The Siege of Maastricht - a siege by Spanish troops under the command of Alessandro Farnese of the Dutch city of Maastricht from March 8 to June 29, 1579 as part of the Eighty Years War .
| Siege of Maastricht | |||
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| Main Conflict: Eighty Years War | |||
 Siege of Maastricht, hood. F. Strada | |||
| date | March 8 - June 29, 1579 | ||
| A place | Maastricht ( Netherlands ) | ||
| Total | victory of the Spaniards | ||
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| Commanders | |||
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| Forces of the parties | |||
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| Losses | |||
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Background
In 1578, Maastricht approved Ghent peace and, thus, came under the authority of the General States of the Netherlands . An attack on the city of the Spaniards was expected. The Spanish general Alessandro Farnese, the future Duke of Parma , had already occupied neighboring Limburg , Valkenburg Castle and Dahl . These actions clearly indicated that the next goal of the Spaniards will be Maastricht. William I of Orange did not trust the military governor of Maastricht, Melchior Schwarzenberg, and therefore appointed Sebastian Tappin as commandant of the fortress [1] . Farnese led his army to the walls of the city on March 8, 1579 and offered his authorities an amnesty and guarantees of all privileges in exchange for recognizing the loyalty of the Catholic religion and the Spanish monarch. The offer was rejected, and the siege began [2] .
Back in January, Sebastian Tappin - a talented engineer who gained fame during the siege of La Rochelle in 1574 - arrived in Maastricht to strengthen the defenses. By the beginning of the siege, all work was almost completed [3] . In the city a mill was built for the production of gunpowder, all citizens were required to participate in the construction of fortifications. Outside the walls, Tappin set mine traps and dug several trenches. Two defense lines were arranged, which housed both the garrison and the armed inhabitants of the city [4] .
Maastricht defended the garrison, consisting of French, English and Scottish mercenaries, a total of about 12,000 people, they were helped by about 2,000 farmers and 1,200 militias. The total population of Maastricht at that time was estimated at 15 - 34 thousand inhabitants [1] .
Siege
Double strike
Spanish troops were mainly deployed in nearby villages; Farnese himself set up his headquarters in Petersheim Castle [5] . The Spaniards surrounded the city on both sides and built six forts to store ammunition and protect against possible attacks by the city’s defenders. After that, the besiegers began digging trenches.
The main blow the Spaniards directed at the Brussels gates of the city, to which their trenches were approaching ever closer. However, during a clash with the defenders, they found that this gate was not only not a weak point in the line of fortifications, but, on the contrary, the strongest. Therefore, on March 23, the Spaniards struck at the neighboring gates of Tongerloze of forty-six artillery pieces. Two days of bombing failed. Then Farnese, without stopping the attacks on Tongerloz, gave the order to hit on goal Bosch. Residents of Maastricht began to dig tunnels to prevent undermining by the Spaniards. A fierce battle ensued in the underground tunnels: hundreds of besiegers died when boiling water was poured into the tunnels, others died from smoke and a lack of oxygen. One of the captains invited Farnese to attack the ravelin [6] . Five hundred Spanish soldiers died when a powder charge designed to detonate it prematurely detonated [1] .
Breathing
Farnese wrote to the king that this most difficult day of the siege cost the Spaniards two thousand dead. Within a month, his army was reduced by a third due to fighting and illness. To replenish the ranks, Farnese weakened the attack and went on to strengthen the siege lines. Another 16 forts were built - 11 on the left bank of the Meuse and 5 on the right. Meanwhile, restoration work was also being carried out in the city: redoubts were strengthened, trenches were dug and filled with water.
William I of Orange tried to raise money to help Maastricht . However, he faced sabotage from large cities, which were extremely reluctant to allocate money, caring only about their own security [7] .
Battle of the Ravelin
Farnese transferred the severity of the blow to the Ravelin of Maastricht. Three artillery batteries fired at him for several days. After the facade of the ravelin collapsed, the Spaniards were able to occupy it. However, it was not possible to advance further: the Spaniards came under fire from the nearest redoubt from nearby towers. Then Farnese gave the order to fire from the cannons the parapets of the city walls, from which the defenders fired at the ravelin. In a short time, the parapets were almost destroyed, and the defenders of the city were forced to retreat. After that, the Spaniards managed to occupy the redoubts [3] .
Assault Attempt
Now Farnese was able to push the siege structures to both sides of the Brussels Gate. Miners were sent to the walls of the city. Despite several attacks by the defenders, they managed to establish charges and undermine them. The walls were captured, but the defenders moved to the second line of fortifications, where eight guns were installed with a prepared parapet to repel attacks. On June 24, by order of Farnese, a bridge was built, under which, under attack, the attackers crept to the second line of walls and opened fire. In the battle, Tappin was seriously injured. The Spanish miners were able to break through the walls of two breaches, but failed to enter the city [3] .
After this attack, the situation in Maastricht began to deteriorate rapidly: the number of defenders was halved due to injuries and illnesses. The envoys of the states general promised that help would come within two weeks. But the approaching army of John IV of Nassau from 3-4 thousand horsemen did not dare to attack the more numerous and well-strengthened Spanish army [3] . Meanwhile, William of Orange tried to offer a truce, but Farnese refused. Famine began in the city and an epidemic of typhoid broke out. The garrison wanted to surrender, but the citizens, instigated by the nobility, were categorically against this plan. Almost daily skirmishes in tunnels and trenches continued. In one such incident, Tappin was wounded in the arm, and Gilles de Berlamon , his deputy , was killed on June 18 .
The assault and fall of the city
On June 28, the Spaniard patrol climbed the wall and saw that the breach in the wall was not guarded, and the guard of the defenders looked tired and lethargic. He immediately reported this to one of the officers. A detachment of soldiers was sent to the breach, who killed the sentry and began the assault. Garrison soldiers and residents engaged in battle with the invaders. At the same time, the Spaniards launched a general assault, striking the city from four sides at once. The defenders tried to set fire to the bridge so as not to let the Spaniards into the city. However, the besiegers had already burst into the city, massacres and robberies began. During the assault, Farnese lay in bed with a fever, the assault took place in his absence, which freed the hands of German and Walloon mercenaries in the looting of the city [2] . On the first day, four thousand residents of the city were killed - men and women. The looting continued for another two days. About 400 people survived. They left the city, and the Walloons populated it. Sebastian Tappin died of his injuries, and died also Cupronickel Schwarzenberg [1] .
Consequences
Farnese was triumphant in Maastricht on July 21 . At the time of his entry into the city, the streets were full of rotting human remains, the air was filled with a cadaverous smell. The once prosperous city was devastated [1] . The fortifications, the bridge and many of the city's buildings were badly damaged during the siege. It took years to recover. During the days of robbery, many relics disappeared, depriving the city of attractiveness for pilgrims. The economic position of Maastricht as a trading city was seriously weakened.
In 1632, Maastricht was again besieged. This time, the Spanish garrison (together with the inhabitants) defended the city from the troops of Frederick Heinrich of Orange .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 John Lothrop Motley, De opkomst van de Nederlandsche republiek, Volume 4 P.201 Uitgave: WP Van Stockum, 1867 P.12 / 22 Uitgave: Van Langenhuysen, 1867
- ↑ 1 2 Willem Jan Frans Nuyens Geschiedenis van den oorsprong en het begin der Nederlandsche beroerten (1559-1598) P.12 / 22 Uitgave: Van Langenhuysen, 1867
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Karel Hendrik de Roo van Alderwerelt, De vestingoorlog en de vestingbouw in hunne ontwikkeling beschouwd P.128-140 Uitgave: MJ Visser, 1862
- ↑ Johannes Gerrit Willem Merkes, Verhandeling over het belang der vestingen voor den staat, het verband tusschen de kunst van versterken met de strategie, en de daaruit volgende noodwendigheid eener bevestigings-methode, gewijzigd, naar de hedendaagte merid Volume 2 P.212 Uitgave: Brest van Kempen, 1827
- ↑ Lamb. Emm. Jos. de Lenarts, Joannes Josephus Habets, Opkomst en voortgang der stad Maastricht P.8 / 22 Uitgave: Hollman, 1864
- ↑ PFH Mascheck, Geschiedenis van het korps Nederlandsche mineurs en sappeurs van de vroegste dagen tot op den tegenwoordigen tijd, 1852 P.201 Uitgave: WP Van Stockum, 1867 P.8 / 22 Uitgave: Noman, 1853
- ↑ James Tracy, The Founding of the Dutch Republic: War, Finance, and Politics in Holland, 1572-1588 P.8 / 22 Uitgave: Oxford University Press, 2008
Literature
- (nid.) Morreau, LJ, Bolwerk der Nederlanden . Assen, 1979
- (nid.) Russel, J., Geschied- en Oudheidkundige Schets der Stad Maastricht , 1883 (eerste uitgave)
- (Italian) Strada, F. De Bello Belgica . Rome, 1648
- (nid.) Ubachs, P., en I. Evers, Historische Encyclopedie Maastricht . Zutphen 2005
- (nid.) Ubachs, P., en I. Evers, Tweeduizend jaar Maastricht. Een stadsgeschiedenis . Zutphen, 2006