Venlo Venlo () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southeastern Netherlands, close to the border with Germany. It is situated in the province of Limburg (Netherland ...

, in the southeastern of

Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...

, near the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

border (present-day Province of Limburg, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

), between the Spanish forces commanded by

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Don

Alexander Farnese, Prince of Parma Alessandro Farnese (10 January 1635 – 18 February 1689) was an Italian military leader, who was Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands from 1678 until 1682. He is not to be confused with his better known great-grandfather Alexander Farnese, ...

( es, Alejandro Farnesio), and the Dutch garrison of Venlo, supported by relief troops under

Maarten Schenck van Nydeggen Maarten (Martin) Schenck van Nydeggen, (1540?, – 11 August 1589) was a noted military commander in the Netherlands. He first served with William of Orange in the fight for Dutch independence from Spain then switched to serve with distincti ...

and Sir

Roger Williams Roger Williams (21 September 1603between 27 January and 15 March 1683) was an English-born New England Puritan minister, theologian, and author who founded Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantation ...

, 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 ...

. After two failed attempts to relieve the city, the siege ended on June 28, 1586, with the capitulation and the withdrawal of the Dutch garrison.Hume & Lingard p.52Robert Watson pp.59–60Duffy p.74 According to

John Lothrop Motley John Lothrop Motley (April 15, 1814 – May 29, 1877) was an American author and diplomat. As a popular historian, he is best known for his works on the Netherlands, the three volume work ''The Rise of the Dutch Republic'' and four volume ''His ...

, during the siege, there was an important event when the troops of Maarten Schenck and Roger Williams arrived near Venlo to relieve the Dutch garrison.John Lothrop Motley pp.325–326 At that night (about 170 Dutch and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

soldiers led by Schenck and Williams) they passed through enemy lines with stealth, killed several Spanish soldiers, and even reached the door of the Prince of Parma's tent, where they killed Parma's secretary and his personal guard. Then, with the Spanish camp alerted, Schenck's troops fled to

Wachtendonk Wachtendonk at the confluence of Niers River and Nette River is a municipality in the district of Kleve in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located west of the Rhine half way between Duisburg and Venlo at the Dutch Dutch commonly refers ...

, being pursued by 2,000 Spanish soldiers. In this pursuit, nearly half of Maarten Schenck's troops were killed or captured. After the capture of Venlo, in mid-July 1586, the Spanish army led by Don Alexander, surrounded the city of

Neuss Neuss (; spelled ''Neuß'' until 1968; li, Nüss ; la, Novaesium) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the west bank of the Rhine opposite Düsseldorf. Neuss is the largest city within the Rhein-Kreis Neuss district. It ...

(or Nuys), an important Protestant stronghold in the

Electorate of Cologne The Electorate of Cologne (german: Kurfürstentum Köln), sometimes referred to as Electoral Cologne (german: Kurköln, links=no), was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that existed from the 10th to the early 19th century. ...

, as part of Spanish support to

Ernest of Bavaria Ernest of Bavaria (german: Ernst von Bayern) (17 December 1554 – 17 February 1612) was Prince-elector-archbishop of the Archbishopric of Cologne from 1583 to 1612 as successor of the expelled Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg. He was also bishop ...

in the

Cologne War The Cologne War (german: Kölner Krieg, Kölnischer Krieg, Truchsessischer Krieg; 1583–88) was a conflict between Protestant and Catholic factions that devastated the Electorate of Cologne, a historical ecclesiastical principality of the Holy ...

.Parker p.18 The city refused to capitulate, and consequently Neuss was virtually destroyed by Parma's army. The whole garrison commanded by

Hermann Friedrich Cloedt Hermann Friedrich Cloedt ( – 26 July 1586) was commander of the garrison at Neuss (Nuys), near Duisburg, in July 1586, when the city was destroyed by the Duke of Parma's Army of Flanders. He died in the defense of Neuss. Biography Cloedt ...

was killed or captured, including himself.''Geschichte der Stadt Koeln''.
Leonard Ennen p.199 On May 21, 1597,

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 ...

tried to capture Venlo by surprise, but the operation was a failure due to the great defense of the Spanish garrison, supported by the population of the city.Anthonis Duyck p.272–275 In 1606 another attempt led by Frederick Henry resulted in another failure.''Inventaris van het oud archief der gemeente Roermond... Bijlage tot het verslag van den toestand der gemeente over het jaar 1862''. Vol II. Uitgave: J. J. Romen. p.307

Notes

References

* Motley, John Lothrop. ''History of the United Netherlands: from the death of William the Silent to the Synod of Dort''. Rotterdam 1872. * Robert Watson. ''The History of the Reign of Philip II. King of Spain''. A New Edition. Vol III. Printed and fold by J. J. Tourneisen. * Ennen, Leonard. ''Geschichte der Stadt Köln''. Düsseldorf: Schwann'schen. (1863–1880). * Jeremy Black. ''War in the World: A Comparative History, 1450-1600''. First published 2011 by Palgrave MacMillan. * David Hume & John Lingard. ''The History of England: From the Invasion of Julius Caesar to the Revolution in 1688''. Vol II. Philadelphia 1859. * Duffy, Christopher. ''Siege Warfare: The Fortress in the Early Modern World 1494-1660''. First published 1979 by Routledge & Kegan Paul. * Anthonis Duyck. ''Journaal, 1591-1602: Uitg. op last van het departement van Oorlog, met in leiding en aantekeningen door Lodewijk Mulder''. Uitgave: Nijhoff, 1864. * Parker, Geoffrey. ''The Army of Flanders and the Spanish Road, 1567–1659''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004,

External links

John Lothrop Motley. ''History of the United Netherlands: from the death of William the Silent to the Synod of Dort''. 1586.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Venlo 1586 Sieges of the Eighty Years' War Sieges involving Spain Sieges involving the Dutch Republic Sieges involving England

Siege of Venlo (1586) The siege of Venlo of 1586, also known as the Capture of Venlo, was a Spanish victory that took place on June 28, 1586, at the city of Venlo, in the southeastern of Low Countries, near the German border (present-day Province of Limburg, the Net ...

Battles in Limburg (Netherlands)

See also

Notes

References

External links