The siege of Burgos was a siege of the

castle of Burgos The Castle of Burgos was a castle and alcázar, located in the city of Burgos, in the hill of San Miguel to above the city and to above the sea. This hill was the subject of archaeological surveys by General Centeno in the years 1925 and 1926 t ...

in the

Kingdom of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; es, Reino de Castilla, la, Regnum Castellae) was a large and powerful state on the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. Its name comes from the host of castles constructed in the region. It began in the 9th centu ...

between 1475 and early 1476. It was part of the

War of the Castilian Succession The War of the Castilian Succession was the military conflict contested from 1475 to 1479 for the succession of the Crown of Castile fought between the supporters of Joanna 'la Beltraneja', reputed daughter of the late monarch Henry IV of Castil ...

The siege

In August and September 1475 Queen

Isabella I of Castille Isabella I ( es, Isabel I; 22 April 1451 – 26 November 1504), also called Isabella the Catholic (Spanish: ''la Católica''), was Queen of Castile from 1474 until her death in 1504, as well as Queen consort of Aragon from 1479 until 1504 by ...

had strengthened garrisons near the city of Burgos while her husband

Ferdinand II of Aragon Ferdinand II ( an, Ferrando; ca, Ferran; eu, Errando; it, Ferdinando; la, Ferdinandus; es, Fernando; 10 March 1452 – 23 January 1516), also called Ferdinand the Catholic (Spanish: ''el Católico''), was King of Aragon and Sardinia from ...

besieged the city's fortress. The fortress was armed with large Lombard guns that bombarded the city, which had pledged to support Isabella. The queen's forces harassed King

Afonso V of Portugal Afonso V () (15 January 1432 – 28 August 1481), known by the sobriquet the African (), was King of Portugal from 1438 until his death in 1481, with a brief interruption in 1477. His sobriquet refers to his military conquests in Northern Africa. ...

troops, and managed to cut their supply lines. After learning that the road north from Peñafiel was cut, the Portuguese turned back. Consequently, the Portuguese retreated back to Toro and moved to Zamora in October for the winter. These actions prevented the Portuguese from relieving the besieged castle garrison. By the end of November 1475, King Ferdinand's brother Alfonso of Aragon arrived with skilled siege engineers. He had gained fame for capturing the

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

castle of

Amposta Amposta () is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Montsià, in the province of Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain, 190 km south of Barcelona on the Mediterranean Coast. It is located at 8 metres above sea level, on the Ebre river, not far from its mo ...

. King Ferdinand II could not be present when the Burgos garrison surrendered, as he held the siege of Zamora so important that his presence was required there. He left for Zamora in early December. The city had fallen quickly, but the

castle of Zamora The Castle of Zamora is a Middle Ages fortress in Zamora, Spain. It stands northwest of the city's Cathedral. It features Pre-Roman foundations and a Romanesque general structure. It was built between the 10th and 12th centuries. It stands north ...

was retained by the Portuguese. As the king had left, Queen Isabella was tasked with receiving the surrender of Burgos. The city's fortress surrendered after nine months. Tunnelers had cut off the water supply, and the

garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mil ...

asked for surrender terms ten days later, on 2 December 1475. After a customary truce of two months, the besieging force was to take control of the fortress. However, commander (

alcaide Alcaide is a Spanish name, meaning 'castle commander'. It is borrowed from the Arabic term , which literally means 'commander'. Etymology The Spanish form is alcayde whereas Portuguese form is alcaide. Notable people * Anselmo Pardo Alcaide ...

) of the garrison Juan de Stúñiga surrendered early on 19 January, and was commended for his valor before his dismissal by Isabella. This act made his father switch sides to Isabella. Cardinal Mendoza, usually part of Queen Isabella's retinue, had overseen the final negotiations, and by 2 February 1476 the queen could visit the fortress.

Aftermath

The fall of Burgos was one of the first major victories against

Joanna la Beltraneja Joanna ''la Beltraneja'' (21 February 1462 – 12 April 1530) was a claimant to the throne of Castile, and Queen of Portugal as the wife of King Afonso V, her uncle. Birth and parentage King Henry IV of Castile married Joan of Portugal, dau ...

. The city of Burgos was a necessary asset for controlling the

. The troops tasked with besieging Burgos were sent westward to join the action in Toro and Zamora.

Military history

The siege of Burgos was one of the last military engagements that saw the use of

trebuchet A trebuchet (french: trébuchet) is a type of catapult that uses a long arm to throw a projectile. It was a common powerful siege engine until the advent of gunpowder. The design of a trebuchet allows it to launch projectiles of greater weigh ...

s, as

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate (saltpeter). ...

weaponry such as

cannon A cannon is a large- caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder ...

s became increasingly common, and the siege is one of the last known references to their use. During the siege,

bombard __NOTOC__ Bombard may refer to the act of carrying out a bombardment. It may also refer to: Individuals *Alain Bombard (1924–2005), French biologist, physician and politician; known for crossing the Atlantic on a small boat with no water or food ...

s were used alongside trebuchets.

References

{{coord missing, Spain

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of t ...

History of the province of Burgos

The siege

Aftermath

Military history

See also

References