Siege of Leuven
Encyclopedia
The Siege of Leuven was an important siege in the Thirty Years' War
in which a Franco-Dutch army under Frederick Henry of Orange and the French Marshals Urbain de Maillé-Brezé and Gaspard III de Coligny, who had invaded the Spanish Netherlands from two sides, laid siege to the Spanish city of Leuven
, defended by 4,000 Flemish civilians, Walloons, Spaniards and Irish under Anthonie Schetz, Baron of Grobbendonck
. Poor organization and logistics and the spread of sickness among the French, along with the appearance of a relief army under Ottavio Piccolomini, forced the invading army to lift the siege. This failure allowed the Spanish forces to take the initiative and soon the invaders were forced into a headlong retreat.
from two sides, in the hope of breaking the strategic stalemate in the Eighty Years' War and dividing up the Spanish Netherlands between the two partners in the alliance. The French invaded from the south and routed the Spanish army at Les Avins
on 20 May, eventually joining forces in Maastricht
with Frederick Henry of Orange, who had departed the Dutch Republic in command of 20,000 infantry and 6,000 cavalry soldiers,. Meanwhile, the Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand, who was in Leuven, ordered the Spanish Tercios to move to Tienen and sent Count of Fuenclara to Germany with instructions to call the Imperial army for help.
The joint Franco-Dutch army, then numbering 50,000 men, marched to Tienen, defended by a small garrison under Captain Martín de los Alarcos. The village was taken by assault, looted for three days, and finally razed. The Spanish garrison and most of its inhabitants were massacred. This event give Ferdinand time to improve the fortifications of Leuven and to camp his army in a fortified position next to the city. The Franco-Dutch army made its appearance soon after and camped two leagues from Ferdinand's headquarters. Nevertheless, they remained inactive for eight days, which allowed the populace of all the country, but specially of Brussels
, where the news of the sack of Tienen had caused great fear, to escape to safer places.
. Francisco de Moncada, 3rd Marquis of Aitona, commanding the Spanish Tercio
of Marquis of Celada, several other tercios, and the cavalry under John VIII of Nassau-Siegen, proceeded to reinforce the German garrison of a fortified bridge over the Dijle fearing that the invading army use it to cross the river. The Spanish troops spent two hours observing the Franco-Dutch forces moving over the hills of the opposite riverside, when they discovered that they were crossing the Dijle using an undefended footbridge
located a league from the first one. Duke of Lerma was immediately sent to avoid the crossing, in command of some cavalry under Juan de Vivero and 300 musketeers of Celada's tercio led by Captain Antonio de Velandia. By the time they arrived, more than 4,000 Franco-Dutch had passed the bridge and occupied strong defensive positions, as they had begun the maneuver at dawn of the same day. Seeing this, the Duke of Lerma ordered Celada to withdraw, warning him via Captain Diego de Luna that he couldn't relieve him if his men were attacked, as the cavalry under Johann von Nassau-Siegen had lagged behind.
, besides five regiments of armed bourgeois and students of the University of Leuven, and some cavalry units. The Franco-Dutch army, having crossed the Dijle, looted the village of Tervuren
, residence of the Dukes of Brabant, and reached Brussels' ouskirts. They soon turned back to Leuven to invest the town. Siege warfare ensued, with the allied artillery firing over Leuven's fortifications and the pioneers driving trench
es and mines toward the rampart
s. Most of the works were carried out at the gate of Vilvoorde, defended by Preston with his Irish tercio, whose numerous sorties to obstruct the siege works easily demoralized the poorly-supplied French soldiers. Walloon troops and students of the University made also many sorties, and the sap works were destroyed regularly every night.
The besiegers, irritated by the obstruction to their works, decided to storm the ramparts even exposed to the enemy fire, taking advantage of their numerical superiority. Three regiments fell one night over the ramparts and bulwark
s from the most advanced entrenchements, but were bloodily repelled by the wakeful defenders. The following night, Frederick Henry in person led an assault on the ravelin
which protected the gate of Mechelen, guarded by just a handful of Irish. Despite the initial success of the attack, the Irish, aided by some Germans and bourgeois, managed to reject Frederick Henry inflicting him serious losses. Much of the failure was caused by the fact that the maneuvers of his army were being observed from a well-fortified tower, situated between the gates of Mechelen and Vilvoorde, popularly called Verlooren-Kost. This tower, besides as artillery position, served as look-out to Baron of Grobbendonck. When the Franco-Dutch realized this, the Verlooren-Kost was put under hevay artillery fire, but the 9 meters thick walls of the tower could not be overthrown.
On 29 June, Feast of Saints Peter and Paul
, while the Franco-Dutch remained inactive, Grobbendonck ordered 250 selected defenders to made a sortie. They went out for three different gates and met in front of the Verlooren-Kost tower. Then they stormed by surprise the besieging entrenchements, taking the troops occupying them completely unprepared. About 400 men, including a large number of officers, were killed. Despite the setback he suffered, Frederick Henry urged that same day Grobbendonck to surrender under menace of massacring the inhabitants of the town. Five days later a relief Spanish-Imperial army under Ottavio Piccolomini of 8,000 cavalry troops and the Tercios of Alonso Ladrón and Sigismondo Sfondrati, which had been garrisoned at Namur
to recover of Les Avins' defeat, plus a rear of 3,000 infantry and cavalry troops, arrived at the outskirts of Leuven. Their presence forced the Franco-Dutch, who were then suffering food shortages, to lift the siege and retreat northwards towards the United Provinces. A large number of soldiers deserted and were killed or captured by the Spanish cavalry and the Flemish peasants. Shortly afterwards the Cardinal-Infante also made appearance in command of 22,000 infantry and 14,000 cavalry men.
and Tienen. A party of 500 German mercenaries under Lt.-Col. Eyndhouts, roaming on his left flank, managed to surprise the Dutch fortress of Schenkenschans that at the time had a garrison of only 120 soldiers, in the night of 27/28 July. A large garrison were put then in the fortress, at first under the command of Eyndhouts. The Dutch brought up reinforcements right away, but could not prevent the occupation by a Spanish army of 20,000 of the Duchy of Cleves
during August and September, with the aim of linking the fort of Shenck with the main body of the Spanish Netherlands. This army threatened an invasion of the Dutch heartland and it was therefore essential that this threat be countered. Frederick Henry personally started the siege of Schenkenschans within days of its fall, but soon transferred command to his cousin John Maurice, Prince of Nassau-Siegen. The fort fell after a long and costly siege that lasted even through the winter months. The Spanish turned then their attention against the French, invading the north of France towards the Somme and reaching as far as Corbie
.
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
in which a Franco-Dutch army under Frederick Henry of Orange and the French Marshals Urbain de Maillé-Brezé and Gaspard III de Coligny, who had invaded the Spanish Netherlands from two sides, laid siege to the Spanish city of Leuven
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
, defended by 4,000 Flemish civilians, Walloons, Spaniards and Irish under Anthonie Schetz, Baron of Grobbendonck
Anthonie Schetz
Anthonie Schetz, Baron of Grobbendonk was a military commander of the Spanish-Imperial armies during the Thirty Years' War. He was baron of Grobbendonk, lord of Tilburg and Goirle, Pulle and Pulderbos, and Wezemaal...
. Poor organization and logistics and the spread of sickness among the French, along with the appearance of a relief army under Ottavio Piccolomini, forced the invading army to lift the siege. This failure allowed the Spanish forces to take the initiative and soon the invaders were forced into a headlong retreat.
Background
In 1635 the Dutch Republic concluded an alliance with France with the objective of taking on the Spanish Army of FlandersArmy of Flanders
The Army of Flanders was a Spanish Habsburg army based in the Netherlands during the 16th to 18th centuries. It was notable for being the longest standing army of the period, being in continuous service from 1567 until its disestablishment in 1706...
from two sides, in the hope of breaking the strategic stalemate in the Eighty Years' War and dividing up the Spanish Netherlands between the two partners in the alliance. The French invaded from the south and routed the Spanish army at Les Avins
Battle of Les Avins
The Battle of Les Avins or Battle of Avein was fought on May 20, 1635 during the Thirty Years' War between a French and a Spanish army.The battle was fought in the Belgian village of Les Avins, south of Huy, in what was then the bishopric of Liège...
on 20 May, eventually joining forces in Maastricht
Maastricht
Maastricht is situated on both sides of the Meuse river in the south-eastern part of the Netherlands, on the Belgian border and near the German border...
with Frederick Henry of Orange, who had departed the Dutch Republic in command of 20,000 infantry and 6,000 cavalry soldiers,. Meanwhile, the Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand, who was in Leuven, ordered the Spanish Tercios to move to Tienen and sent Count of Fuenclara to Germany with instructions to call the Imperial army for help.
The joint Franco-Dutch army, then numbering 50,000 men, marched to Tienen, defended by a small garrison under Captain Martín de los Alarcos. The village was taken by assault, looted for three days, and finally razed. The Spanish garrison and most of its inhabitants were massacred. This event give Ferdinand time to improve the fortifications of Leuven and to camp his army in a fortified position next to the city. The Franco-Dutch army made its appearance soon after and camped two leagues from Ferdinand's headquarters. Nevertheless, they remained inactive for eight days, which allowed the populace of all the country, but specially of Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, where the news of the sack of Tienen had caused great fear, to escape to safer places.
First operations
On 20 June the Franco-Dutch army lifted his camp and advanced its lines to the eastern bank of the Dijle riverDijle
Dyle or Dijle or historically the River Dyle in English, is a river in central Belgium, left tributary of the Rupel. It is long. It flows through the Belgian provinces of Walloon Brabant, Flemish Brabant and Antwerp...
. Francisco de Moncada, 3rd Marquis of Aitona, commanding the Spanish Tercio
Tercio
The tercio was a Renaissance era military formation made up of a mixed infantry formation of about 3,000 pikemen, swordsmen and arquebusiers or musketeers in a mutually supportive formation. It was also sometimes referred to as the Spanish Square...
of Marquis of Celada, several other tercios, and the cavalry under John VIII of Nassau-Siegen, proceeded to reinforce the German garrison of a fortified bridge over the Dijle fearing that the invading army use it to cross the river. The Spanish troops spent two hours observing the Franco-Dutch forces moving over the hills of the opposite riverside, when they discovered that they were crossing the Dijle using an undefended footbridge
Footbridge
A footbridge or pedestrian bridge is a bridge designed for pedestrians and in some cases cyclists, animal traffic and horse riders, rather than vehicular traffic. Footbridges complement the landscape and can be used decoratively to visually link two distinct areas or to signal a transaction...
located a league from the first one. Duke of Lerma was immediately sent to avoid the crossing, in command of some cavalry under Juan de Vivero and 300 musketeers of Celada's tercio led by Captain Antonio de Velandia. By the time they arrived, more than 4,000 Franco-Dutch had passed the bridge and occupied strong defensive positions, as they had begun the maneuver at dawn of the same day. Seeing this, the Duke of Lerma ordered Celada to withdraw, warning him via Captain Diego de Luna that he couldn't relieve him if his men were attacked, as the cavalry under Johann von Nassau-Siegen had lagged behind.
Siege
That night all the artillery and baggage marched back to Brussels, and at the following day, so did the Cardinal-Infante with his camp, leaving the defense of Leuven in charge of the veteran Anthonie Schetz, baron of Grobbendonck. He was in command of the Tercio of his son, Baron of Wezemaal, the Walloon Tercio of Ribacourt, and the Irish Tercio of Thomas PrestonThomas Preston, 1st Viscount Tara
Thomas Preston, 1st Viscount Tara was an Irish soldier of the 17th century. He was a descendant of Sir Robert de Preston, who in 1363 purchased the lands of Gormanston, County Meath, and who was keeper of the Great Seal in Ireland some years later....
, besides five regiments of armed bourgeois and students of the University of Leuven, and some cavalry units. The Franco-Dutch army, having crossed the Dijle, looted the village of Tervuren
Tervuren
Tervuren is a municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. The municipality comprises the villages of Duisburg, Tervuren, Vossem and Moorsel. On January 1, 2006, Tervuren had a total population of 20,636...
, residence of the Dukes of Brabant, and reached Brussels' ouskirts. They soon turned back to Leuven to invest the town. Siege warfare ensued, with the allied artillery firing over Leuven's fortifications and the pioneers driving trench
Trench
A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground. Trenches are generally defined by being deeper than they are wide , and by being narrow compared to their length ....
es and mines toward the rampart
Defensive wall
A defensive wall is a fortification used to protect a city or settlement from potential aggressors. In ancient to modern times, they were used to enclose settlements...
s. Most of the works were carried out at the gate of Vilvoorde, defended by Preston with his Irish tercio, whose numerous sorties to obstruct the siege works easily demoralized the poorly-supplied French soldiers. Walloon troops and students of the University made also many sorties, and the sap works were destroyed regularly every night.
The besiegers, irritated by the obstruction to their works, decided to storm the ramparts even exposed to the enemy fire, taking advantage of their numerical superiority. Three regiments fell one night over the ramparts and bulwark
Bulwark
Bulwark may refer to:*A bastion or fortifications in general*In naval terminology, an extension of a ship's sides above deck level*HMS Bulwark, any of several Royal Navy ships*USS Bulwark, any of several US Navy ships...
s from the most advanced entrenchements, but were bloodily repelled by the wakeful defenders. The following night, Frederick Henry in person led an assault on the ravelin
Ravelin
A ravelin is a triangular fortification or detached outwork, located in front of the innerworks of a fortress...
which protected the gate of Mechelen, guarded by just a handful of Irish. Despite the initial success of the attack, the Irish, aided by some Germans and bourgeois, managed to reject Frederick Henry inflicting him serious losses. Much of the failure was caused by the fact that the maneuvers of his army were being observed from a well-fortified tower, situated between the gates of Mechelen and Vilvoorde, popularly called Verlooren-Kost. This tower, besides as artillery position, served as look-out to Baron of Grobbendonck. When the Franco-Dutch realized this, the Verlooren-Kost was put under hevay artillery fire, but the 9 meters thick walls of the tower could not be overthrown.
Relief
Feast of Saints Peter and Paul
The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, or the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, is a liturgical feast in honour of the martyrdom in Rome of the apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which is observed on 29 June...
, while the Franco-Dutch remained inactive, Grobbendonck ordered 250 selected defenders to made a sortie. They went out for three different gates and met in front of the Verlooren-Kost tower. Then they stormed by surprise the besieging entrenchements, taking the troops occupying them completely unprepared. About 400 men, including a large number of officers, were killed. Despite the setback he suffered, Frederick Henry urged that same day Grobbendonck to surrender under menace of massacring the inhabitants of the town. Five days later a relief Spanish-Imperial army under Ottavio Piccolomini of 8,000 cavalry troops and the Tercios of Alonso Ladrón and Sigismondo Sfondrati, which had been garrisoned at Namur
Namur (city)
Namur is a city and municipality in Wallonia, in southern Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia....
to recover of Les Avins' defeat, plus a rear of 3,000 infantry and cavalry troops, arrived at the outskirts of Leuven. Their presence forced the Franco-Dutch, who were then suffering food shortages, to lift the siege and retreat northwards towards the United Provinces. A large number of soldiers deserted and were killed or captured by the Spanish cavalry and the Flemish peasants. Shortly afterwards the Cardinal-Infante also made appearance in command of 22,000 infantry and 14,000 cavalry men.
Aftermath
The Franco-Dutch failure in front of Leuven's walls allowed the Spanish to take the initiative. The Cardinal-Infante counter-attacked, pushing the Franco-Dutch army back to the Dutch border. He made a north-easterly thrust to the Rhine in the direction of Cleves, recapturing DiestDiest
Diest is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. Situated in the northeast of the Hageland region, Diest neighbours the provinces of Antwerp to its North, and Limburg to the East and is situated around 60km from Brussels. The municipality comprises the city of...
and Tienen. A party of 500 German mercenaries under Lt.-Col. Eyndhouts, roaming on his left flank, managed to surprise the Dutch fortress of Schenkenschans that at the time had a garrison of only 120 soldiers, in the night of 27/28 July. A large garrison were put then in the fortress, at first under the command of Eyndhouts. The Dutch brought up reinforcements right away, but could not prevent the occupation by a Spanish army of 20,000 of the Duchy of Cleves
Duchy of Cleves
The Duchy of Cleves was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and the town of Wesel, bordering the lands of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster in the east and the Duchy of Brabant in the west...
during August and September, with the aim of linking the fort of Shenck with the main body of the Spanish Netherlands. This army threatened an invasion of the Dutch heartland and it was therefore essential that this threat be countered. Frederick Henry personally started the siege of Schenkenschans within days of its fall, but soon transferred command to his cousin John Maurice, Prince of Nassau-Siegen. The fort fell after a long and costly siege that lasted even through the winter months. The Spanish turned then their attention against the French, invading the north of France towards the Somme and reaching as far as Corbie
Corbie
Corbie is a commune of the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:The small town is situated up river from Amiens, in the département of Somme and is the main town of the canton of Corbie. It lies in the valley of the River Somme, at the confluence of the River Ancre. The town...
.