Unattributed [Sack of Antwerp]

Unattributed. [Sack of Antwerp].

Engraving of the Low Country revolt against Spain. Early seventeenth century. Engraving. Ca. 5 x 6 1/2. Very good condition.

On 4 November 1576, mutinying Spanish tercios of the Army of Flanders descended upon Antwerp, subjecting the city to three days of terror and destruction. As the cultural, economic, and financial center of the Low Countries, Antwerp’s suffering shocked the region. The brutality of the sack galvanized the provinces to unite against the Spanish crown and hastened Antwerp’s decline, opening the path for Amsterdam’s rise. Over 7,000 people were killed during the sacking. 

Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (also King of Spain as Charles I) abdicated his thrones in 1556, bequeathing both Spain and the Netherlands to his son Philip. In response to Philip's trying to limit the economic, political, and religious freedoms they had hitherto taken for granted, the Dutch revolted against the Spanish Crown in 1567. Despite the strength and cruelty of the generals sent against them by Philip, in particular the Duke of Alva (1567-1573) and the Duke of Parma (1578-1592), the Dutch were able to establish an independent republic in the northern seven provinces in 1579.