Slag om Grolle
Encyclopedia
Historical reenactment
Historical reenactment is an educational activity in which participants attempt torecreate some aspects of a historical event or period. This may be as narrow as a specific moment from a battle, such as the reenactment of Pickett's Charge at the Great Reunion of 1913, or as broad as an entire...
of the siege
Siege of Groenlo (1627)
The Siege of Grol in 1627 was a battle between the Army of the Dutch Republic commanded by Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange and the Spanish controlled fortified city of Grol , during the Eighty Years War in 1627. The Spanish army led by Hendrik van den Bergh came to relieve Grol, but it came too...
of the fortified border town of Groenlo
Groenlo
Groenlo is a city in the municipality of Oost Gelre, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands on the German border, a region in the province of Gelderland called the Achterhoek . Groenlo was a municipality until January 1, 2005, when it merged with Lichtenvoorde. Until May 19 2006 Groenlo...
(formerly known as Grol or Grolle) in the Achterhoek
Achterhoek
The Achterhoek is a region in the eastern part of the Netherlands, Europe.Its name is geographically appropriate because the area lies in the Eastern-most part of Gelderland, and therefore of the Netherlands, protruding into Germany...
in 1627 during the Dutch Revolt
Dutch Revolt
The Dutch Revolt or the Revolt of the Netherlands This article adopts 1568 as the starting date of the war, as this was the year of the first battles between armies. However, since there is a long period of Protestant vs...
. It is held in and around Groenlo itself every two years. The event lasts for three days and features a historic battle reenactment and a historic fair, with reenactors from many Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an countries. During the event, the reenactors try to relive the conditions of 1627 as faithfully as possible, without electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
or heating, while eating traditional food.
The event was held for the first time in 2005, with around 350 reenactors, among which were pikemen, swordsmen, around 100 musketeer
Musketeer
A musketeer was an early modern type of infantry soldier equipped with a musket. Musketeers were an important part of early modern armies, particularly in Europe. They sometimes could fight on horseback, like a dragoon or a cavalryman...
s and working cannon
Cannon
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
s. In October 2008 the event was held for a second time, this time featuring more than 600 reenactors from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
and the Netherlands. The 2008 event included cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
, 21 working cannons and more than 250 musketeers. The 'Grols Kanon', left behind as a gift to the people of Grol by Frederik Hendrik
Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange
Frederick Henry, or Frederik Hendrik in Dutch , was the sovereign Prince of Orange and stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel from 1625 to 1647.-Early life:...
in 1627, was also used. The Montferland
Montferland
Montferland is a municipality in Gelderland, the Netherlands. It was created on 1 January 2005 from the former neighboring municipalities of Bergh and Didam.- Population centres :Formerly from Bergh*'s-Heerenberg*Stokkum*Zeddam*Braamt*Kilder*Lengel...
folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
group 'Het Gezelschap' even composed the song "Grol" as a theme song for the 2008 event. In the streets of Groenlo itself a 17th century atmosphere is recreated, with beggars, street rascals, lepers, musicians and artisan
Artisan
An artisan is a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative, including furniture, clothing, jewellery, household items, and tools...
s. More than 30,000 people came to visit the 2008 event, and it was thus decided by the organizers to hold it every two years. The latest edition was held in October 2010.