{{Infobox military conflict , conflict=First War of the Guelderian Succession , partof= , image= Locator Duchy of Guelders and County of Zutphen (1350).svg , caption= , date=1371-1379 , place=

Duchy of Guelders The Duchy of Guelders ( nl, Gelre, french: Gueldre, german: Geldern) is a historical duchy, previously county, of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the Low Countries. Geography The duchy was named after the town of Geldern (''Gelder'') in p ...

, result= Victory of William of Jülich , combatant1= Blason Nord-Pas-De-Calais

Duchy of Jülich
Bronckhorst klein wapen

Bronckhorst faction , combatant2= Counts of Holland Arms

Blois Blois ( ; ) is a commune and the capital city of Loir-et-Cher department, in Centre-Val de Loire, France, on the banks of the lower Loire river between Orléans and Tours. With 45,898 inhabitants by 2019, Blois is the most populated city of the ...

Heeckeren faction , commander1= Blason Nord-Pas-De-Calais

William III
Maria van Gelre

Mary of Guelders Mary of Guelders (; c. 1434/1435 – 1 December 1463) was Queen of Scotland by marriage to King James II of Scotland. She ruled as regent of Scotland from 1460 to 1463. Background She was the daughter of Arnold, Duke of Guelders, and Cath ...

, commander2= Counts of Holland Arms

John II of Blois John II ( – 19 May 1381) was a Franco-Dutch nobleman who ruled lands in both France and the Holy Roman Empire. He was the count of Blois and Dunois from 1372 until 1381, the lord of Avesnes, Schoonhoven, Gouda, Beaumont, Chimay and Waarde fr ...

Machteld of Guelders , strength1= , strength2= , casualties1= , casualties2= The First War of the Guelderian Succession was a battle for the throne of the

that raged between 1371 and 1379. The war originated when Duke Reginald III died without issue in 1371. His brother, Edward, who had been killed in the

Battle of Baesweiler The Battle of Baesweiler (22 August 1371) was a conflict between the duke of Luxembourg-Brabant against the Duke of Jülich. Background Attacks on Brabant's commercial interests in the territory of the Duke of Jülich had almost caused war in 13 ...

earlier that same year, also left no offspring. The claimants to the ducal throne were their half-sisters: Matilda, who was married to

John II, Count of Blois John II ( – 19 May 1381) was a Franco-Dutch nobleman who ruled lands in both France and the Holy Roman Empire. He was the count of Blois and Dunois from 1372 until 1381, the lord of Avesnes, Schoonhoven, Gouda, Beaumont, Chimay and Waarde ...

, and Maria, wife of William II of Jülich and mother to William I of Guelders and Jülich, on whose behalf she claimed the throne of Guelders. 14th-century Guelders was divided in two factions: * The ''Heeckerens'' supported Matilda, and were led by Frederik van Heeckeren van der Eze (1320-1386). * The ''Bronckhorsters'' supported William, and were led by Gijsbert V van Bronckhorst (1328-1356). The war lasted eight years, with Maria and her supporters emerging victorious, and Maria's son

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

becoming duke.

Timeline

* 1372 The Bronckhorst faction carries out raids in the Sticht Utrecht, presumably because the bishop of Utrecht

Arnold II of Horne Arnold (or Arnoud) II of Horne (1339–1389) was the son of Willem IV of Horne and Elisabeth of Cleves. He was canon, provost, Bishop of Utrecht from 1371 to 1378, and Bishop of Liège from 1378 to 1389. After the death of bishop Jan van Virne ...

had joined their enemies. In the Battle near

Heerewaarden Heerewaarden is a village in the Dutch province of Gelderland. It is a part of the municipality of Maasdriel, and lies about 8 km south of Tiel. Heerewaarden was a separate municipality until 1999, except for a short period between 1818 and 1 ...

, the Bronckhorst faction is defeated. * 1372, Gozewijn van Varik, cousin of Matilda and Maria, conquers

Tiel Tiel () is a municipality and a town in the middle of the Netherlands. The town is enclosed by the Waal river and the Linge river to the South and the North, and the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal to the East. Tiel comprises the population centres Kapel- ...

l in the spring of this year. Throughout the year, struggles continue within the city. * 1372/73, troops of

conquer

Harderwijk Harderwijk (; Dutch Low Saxon: ) is a municipality and city of the Netherlands. It is served by the Harderwijk railway station. Its population centres are Harderwijk and Hierden. Harderwijk is on the western boundary of the Veluwe. The south ...

on behalf of Matilda. * 1373, Matilda's husband, Count

, begins his Siege of Venlo. * 1374,

Reinoud I van Brederode Reinoud I van Brederode (English: Raynald) (Santpoort, 1336–1390) was the 6th lord of Brederode. Life He was a son of Dirk III van Brederode and Beatrix van Heinsberg van Valkenberg. In 1358 Reinoud was appointed bailiff of Kennemerland by Al ...

conquers

on behalf of Matilda. * 1376, the leaders of the Bronckhorst faction are ambushed and taken as prisoners near

Oosterbeek Oosterbeek is a village in the eastern part of Netherlands. It is located in the municipality of Renkum in the province of Gelderland, about west of Arnhem. The oldest part of Oosterbeek is the Benedendorp (Lower Village), on the northern bank ...

. * 1377,

Emperor Charles IV Charles IV ( cs, Karel IV.; german: Karl IV.; la, Carolus IV; 14 May 1316 – 29 November 1378''Karl IV''. In: (1960): ''Geschichte in Gestalten'' (''History in figures''), vol. 2: ''F–K''. 38, Frankfurt 1963, p. 294), also known as Charle ...

assigns the duchy to the son of Maria. * 1378, Battle of Tiel. * 1378, In the Battle near Gennep the Heeckeren and Bronckhorst factions confront each other. * 1379, The village of Zennuwijnen with its church and abbey are destroyed by the Bronckhorst faction. * 1379, On March 24 the last battle was fought near Hönnepel. Matilda was defeated by the troops of Julich and resigned her rights to the duchy. Duchy of Guelders Guelders 14th century in the Netherlands Wars involving the Holy Roman Empire 1370s conflicts 1370s in Europe