Apples and Oranges Mk. III: A Greater Dutch Revolt

[Ofaloaf]

Lepanto, 1571


The sun shone brightly on the fleet as it entered the Gulf of Patras. Galleys and galleasses under the mixed command of Mediterranean Christendom gently rocked back and forth in the waves, a sea of water below them reflected by a sea of banners above, each one showing to the world the blessings of a family, city, or country in this brave endeavor. The flags of Naples, Venice, and Genoa billowed proudly in the wind, while the long, trailing banners of Doria, di Leyni, Grimaldi, and more told of the great support individual families invested in the enterprise. Belowdecks, men performed their duties quickly in anticipation of the day's events. Power and match were readied, cannon prepared for battle, and swords sharpened. Waiting patiently, the men and ships of this grand fleet stood by ready to move on the mark of one man: Don Juan of Austria.

Don Juan at that very moment was deciding his next move. The feared and dreaded Ottoman fleet had been sighted, and a conference hastily convened aboard his flagship.

“Gentlemen,” he asked, pacing about the regal captain's quarters of the ship, “Gentlemen, one and all of you, how shall we proceed? Shall we engage the Ottoman and fight for the glory of God, or shall we pull back?”

Romegas, a Gascon and Knight of Malta, was the first to respond: “What I think? That if Emperor Charles V, your father, had seen such an armada like ours, he would not have stopped until he had become emperor of Constantinople, and done so with ease.”

“You mean we must fight, Monsieur Romegas?” inquired the Don.

“Aye, sir. Let us fight.”

Captain Colonna, a Venetian, was the next to respond. Drawing himself up, he answered simply, quoting the Gospel, “'Even if I should die, I will not deny you.' Let us fight.”

Luis Resquesens, a Spaniard, dissented. Shifting about nervously in his seat, he attempted to dissaude Don Juan, stating, “Sir, should the battle be lost and God's favor not shine upon us today, we have nowhere to run to. The Ottomans, however, have haven at the port of Lepanto still, and should easily retreat to it ere we defeat them. It is a terribly risky venture you are seeking.” The Gascon Romegas sneered and whispered aside “Ah, Resquesens, considering all the possible options in true Spanish fashion.”

Hearing this, Don Juan grew stern in countenance, and told his advisers to return to their ships. One last man had to be consulted, and then and only then would Don Juan give his decision. Walking out of the quarters onto the deck, he shaded his eyes with his hand and scanned a nearby Venetian galley. Sure enough, he soon spotted the elderly commander of Venetian forces, Sebastiano Verniers. The Venetian and Don Juan had been fighting over authority throughout the fleet's adventures that year, but now Don Juan had to suppress pride, personal and national, to gain Vernier's full support. Straining his voice to be heard over the crashing of waves and creaking of wood, Don Juan shouted “O Veniers, must we fight the Ottomans?”

Vernier's voice needed not strain itself. The news of the Ottoman sack of Famagusta and loss of Cyprus still haunted Venetians, but the tale of Bragadin, a respected Venetian official, being tortured and killed at the orders of Mustafa Pasha turned their despair into a bloody lust for revenge. “We must fight,” said Vernier with steel in his voice. “We must, and cannot avoid it.”


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With a volley of cannon from the Venetian galleasses, the battle was on.

The Ottoman fleet, attempting to envelop the Christian fleet with a crescent formation and destroy the Holy League's ships from all sides, lost momentum early when a devastating series of long-range cannon volleys shattered Ottoman morale. The Christians, sensing the Ottoman panic, began breaking formation in an attempt to attack faster, causing holes to quickly develop in the Holy League's line and potentially dooming the entire venture from the start. On the far right of the Christian line, Genoese galleys began veering away from the main body of ships in an attempt to outmaneuver the Ottoman flank, a dance of cannon and sails that they would ultimately lose. On the Christian's left flank, however, a hole developed that was quickly exploited by Ottoman galleys, outflanking the Holy League's fleet and rapidly putting the entire line in danger. Only the initiative of Venetian reserves managed to save that line, and at great cost to themselves.

Barbarigo, brave Barbarigo! Seeing the hole on the Christian fleet's left, the Venetian captain Barbarigo had directed his own ship to plug the hole and ward off the Ottoman galleys. The oarsmen belowdecks strained themselves to their limits as the Venetian galley flew forward to help, only to sail to their doom. By his initiative and speed, Barbarigo's ship had been the first to reach the hole in Christian lines, and the first to square off against the Ottoman ships. The Turkish fleet, for its part, had tried its best to capitalize on the Christians' weak point, and charging into the hole Barbarigo discovered he was alone against eight Ottoman vessels. Still the Venetian held his resolve, and to the deadly fire of eight Turkish galleys the sole Venetian ship stood its ground.

Fire from the right of them, fire from the left of them, fire from all around pounded on the Venetian galley, the smell of sulfur and the flash of cannon from all sides creating a small Hell on earth for the vessel. Stone cannonballs smashed against the sides of the ship and splintered into deadly shards, slaughtering crew and splashing gore over all the decks like a thundering tempest of human flesh and blood.

The Venetian relief ships only delayed the inevitable. Even with backup, Barbarigo's galley was still in the thick of battle. The Venetian captain himself was in full plate armor to better protect himself, but when he pulled up his helmet's visor to better see the Ottoman fleet, an aide warned him of oncoming Turkish arrow volleys. Laughing, “I'd rather be unprotected and see the Ottoman fleet then blind and armored!” Barbarigo was struck immediately thereafter in the left eye with an Ottoman arrow amd killed instantly.

All throughout the battle scenes like this played out over the course of the day. The center-right was mauled by Ottoman warships until the arrival of Spanish reserves, but too late to save six Christian galleys that had been boarded. It is said that onboard one of those vessels, the Capitana, the only reason the Maltese captain of the vessel managed to avoid being killed by the oncoming Turkish boarding parties was through the direct intervention of God Himself. On the far right wing of the Christian fleet, it was only through the timely arrival of Juan de Cardona's reserves that the Genoese contingent wasn't completely destroyed.

Slowly but surely, though, victory appeared to be within the Holy League's grasp. An Ottoman sally was pushed back on the left, a feint on the right defeated, a ship here sunk, a galley there captured. A Spanish attempt was repelled once, twice, but on the third time managed to board the Ottoman flagship Sultana. The carnage was terrible, with arquebus and sword clashing in a blinding field of smoke and sulfur. Don Juan himself was with the boarding party, bravely leading from the front as man fought against man.

During a brief lull in the fighting aboard the Sultana, one of the boarders cried out, “There, sir! Look! Is that not Ali Pasha, the Ottoman admiral himself?” Sure enough, at the stern of the Sultana the Ottoman commander himself appeared, brandished a scimitar and roaring encouragement at his men. The boarding Spaniards bellowed derision and insult at him and pressed forward all the more, intent on finishing off the man. “After him, men!” bellowed Don Juan, waving a sword about above his head, “After him! I want that heathen alive, do you hear me? I want him al--”

The roar of cannon from a nearby galley drowned out the Don, and for a minute afterwards the Spaniard choked on the sulfuric fumes of used gunpowder drifting across the battle. By the time he had regained his breath and readied himself to bellow orders once more, a cheer had already risen from the stern of the ship, and several boarders returned to the Don, grinning.

Held up by the leader of the group was the severed head of Ali Pasha, commander of the Ottoman fleet. The battle was over.


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The cost of Lepanto would be dear to all involved. The Ottomans had lost a prized naval commander and a good portion of the navy itself, while the Holy Fleet suffered so many losses that it could not fully capitalize on its victory, letting the Ottoman remnants escape to fight another day.

Many brave men died that day. Genoese, Venetian, Neapolitan, and Spaniard alike suffered from the bloodshed, and too many ships had been sunk, too many officers killed. While Barbarigo's death may have been the most dramatic, his death would not have the deepest impact on the League and on Europe.

No, that honor was reserved for Alexander Farnese, son and heir of the Duke of Parma. Fighting onboard one of the Genoese ships on the right flank, Farnese had been slain when a shard of cannonball had penetrated his skull, slaying him almost instantly.

It would not even be Italy that would be most affected by his death, but instead it would be a small and muddy land thousands of miles away to the north that would feel his absence most of all...

[pompejus]

Part three already? Well, I am following it again.

[Valdemar II]

Nice, I need to read "The Dutch Republic" again.

[Ofaloaf]

Originally Posted by pompejus

Part three already? Well, I am following it again.

Looking back, I'm really upset with some of the earlier writing, especially the parts where I just used a plain old chronology. Rewriting the opening and putting it at the end of Mk. II just didn't feel right to me.

Plenty of other parts I want to rewrite, anyways.

[Ofaloaf]

Background on the Dutch Revolt: A bit about what went on in OTL





What is now known as the Benelux region was first unified in the post-Carolingian era by-- mostly-- the Burgundians in the 1400s. Flanders was the first to come under their rule, being inherited by Duke John the Fearless (of Burgundy) in 1384, followed by the acquisition of Brabant and Limburg between 1404-6, and the annexations of Namur (1421), Hainault (1428), Holland and Zeeland (1425-8), Luxemburg (1451), and Gelderland (1473). The arrival of Duke Philip III “The Good” to the throne of Burgundy in 1419 would see many of the Netherland's later institutions first take shape as well, with the creation of the long-lasting States-General in Brussels, the founding of the University of Leuven in 1425, the introduction of Stadtholders (provincial governors answerable to the Duke), and the establishment of the Order of the Golden Fleece (intended to bind local nobles to the Burgundian court) in 1430.

With the death of Mary of Burgundy in 1477, the Burgundian Netherlands were inherited by the Habsburgs, who at that time were not yet divided into Spanish and Austrian lines. Although the initial reception of the Hapsburgs was mostly positive amongst Netherlander nobility, opinion quickly fell following a disastrous war with France in the 1480s. Revolt soon spread, and Gelderland [1] managed to win full independence in 1491 with French support. Outside of Gelderland, however, the revolt soon faltered, and the insurrection was finished in 1492. Hapsburg rule having gradually been cemented, the first half of the sixteenth century would be relatively calm, only with the brief reconquest of Gelderland in 1543 and a few bouts of violence in Friesland interrupting the serenity.

Administration under the early Hapsburgs saw few changes from Burgundian rule, although under the rule of Charles V a few new institutions were introduced, including the Council of State (a mix of the House of Lords and the Cabinet) and the Secret Council (pure administration and bureaucracy), both of which would be used by the Hapsburg Netherlands through to 1788. Administrators were able enough, and the local nobility cooperative enough that Charles would grant some high positions in the Netherlands' government. One of the best of Charles V's Stadtholders would be René de Châlons (later crowned prince of the small and insignificant French principality of Orange), who is probably best known for being killed by a cannonball in 1544 and being survived by his 11-year-old nephew, William. Yes, the first half of the sixteenth century was a relatively stable and unexciting time for the Netherlands. Politically, at least.

Religiously, the early sixteenth century paved the way for much of the chaos and warfare of the next two centuries. Even before the nailing of the 95 Theses, Erasmus (a native of Rotterdam), began promoting a new approach to Christianity that emphasized modeling one's life on the example of Christ and direct communication with God, as opposed to the cult of saints and Latin prayer [2]. Although Erasmus was a fervent Catholic, following the furor of the 95 Theses and Luther's continued resistance to submit to the Papacy, his ideas were attacked more and more in the Netherlands and he eventually fled to Switzerland in 1521. His ideas remained popular amongst the literate classes, however, and Lutheranism gained a little ground in the 1520s, but open Protestant worship in the Hapsburg Netherlands was quickly stamped out where ever it was found. This left Protestant attitudes and crypto-Protestant thought amorphous and unorganized until the advent of Jean Calvin's teachings, which quickly gained strength in the Low Countries.

Stress between Hapsburg authorities and local Netherlander officials began to grow following the Franco-Spanish Italian Wars of the early 1500s. With the Italian theater itself basically shut off to French forces by the 1530s, Valois strategy-makers began emphasizing the threat the Spanish Netherlands posed. Not only was the Picardy-Artois border dangerously close to Paris, meaning that Hapsburg forces were always a few days' march away from the capital, but the Netherlands (and Antwerp's markets in particular) offered a steady source of income for the Hapsburgs that, could they be deprived of it, potentially mark their final defeat.

When the French army began shifting the bulk of its forces north, the Hapsburg government had no option but to shift the focus of operations northward as well. To help finance new fortification projects in Artois, Namur, and elsewhere in the southern Netherlands, new taxes on beer, wine, salt, and herring-- collectively know as the Nieuwe Middelen, or “New Means”-- were imposed on local trade, and the local governments were encouraged to issue state-issued interest-bearing bonds known as renten. In the more recently-pacified provinces, such as Gelderland, Hapsburg attempts at generating incoming were even more direct and harsh, generating much angry muttering about Austro-Spanish treatment of the Dutch. Even with these new sources of income, however, the Hapsburg government still spent far more cash than it generated, causing the deficit to grow seven times larger over a period of thirteen years (1544-1557), and Netherlanders who had been relying on the stability of the state-issued bonds worried. The States-General, normally an inactive organ of the Hapsburg Netherlands, began to experience increased activity and regular meetings, while local councils began rallying support around them.

Confusion in the Hapsburg government was not helping matters. The Emperor Charles V was obviously beginning to suffer the ailments of advanced age and the stress of ruling a global empire, and the transition between his rule and the split rule of his son, Philip, and his brother, Ferdinand, encountered many issues. For instance, while Charles V had been well-traveled and could speak Dutch (likely Brabants) well enough, Philip had been raised a Spaniard and had furthermore disagreed with his father on many issues, ranging from the state of finances to overall war strategy against the French Valois, meaning that many Spanish policies were radically and suddenly changed upon Philip's coronation. Although Philip proved a capable strategist, soundly defeating French forces at St.-Quentin and finally ending the war in 1559, he proved not so capable at grasping the variety of peoples within the Spanish Empire.

King Philip II's attempts at creating a stable government ended in failure, due to personalities and policies. In an attempt to rein in independent-minded Netherlanders, Philip appointed Margaret of Parma, known for her lack of experience and political skill, as Governor, so as to make sure that the governor of the Netherlands always had to rely on Philip's trusted advisors. Instead of offering a solid pillar of support, however, Margaret's main advisers (Antoine de Granvelle and the nephew of René de Châlons) disagreed with each other on most policies while at the same time attempting to influence the crown. Granvelle, a pious Catholic, was greatly disturbed by Protestantism's steady growth in the Netherlands and desperately wanted to stamp it out, while Châlons's nephew, a politique and moderate, was much more comfortable with accommodation and compromise for the sake of peace. Margaret, not knowing much what to do, generally tended to wait for word from Madrid before taking any major action, a move which would do much harm to the Spanish position in the Netherlands.

Seeing the turmoil grow and Protestantism spread in the Netherlands, King Philip II felt that immediate action was called for, and so went over the authority of Margaret to instigate reform-- reform of the Catholic bishoprics, that is. While previously the Low Countries had consisted of six bishoprics[3], Philip forced through a Papal Bull that divided up the bishoprics and added thirteen new ones[4], with Antoine de Grenvelle appointed Archbishop of Mechelen and primate of the Netherlands Church. Not only did this upset the established clergy, who were fearful of congregational and income losses, but provincial governments viewed the new divisions as an attempt to weaken their political influence. Agitation for the removal of Granvelle rapidly spread, and in December of 1563 King Philip II finally dismissed him. Initially taken as a victory by moderate Politiques and Protestant nobles, their jubilation soon ceased with the arrival of firm letters written by Philip II, which rejected calls for religious toleration following Granvelle's dismissal and instead insisted on strengthening an anti-heresy campaign.

Châlons's nephew, van Egmond, and others withdrew from the official Hapsburg organs of state, setting up a movement dubbed the League of Compromise by its founders. Forcing their way into the palace of Margaret of Parma in April of 1566, roughly two hundred nobles lead by the radical noble Brederode approached her and presented her with a Petition of Compromise, strongly urging a new policy of toleration and a dismemberment of the Netherlander Inquisition, along with a veiled threat of rebellion should the Spanish government refuse. The court reacted with alarm, even calling the involved nobles “beggars” (a name taken up by the movement following the event) for their effort. Margaret, for her part, saw no alternative but to accept the compromise when presented by two hundred armed nobles, and for a few months there was once more an air of jubilation in the Netherlands. Calvinist ministers preached openly in the streets, and Catholic churches were looted and ransacked. The violence committed by Protestant militants, however, surprised many of the nobles who had previous backed the politique 'Toleration' faction led by René de Châlons's newphew, and soon many of the moderates had returned to Brussels to offer their official support to the Spanish government in putting down the rebellion.

The end of the 1566-7 revolt did not mean that the Spanish government was going to forgive and forget. Don Fernando Alvarez de Toledo, the dreaded Duke of Alva, arrived in August of that year at the head of a 10,000-strong army, intent on completely purging the Protestant heresy from the Netherlands. Every citizen was suspect, and anybody potentially subject to punishment. The arrest of Lamoral van Egmond and his later execution in June of 1568 shocked even Margaret of Parma, as Egmond had been one of the moderates to come over to the Loyalist side following the Revolt of '66-7, causing her to resign and for whatever loyal nobles remained to consider supporting the cause of the old League of Compromise “Beggars”. Tensions mounted, but neither side was yet willing to commit to a full-scale war.

This all changed on April 1st, 1572. A small naval force of League of Compromise followers (known by this point as “the Sea Beggars”) took advantage of Spanish manpower strains and seized the small Holland port of Brill. Temporarily left without a garrison as the Duke of Alva had started to concentrate his troops along the Franco-Netherlander border, Brill was a relatively small town that the Spanish authorities had not expected would be a target. The Beggars, however, had plans, and as soon as they entered the town they raised the banner of rebellion and announced to all who would listen that they intended to stay and throw off the shackles of Spain.

The Dutch Revolt had begun, and no man would be better poised for the opportunity presented by the Revolt than that nephew of René de Châlons, William “The Silent” of Orange.


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[1] Gelderland's revolt: Led by one Duke Karel van Egmond [van Gelre]. The van Egmond family would hold much influence in Gelderland and the Netherlands as a whole for three-quarts of a century following the revolt.

[2] Erasmus' opposition to prayer in Latin: He acknowledged that most congregants never understood the content of such prayers, let alone speak or read fluently enough to directly translate into vernacular, thus making the prayer's words empty.

[3] The Six Bishoprics: Utrecht, Tournai, Arras, Cambrai, Liège, and Thérouanne

[4] The Thirteen New Bishoprics: St. Omer, Ieper, Bruges, Ghent, Mechelen, Namur, Antwerp, Middelburg, 's-Hertogenbosch, Roermond, Haarlem, Deventer, Groningen, and Leeuwarden

[Archdevil]

Nice, let's see what happens next.

A few nitpicks:

Originally Posted by Ofaloaf

...René de Châlons (later crowned prince of a small and insignificant French principality of Orange), who is probably best known for being killed by a cannonball in 1544 and being survived by his 11-year-old son, William.

William was actually Rene's nephew, not his son.

Originally Posted by Ofalaoaf

A small naval force of League of Compromise followers (known by this point as “the Sea Beggars”) took advantage of Spanish manpower strains and seized the small Zeeland port of Brill.

Brill, or Den Briel/Brielle is and was actually a town in Holland, not Zealand.

Otherwise, no complaints!

I will follow this iteration of Apples and Oranges with the same interest as the previous ones.

[Ofaloaf]

Originally Posted by Archdevil

Nice, let's see what happens next.

A few nitpicks:


William was actually Rene's nephew, not his son.


Brill, or Den Briel/Brielle is and was actually a town in Holland, not Zealand.

Gah! I've fixed the text, but the map will have to wait for later on in the day.

[pompejus]

Originally Posted by Ofaloaf

Gah! I've fixed the text, but the map will have to wait for later on in the day.

I don't think you have to relocate Den Briel, you only have to recolour the island (and some other islands, although I am uncertain which ones exactly) to the colour of Holland.

BTW interesting update

[Thande]

This is definitely a better way of telling the story.

[Geekhis Khan]

I missed the earlier "marks", so glad to catch this one on the ground floor!

Very well written and informative on a time/place I'm unfamiliar with. Thanks!

[Ofaloaf]

Originally Posted by pompejus

I don't think you have to relocate Den Briel, you only have to recolour the island (and some other islands, although I am uncertain which ones exactly) to the colour of Holland.

Ah, you are correct. I had screwed up and colored in Goeree-Overflakkee and Voorne-Putten (and maybe Hoeksche Ward, I think) as Zeeland islands. The map's been fixed and updated, with a lighter color for Holland to clarify what's what in the Scheldt/Maas Estuary.

Originally Posted by Thande

This is definitely a better way of telling the story.

Yes! He approves!

Originally Posted by Geekhis Khan

I missed the earlier "marks", so glad to catch this one on the ground floor!

Very well written and informative on a time/place I'm unfamiliar with. Thanks!

Yes! He approves, and I have now educated the masses!

[rcduggan]

Pleased to see you continue with this TL. It just keeps getting better and better. So much detail, a new writing style. This looks to be the best incarnation yet.

Waiting for more.

[Archangel]

Subscribed, Ofaloaf!

[Parma]

Great to see your Althist. again.

Just some additions/comments on your excelent introduction of the state of affair in the Low countries.
The Revolt of 1566 was a real revolution, just revolutionair as American or the French revolution.
The origine of the revolution, or the fuel that ignite and fed the fire of the revolution, was simple monney and economics.
There were several anuall miss harvest, wich caused extreme food pricess, and an econimical crisess, unemployement was rising to the roof.
This economical situation, in a highly urbanised region ( Flandres, part of Brabant, Holland and Zeeland) were a lot of people worked in an early industrialised and monitair system ( so no self supporting peasant but working class) this would lead to a revolution.
The rate of literaracy in Flandres and Holland was as well far above average compared to the rest of Europe ( except Italy) even many simple work man could read and write.
Combined with an attitude of the Church, of showing of extreme wealth, founded by taxes and confessions, and memebers of the church doiing every thing opposite to what the bible writes. (drinking horring, priest living with nuns etc.)

[Ofaloaf]

Originally Posted by Parma

Great to see your Althist. again.

It simply had to be rewritten, honest!

Please note that the TL's pretty much OTL up until 1577/8, when Farnese was supposed to arrive. I'm just trying to cover the whole of the Revolt so people not so familiar with it won't be totally lost. I'm also expecting several posts nitpicking the depicted shoreline in the map below. That stuff's a bitch to properly figure out.



“Lest it be smothered in infancy”: 1572-1573




The Sea Beggar's seizure of Brill sent shockwaves throughout the Netherlands. Exiled rebels who had fled the country following the failure of the 1566-7 revolts now realized how fragile the Spanish presence was in the Netherlands, and rebel troops began to pour in from England and the Rhineland. The populace, too, began to regain some of its resolve lost following the beeldenstorm of 1566. Five days after the capture of Brill, a mob in Flushing kicked out its Walloon garrison and blocked oncoming Spanish reinforcements, requesting help from the Sea Beggars now in Brill. Rebel troops were sent in, and Loyalist figures in the city council replaced with Pro-Beggar/Orangist members.

Of the early Revolt, loyalities were still unclear and both sides were attempting to win over as many supporters as possible. Although by this point the Prince of Orange was the clear leader of the Beggar's forces, Revolutionary declarations from this early era still claimed loyalty to the King of Spain, explaining that they were merely fighting against ministers and leaders in the Netherlands who were acting contrary to the Spanish Empire's interests. Such was the case in Flushing, where following Beggar capture an edict was issued in the name of the King of Spain (but likely written by the Prince of Orange) sternly forbidding the destruction of Catholic or Protestant churches under pain of severe penalties.

Following Flushing, Veere and the rest of Walcheren Island (except Middelburg, which remained under Spanish occupation) joined the revolt, Veere itself being seized by a cabal of fishermen. The Revolt seemed to prosper everywhere, with even Count Louis of Nassau (a relative of the Prince of Orange) successfully invading Hainault and capturing the fortress-town of Mons along the French border. Rotterdam attempted to overthrow her Spanish occupiers and join in the Revolt, but a force led by Count Bossu[1] broke into Rotterdam and squashed the embryonic revolt there. Count Van den Bergh, an ally of Orange, led a small army from Germany into Gelderland, capturing Zutphen and bringing the entire province into the Revolt. Finally, William of Orange himself led a sixteen-thousand-strong force through Brabant in August of '72 in an effort to join up with forces in Mons.

It was at this key early juncture that the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre occurred in Paris, removing the Huguenot threat in France. The Duke of Alva, who had for some months concentrated his forces along the French border in preparation for Spanish intervention should Protestants come to power in France, now had the freedom to disperse his troops throughout the Netherlands to destroy the Revolt.

Because of Alva's new flexibility, Spanish troops being sent from border fortresses were able to suppress many of the incipent town uprisings in the South Netherlands. These successes further encouraged besieged Loyalists in the north to hold their ground, meaning that pro-Revolt partisans in such towns as Middelburg (mentioned above), Delft, and Amsterdam were silenced and the towns remained loyal to the Crown. Pre-Beggar agitators began to worry, and the Revolt began to falter outside the northwest.


Maurice of Orange would later recount in private:

“Those were dark days for my father. Although I was very young at the time, I still have a few scant memories of my uncle [Johan of Nassau] shrouded in depression, with occassional news of the fall of Mons or the slaughter of Zutphen filtering in and deepening the gloom. I assumed my father was in similar poor humour, and during one of our later talks in Breda he confirmed my suspicions.

Father was, unlike myself, a rather cautious man. This is not to say that he was not bold, but merely that he rarely gambled on events and preferred to plan things ahead. He always tried to leave alternatives open, and avoided supporting one ally at the cost of losing another whenever possible[2]. His attack on the besiegers of Mons was a massive risk for him, and when it failed I suspect that he fell into a great dark humour.

The news of Delft joining our ranks was a brief moment of joy for us all, as it meant that the recovery of Holland was almost complete, with only Amsterdam's Spanish [Loyalist] regents remaining stubborn. Friesland, Gelderland, and now nearly all of Holland and Zeeland were full of our supporters. This singular moment of joy was ended with the news of Alva's slaughter in Mechelen. The town had even gladly opened its gates to him, yet he had allowed his men to slaughter blindly and sack the city! His cruelty shook our supporters, and much of Brabant surrendered at the news. Father despaired, thinking that soon the Revolt would have to be limited to Holland and Zeeland lest it be smothered in infancy, as Alva moved on to Gelderland and let the town of Zutphen suffer the same cruel fate as Mechelen.

Alva, confident in his victory, then made that mistake which would save the cause of the Revolt. The events at Naarden would become the rallying cry for our people. Oh, poor Naarden! Ghostly Naarden! Your loss shall never be in vain!”

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[1] Maximilien de Hénin-Liétard, Count of Bossu (1542-1578): Born in Hainault, Bossu was the Habsburg Loyalist Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, and Utrecht following the Prince of Orange's 1566 resignation up until 1573.

[2] William of Orange's caution: Often cited as a reason for his delayed break with the Catholic church and official conversion to the Dutch Reformed church.

[Parma]

No reason to nickpick on the map
This one is excelent,

[Ofaloaf]

Naarden: 2 December, 1572


The winter that year was devastating. Militiamen suffered from frostbite and died while on patrol, and residents burned anything they could in fireplaces to stay warm. It was a cold, cruel winter, fitting for cold, cruel actions.


The news of the Duke of Alva's gains in the south and east had lowered morale within the Revolt, and many cities had surrendered to Alva rather than face the sword. With Spanish armies now approaching Holland from the south and east, the Naarden city council had elected to follow suit and surrender. A messenger had been sent out some days earlier, and today Spanish forces were supposed to arrive and properly formalize the terms of surrender. A fine and the trial of the most prominent Beggar radicals was expected, although there were some concerns about Alva's actions in Mechelen and Zutphen. Nevertheless, arrangements had been made and authorities on both sides had to agreed to meet at the City Hall on the south side of town to sort things out.

At first, nothing seemed amiss. The Duke of Alva himself led the contingent of Loyalist troops to the gates of Naarden, which were quickly opened to him. Rather than going directly to City Hall and beginning negotiations immediately, however, the Duke first rode into the center of town and inspected the Church of St. Vitus. The church was an ancient edifice and bastion of Catholicism, and so had suffered from vandalism when the City Council had been taken over by Protestant radicals. Windows had been smashed, and brickwork chipped and broken. Upon gazing on the damage done to the church, Alva is said to have merely twitched for a split second before regaining composure. Turning around, he silently gestured with a gloved hand for his troops to follow him to the city meeting on the south side of town.

Roughly seven hundred citizens filled City Hall. Men, women, and children alike filled the main council room, packed so full that it was difficult to move in some places. The natural ruckus caused by having seven hundred people packed together tightly would've been jarring to an outside observer, yet even more jarring would've been the sudden silence when the Duke of Alva entered. Letting a wholly unnatural chill spread through the room, Alva merely stood in the entryway to the council chambers.

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Aloysius shifted about uneasily in his seat. A native of Naarden, he hadn't participated in the revolutionary actions of the Beggar partisans at all... outside of listening to the local Reformed preacher and joining in the destruction of Saint Vitus' church. Still! He wasn't as destructive and radical as others in town, and he felt relieved that soon the authorities would come to agreement and everything would finally settle down.

Craning his neck to see above the crowds and get a glimpse of the famed Fernando Álvarez, Duke of Alva, he froze in place when Alva began to speak:

“People of Naarden, listen closely! You who have rebelled against the Spanish Crown and the Holy Catholic church, have gone beyond the forgiveness possible in this material world.”

The crowd stirred. Aloysius shrank back in his seat.

“Not only have you spat on the Crown of Spain and committed unforgivable acts against your legitimate government, but you have forsaken the Church and God!”

A few people in the meeting started to push over others in an attempt to leave the council chambers.

“Your punishment will soon be clear, O people of Naarden! The penalty for treason against Spain is death! The penalty for treason against God is damnation!”

Aloysius stood up once more in a panic, but froze when he heard the Duke of Alva's final words to his troops:

“Kill them all.”

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Worse than the bullets that tore into the crowd were the cries of the injured. Naarden was not a large town, and he knew who was screaming in pain. Old Ewout roared as a shard of glass sliced his arm. Ida the seamstress' scream was cut short when the second volley of lead buried itself in the crowd. Little Rebekka could be heard calling for her mother, but Aloysius could now see for a moment too long half of her mom laying on the floor. The cries of the tried and damned echoed throughout the city hall, and blood washed the floors.

The council chambers had turned into a charnel house, and Aloysius had to escape. The regular entryway to the chambers was now blocked by Walloon halberdiers, though, and there were no other means of escape. The windows were nothing but deadly shards of glass, after all...


He paused. There were new screams coming from the edges of the room, yet the troops outside were still reloading and the Walloons at the entryway were not charging into the room. Looking around, he realized that some poor fools had attempted to climb through the same broken windows that he had dismissed not a moment before. While it was painful enough to see them stuck on the shards of glass, worst still was to see people climbing over them in an attempt to break free, shoving the poor people below even further onto the glass.

There was no other option. He had to escape if he wanted to live. Running through the thinning crowds and over the growing pile of bodies, Aloysius quickly grabbed onto one of the bodies stuck in a window and climbed through with a sickening crunch of the corpse underneath him.

Looking back, he grimaced. There lay the body of Maarten van Cannart, the Reformed preacher who had only arrived in town a month ago. His now-dead eyes stared at Aloysius, and for a moment the eyes of the dead and the living were locked, until Aloysius screamed anew and fled the scene. The live departed, but the departed stayed.


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A few hours later Aloysius was on the road to Haarlem. The biting cold had stopped his bleeding wounds, but now his entire body was being frozen. His arms were numb, his face made either of brittle ice or solid marble, and his knees were weak. He had neither food nor warmth nor horse to ride on or wagon to ride in. The only heat he could find was a growing anger in his heart, where Spaniards shot his home and murdered his friends and family. He trudged on, nursing that flame within to survive.

Behind him, a fire consumed Naarden.

[Parma]

please go on, very nice!!

[pompejus]

Originally Posted by Parma

please go on, very nice!!

I second that, but apart from that I have not much to say. It isn't as different as OTL at the moment.

[Ofaloaf]

Originally Posted by pompejus

I second that, but apart from that I have not much to say. It isn't as different as OTL at the moment.

That's because it isn't, as of yet. I'll try to get through the OTL-y events within one or two articles, but I want to be thorough enough that people unfamiliar with the Eighty Years' War won't be completely lost by references and events.

Plus I wanted to start introducing characters.