Battle of Rheindalen
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Dahlen was fought on April 23, 1568, between a Dutch rebel army led by Joost de Soete
, Lord of Villers
, and a Spanish army commanded by Sancho Dávila y Daza
. As a part of William of Orange's planned invasion, the Dutch rebels were trying to conquer the town of Roermond
when the arrival of the Spanish force compelled them to withdraw. Dávila pursued the retreating force and inflicted a defeat upon Villers near the small town of Dahlen (today known as Rheindahlen
). The survivors of this encounter sought refuge under the walls of Dahlen, where the Spanish infantry finally defeated them. This battle is sometimes considered the official start of the Eighty Years' War.
and Utrecht
, and other noblemen dissatisfied with the Spanish rule in the Netherlands, the Geuzen
, were determined to expel Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba
, and his Spanish troops from the country. William, based in Dillenburg
, designed a triple attack upon the Netherlands by his rebel followers and foreign mercenary forces. An army of Huguenots and Netherlander refugees would attack Artois
across the French border; another, under William's brother Louis
, would try to raise the province of Friesland
in arms against the Spanish; and a third one, under Antoine II de Lalaing
, Count of Hoogstraten
, would operate in the Meuse-Rhin area
.
The first force to be put in arms was that of Hoogstraten, though he had to be replaced by Joost de Soete
, Lord of Villers, who crossed the frontier of the Jülich-Cleves County on April 20 accompanied by William II de La Marck
, Lord of Lumey
, and in charge of about 3,000 men, both cavalry and infantry, amongst them French Huguenots and German cavalry recently dismissed from Spanish service. Villers was expected to raise the country and to take an important city to serve as a base for a large offensive. The city selected was Roermond
, a fortified town of considerable size situated at the confluence of the Meuse and Rur
rivers.
and prevent the junction of the Dutch rebels with his French fellows. He ordered the maestre de campo
don Sancho de Londoño to move his tercio
from the village of Lier
up to Maastricht and its neighborhood. To blockade the route linking northern France with the valley of the Meuse, the Duke mobilized most of the cavalry under his illegitimate son, Fernando de Toledo
, Grand Prior of Castile, who sent his men from Tournai
up to the neutral Bishopric of Liège
under the command of his lieutenant, don Lope de Acuña.
Alba ordered the captain of his guard, don Sancho Dávila y Daza
, to go after the rebel army with his own company of Spanish lances
and those of Albanese lances under captain Nicolò Basta, and of horse arquebusiers under Pedro Montañés. 300 horse in all, which were later reinforced with the tercio of Londoño, Lope's cavalry, and four companies of German pikemen, numbering 300 men, from Colonel's Count of Eberstein regiment, from the Maastricht garrison. In all the small Spanish army numbered about 1,600 men.
While being searched by the Spanish, Villers and his army passed through Eijsden
and advanced upon Roermond
. There, they tried to enter the town pretending to be soldiers of the King of Spain, but the town's inhabitants were not fooled. Then the rebels resorted to their weapons and attempted to seize the town's gates, only to be driven off. Fearing that they would be caught by the Spanish, Villers decided to withdraw, taking the road to the Guelders exclave of Erkelenz
. There were some doubts on the Spanish side about what to do then. Londoño advised caution, but Dávila decided to pursue the rebels, seeking to gain a victory that would serve as a warning for them.
. There Villers found his path cut off because a nearby bridge over the Rur river
had been demolished. He decided to take the road to Dahlen, a small walled town in the Bishopric of Liège
, while Dávila followed him and soon discovered the rebel army on the road between the two towns.
Villers deployed his troops for the battle on a plain with some groves behind and a hollow way covering one of his flanks, and dispatched his baggage towards Dahlen as soon as he learned of Dávila's presence nearby. To distract the Spanish general, he sent some of his cavalry against him, but Dávila dispersed it and made his way through the hollow way.
After a brief reconnaissance
, Dávila, together with the Count of Eberstein and the cavalry companies under captains don Alonso de Vargas and Nicolò Basta, charged across the plain and frontally lunged over the rebel squadrons, which they broke. Villers then lost most of his cavalry and two flags
. He and some 1,300 men retreated in some order with part of the baggage and managed to reach Dahlen, under whose walls they entrenched in order to withstand a second attack.
Villers covered his men behind a ravelin
of the wall, which had also a moat
, and reinforced his weak flank with some baggage wagons. Sancho Dávila was unable to reach such positions with his cavalry due to the rough groves, so he called Sancho de Londoño to come rapidly with the infantry. By early afternoon, the 300 German pikemen were detached behind the ravelin to prevent any attempt to flee, while 600 Spaniards, organized in five flags and under the personal leadership of Londoño, were ready to make a frontal attack over the fort, which they did shortly thereafter.
The fight lasted half a hour, after which the Spaniards took the ravelin. Just a few rebels succeeded in escaping and sought refuge in Dahlen, climbing through scales; the others were butchered.
s, pikes, harquebuses, other weapons and munitions were seized by the victors. Some 2,000 rebels, most of whom were French, were killed, as opposed to light Spanish casualties. Shortly thereafter, the Spanish army was split up. Dávila went to Brussels
with the foremost captives to execute them, the Count of Eberstein returned to Maastricht with his German pikemen, and Sancho de Londoño lodged his men at Roermond, where he ordered several prisoners – natives of the place – to be hanged.
A month later, Louis of Nassau scored an important victory over the Spanish at Heiligerlee
. Shortly afterwards, however, the planned rebel invasion of Artois was defeated in the bailiwick of Hesdin
. The local Spanish forces under the Count of Roleux drove the rebels across the French frontier. There, in Picardy
, at Saint Valery, the French royal army destroyed what remained of the Netherlander force. On July 21, Alba decisively defeated Nassau at Jemmingen
, which put end to the Dutch rebel campaign in Friesland.
Joost de Soete
Joost de Soete or de Zoete, Lord of Villers or Villiers, was a Dutch nobleman and military commander who fought in the early years of the Eighty Years' War....
, Lord of Villers
Villers
-In France:*Villers, Loire, in the Loire département*Villers, Vosges, in the Vosges département*Villers-Agron-Aiguizy, in the Aisne département*Villers-Allerand, in the Marne département*Villers-au-Bois, in the Pas-de-Calais département...
, and a Spanish army commanded by Sancho Dávila y Daza
Sancho d'Avila
Sancho d'Avila was a Spanish General.Born at Ávila, he first served as the commander of the Duke of Alba's bodyguard. It was in this function that d'Avila arrested the Count of Egmont....
. As a part of William of Orange's planned invasion, the Dutch rebels were trying to conquer the town of Roermond
Roermond
Roermond is a city, a municipality, and a diocese in the southeastern part of the Netherlands.The city of Roermond is a historically important town, on the lower Roer at the east bank of the Meuse river. It received city rights in 1231...
when the arrival of the Spanish force compelled them to withdraw. Dávila pursued the retreating force and inflicted a defeat upon Villers near the small town of Dahlen (today known as Rheindahlen
Rheindahlen
Rheindahlen may refer to*RAF Rheindahlen*Rheindahlen Military Complex*Rheindahlen, Mönchengladbach...
). The survivors of this encounter sought refuge under the walls of Dahlen, where the Spanish infantry finally defeated them. This battle is sometimes considered the official start of the Eighty Years' War.
Background
In 1568, William I of Orange, stadtholder of Holland, ZeelandZeeland
Zeeland , also called Zealand in English, is the westernmost province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the south-west of the country, consists of a number of islands and a strip bordering Belgium. Its capital is Middelburg. With a population of about 380,000, its area is about...
and Utrecht
Utrecht
Utrecht is a city in the Netherlands.The name may also refer to:* Utrecht , of which Utrecht is the capital* Utrecht , including the city of Utrecht* Bishopric of Utrecht* Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Utrecht...
, and other noblemen dissatisfied with the Spanish rule in the Netherlands, the Geuzen
Geuzen
Geuzen was a name assumed by the confederacy of Calvinist Dutch nobles and other malcontents, who from 1566 opposed Spanish rule in the Netherlands. The most successful group of them operated at sea, and so were called Watergeuzen...
, were determined to expel Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba
Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba
Don Fernando Álvarez de Toledo y Pimentel, 3rd Duke of Alba was a Spanish general and governor of the Spanish Netherlands , nicknamed "the Iron Duke" in the Low Countries because of his harsh and cruel rule there and his role in the execution of his political opponents and the massacre of several...
, and his Spanish troops from the country. William, based in Dillenburg
Dillenburg
Dillenburg is a town in Hesse's Gießen region in Germany. The town was formerly the seat of the old Dillkreis district, which is now part of the Lahn-Dill-Kreis....
, designed a triple attack upon the Netherlands by his rebel followers and foreign mercenary forces. An army of Huguenots and Netherlander refugees would attack Artois
Artois
Artois is a former province of northern France. Its territory has an area of around 4000 km² and a population of about one million. Its principal cities are Arras , Saint-Omer, Lens and Béthune.-Location:...
across the French border; another, under William's brother Louis
Louis of Nassau
Louis of Nassau was the third son of William, Count of Nassau and Juliana of Stolberg, and the younger brother of Prince William of Orange Nassau....
, would try to raise the province of Friesland
Friesland
Friesland is a province in the north of the Netherlands and part of the ancient region of Frisia.Until the end of 1996, the province bore Friesland as its official name. In 1997 this Dutch name lost its official status to the Frisian Fryslân...
in arms against the Spanish; and a third one, under Antoine II de Lalaing
Antoine II de Lalaing
Antoine II of Lalaing , 3rd count of Hoogstraten, was a patron and nobleman of the Southern Netherlands. He was the son of the second count Philip de Lalaing and his wife Anna of Rennenberg....
, Count of Hoogstraten
Hoogstraten
Hoogstraten is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the city of Hoogstraten proper and the towns of Meer, Meerle, Meersel-Dreef, Minderhout and Wortel,...
, would operate in the Meuse-Rhin area
Meuse-Rhenish
Meuse-Rhenish or Rheinmaasländisch is a modern term that geographically refers to the literature written in mediæval times in the greater Meuse-Rhine area. This area stretches in the northern triangle roughly between the rivers Meuse and Rhine...
.
The first force to be put in arms was that of Hoogstraten, though he had to be replaced by Joost de Soete
Joost de Soete
Joost de Soete or de Zoete, Lord of Villers or Villiers, was a Dutch nobleman and military commander who fought in the early years of the Eighty Years' War....
, Lord of Villers, who crossed the frontier of the Jülich-Cleves County on April 20 accompanied by William II de La Marck
William II de la Marck
William II de la Marck was Lord of Lumey and initially admiral of the Watergeuzen, the so-called 'sea beggars' who fought in the Eighty Years' War , together with among others William the Silent, Prince of Orange-Nassau...
, Lord of Lumey
Lummen
Lummen is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg near Hasselt. On January 1, 2006 Lummen had a total population of 13,691. The total area is 53.38 km² which gives a population density of 256 inhabitants per km²....
, and in charge of about 3,000 men, both cavalry and infantry, amongst them French Huguenots and German cavalry recently dismissed from Spanish service. Villers was expected to raise the country and to take an important city to serve as a base for a large offensive. The city selected was Roermond
Roermond
Roermond is a city, a municipality, and a diocese in the southeastern part of the Netherlands.The city of Roermond is a historically important town, on the lower Roer at the east bank of the Meuse river. It received city rights in 1231...
, a fortified town of considerable size situated at the confluence of the Meuse and Rur
Rur
The Rur , — not to be confused with the Ruhr — is a river which flows through portions of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. It is a right tributary to the river Meuse...
rivers.
Prelude
As soon as he received news of the invasion, Alba organized an improvised army to secure MaastrichtMaastricht
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...
and prevent the junction of the Dutch rebels with his French fellows. He ordered the maestre de campo
Maestro de Campo
Maestro de Campo was a rank created in 1534 by the Emperor Carlos V, inferior in rank only to the Capitán General and acted as a chief of staff. He was chosen by the monarch in the Council of State, and commanded a tercio. Their powers were similar to those of the old Marshals of the Kingdom of...
don Sancho de Londoño to move his 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...
from the village of Lier
Lier, Belgium
Lier is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the city of Lier proper and the village of Koningshooikt. On January 1, 2010 Lier had a total population of 33,930. The total area is 49.70 km² which gives a population density of 669 inhabitants per...
up to Maastricht and its neighborhood. To blockade the route linking northern France with the valley of the Meuse, the Duke mobilized most of the cavalry under his illegitimate son, Fernando de Toledo
Fernando de Toledo
Fernando de Toledo, was a Spanish nobleman.He was the illegitimate and first son of Don Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba, "The Iron Duke", who had fathered Fernando de Toledo upon the daughter of a miller of La Aldehuela, in the province of Ávila, Spain.Not until 1546, when young...
, Grand Prior of Castile, who sent his men from Tournai
Tournai
Tournai is a Walloon city and municipality of Belgium located 85 kilometres southwest of Brussels, on the river Scheldt, in the province of Hainaut....
up to the neutral Bishopric of Liège
Bishopric of Liège
The Bishopric of Liège or Prince-Bishopric of Liège was a state of the Holy Roman Empire in the Low Countries in present Belgium. It acquired its status as a prince-bishopric between 980 and 985 when Bishop Notger, who had been the bishop of Liege since 972, acquired the status of Prince-Bishop...
under the command of his lieutenant, don Lope de Acuña.
Alba ordered the captain of his guard, don Sancho Dávila y Daza
Sancho d'Avila
Sancho d'Avila was a Spanish General.Born at Ávila, he first served as the commander of the Duke of Alba's bodyguard. It was in this function that d'Avila arrested the Count of Egmont....
, to go after the rebel army with his own company of Spanish lances
Demi-lancer
The "Demi-lancer" or demilancer was a type of heavy cavalryman found in Western Europe in the 16th and early 17th centuries.-Characteristics:...
and those of Albanese lances under captain Nicolò Basta, and of horse arquebusiers under Pedro Montañés. 300 horse in all, which were later reinforced with the tercio of Londoño, Lope's cavalry, and four companies of German pikemen, numbering 300 men, from Colonel's Count of Eberstein regiment, from the Maastricht garrison. In all the small Spanish army numbered about 1,600 men.
While being searched by the Spanish, Villers and his army passed through Eijsden
Eijsden
Eijsden is a place situated in the southern part of the Dutch province of Limburg. Until January 1st, 2011 it was the main village in a municipality with the same name. On that date this municipality merged with a neighbouring one, which resulted in the new Eijsden-Margraten municipality.Eijsden...
and advanced upon Roermond
Roermond
Roermond is a city, a municipality, and a diocese in the southeastern part of the Netherlands.The city of Roermond is a historically important town, on the lower Roer at the east bank of the Meuse river. It received city rights in 1231...
. There, they tried to enter the town pretending to be soldiers of the King of Spain, but the town's inhabitants were not fooled. Then the rebels resorted to their weapons and attempted to seize the town's gates, only to be driven off. Fearing that they would be caught by the Spanish, Villers decided to withdraw, taking the road to the Guelders exclave of Erkelenz
Erkelenz
- Geology :The Erkelenz Börde is the northernmost extent of the Jülich Börde and is formed from a loess plateau that has an average thickness of over eleven metres in this area. Beneath it are the gravels and sands of the main ice age terrace, laid down by the Rhine and the Meuse...
. There were some doubts on the Spanish side about what to do then. Londoño advised caution, but Dávila decided to pursue the rebels, seeking to gain a victory that would serve as a warning for them.
Battle
Sancho Dávila went ahead with his cavalry and was informed by his scouts that the rebels were close to the village of ErkelenzErkelenz
- Geology :The Erkelenz Börde is the northernmost extent of the Jülich Börde and is formed from a loess plateau that has an average thickness of over eleven metres in this area. Beneath it are the gravels and sands of the main ice age terrace, laid down by the Rhine and the Meuse...
. There Villers found his path cut off because a nearby bridge over the Rur river
Rur
The Rur , — not to be confused with the Ruhr — is a river which flows through portions of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. It is a right tributary to the river Meuse...
had been demolished. He decided to take the road to Dahlen, a small walled town in the Bishopric of Liège
Bishopric of Liège
The Bishopric of Liège or Prince-Bishopric of Liège was a state of the Holy Roman Empire in the Low Countries in present Belgium. It acquired its status as a prince-bishopric between 980 and 985 when Bishop Notger, who had been the bishop of Liege since 972, acquired the status of Prince-Bishop...
, while Dávila followed him and soon discovered the rebel army on the road between the two towns.
Villers deployed his troops for the battle on a plain with some groves behind and a hollow way covering one of his flanks, and dispatched his baggage towards Dahlen as soon as he learned of Dávila's presence nearby. To distract the Spanish general, he sent some of his cavalry against him, but Dávila dispersed it and made his way through the hollow way.
After a brief reconnaissance
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
, Dávila, together with the Count of Eberstein and the cavalry companies under captains don Alonso de Vargas and Nicolò Basta, charged across the plain and frontally lunged over the rebel squadrons, which they broke. Villers then lost most of his cavalry and two flags
War flag
A war flag is a variant of a national flag for use by the nation's military forces on land. The nautical equivalent is a naval ensign — the battle ensign...
. He and some 1,300 men retreated in some order with part of the baggage and managed to reach Dahlen, under whose walls they entrenched in order to withstand a second attack.
Villers covered his men behind a ravelin
Ravelin
A ravelin is a triangular fortification or detached outwork, located in front of the innerworks of a fortress...
of the wall, which had also a moat
Moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, other building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams and sluices...
, and reinforced his weak flank with some baggage wagons. Sancho Dávila was unable to reach such positions with his cavalry due to the rough groves, so he called Sancho de Londoño to come rapidly with the infantry. By early afternoon, the 300 German pikemen were detached behind the ravelin to prevent any attempt to flee, while 600 Spaniards, organized in five flags and under the personal leadership of Londoño, were ready to make a frontal attack over the fort, which they did shortly thereafter.
The fight lasted half a hour, after which the Spaniards took the ravelin. Just a few rebels succeeded in escaping and sought refuge in Dahlen, climbing through scales; the others were butchered.
Aftermath
Joost de Soete was amongst those who escaped inside Dahlen, but was afterwards handed to the Spanish. The Lord of Lumey, on the other hand, evaded capture. All the baggage, seven flags, a large number corsletCorslet
A corslet is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "a piece of defensive armour covering the body." In Ancient Greek armies, the 'hoplite', or heavy infantryman, wore a bronze corslet or known as the thorax to protect his upper body. The corslet consisted of two plates connected on the sides...
s, pikes, harquebuses, other weapons and munitions were seized by the victors. Some 2,000 rebels, most of whom were French, were killed, as opposed to light Spanish casualties. Shortly thereafter, the Spanish army was split up. Dávila went to 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...
with the foremost captives to execute them, the Count of Eberstein returned to Maastricht with his German pikemen, and Sancho de Londoño lodged his men at Roermond, where he ordered several prisoners – natives of the place – to be hanged.
A month later, Louis of Nassau scored an important victory over the Spanish at Heiligerlee
Battle of Heiligerlee
The Battle of Heiligerlee was fought between Dutch rebels and the Spanish army of Friesland. This was the first Dutch victory during the Eighty Years' War....
. Shortly afterwards, however, the planned rebel invasion of Artois was defeated in the bailiwick of Hesdin
Hesdin
Hesdin is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France.-Geography:The N39, from Arras to Montreuil, used to be the main thoroughfare of the town. In the 1950s, a circular route was created to help traffic flow...
. The local Spanish forces under the Count of Roleux drove the rebels across the French frontier. There, in Picardy
Picardy
This article is about the historical French province. For other uses, see Picardy .Picardy is a historical province of France, in the north of France...
, at Saint Valery, the French royal army destroyed what remained of the Netherlander force. On July 21, Alba decisively defeated Nassau at Jemmingen
Battle of Jemmingen
After the Battle of Heiligerlee Louis of Nassau failed to capture the city Groningen. Louis was driven away by Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alba and defeated at the Battle of Jemmingen on 21 July 1568.-Forces:The Spanish army consisted of 12,000 infantry , 3,000 cavalry, and some cannon...
, which put end to the Dutch rebel campaign in Friesland.