Siege of Namur (1695): Difference between revisions

{{Short description|1695 battle of the Nine Years' War}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}

{{Infobox military conflict

| conflict=Siege of Namur (1695)

| image=Johan van Hughtenburgh - Belagerung von Namur - GG 1746 - Kunsthistorisches Museum.jpg

| image_size=300px

| date=2 July – 4 September 1695 {{efn|Dates are per the [[Gregorian calendar|Gregorian]] rather than the [[Julian calendar]] then used in Britain which was ten days behind.}}

| place=[[Namur (city)|Namur]], [[Spanish Netherlands]]<br>(Present-day [[Belgium]])<br>{{coord|50|28|N|04|52|E|region:BE_type:city}}

| combatant1={{flag|Kingdom of France}}

| combatant2=[[Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg)|Grand Alliance]]<br>{{flag|Dutch Republic}}<br/>{{flag|Kingdom of England}}<br/>{{flag|Kingdom of Scotland}}<br/>{{flag|Holy Roman Empire}}

| casualties1=8,000{{sfn|Bodart|1908|p=120}}

| casualties2=18,000{{sfn|Bodart|1908|p=120}}

{{Campaignbox War of the Grand Alliance}}

 

 

== Background ==

Namur was divided into the 'City,' with the residential and commercial areas, and [[citadel of Namur|the Citadel]] that controlled access to the rivers Sambre and Meuse. In 1692, the Dutch military engineer [[Menno van Coehoorn]] made the Citadel one of the strongest defensive points in Flanders, but the garrison was less than 5,000, many of them poorly-trained Spanish troops with low morale.<ref>{{cite book|last1=de la Colonie, Martin|first1=Horsley, Walter|title=The Chronicles of an Old Campaigner M. de la Colonie, 1692-1717|date=1904|publisher=Scholars Choice|isbn=978-1296409791|page=16|edition=2015}}</ref> While the outer City fell relatively quickly, capturing the Citadel took the French over a month and they were nearly forced to withdraw by torrential rain and sickness. This was partly due to the terms negotiated for surrendering the City; van Coehoorn agreed not to fire on the City from the Citadel, in return for the French agreeing not to attack him from that direction, making it almost impregnable.<ref>de la Colonie, p. 16</ref> After its capture, Namur's defences were significantly upgraded by [[Vauban]].

 

 

The [[Dutch Republic]] remained intact and the Alliance held together under [[William III of England|William]] through four years of war. Their losses were damaging but not critical; in 1694, they had recaptured towns like [[Siege of Huy (1694)|Huy]] and [[Diksmuide]], and by 1695 held a numerical advantage for the first time.

 

 

While this theatre is commonly referred to as [[Flanders]], most campaigning took place in the [[Spanish Netherlands]], a compact area 160 kilometres wide, the highest point only 100 metres above sea level, and dominated by canals and rivers. In the 17th century, goods and supplies were largely transported by water and the war was fought for control of rivers such as the [[Lys (river)|Lys]], [[Sambre]] and [[Meuse]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Childs|first1=John|title=The Nine Years' War and the British Army, 1688-1697: The Operations in the Low Countries|date=1991|publisher=Manchester University Press|isbn=978-0719089961|pages=32–33|edition=2013}}</ref>

== Siege ==

[[File:Namur JPG7.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[Citadel of Namur]] above the [[Meuse]], modern [[Parliament of Wallonia|Parlement de Wallonie]] below ]]

 

On 27 June, William III personally led a successful attack of 400 Dutch and English grenadiers on the [[counterscarp]]. At the same time, the [[Maximilian II Emanuel|Maximilian of Bavaria]] took possession of an abbey, from which he forced over 300 dragoons into the Citadel. After the capture of the line Vauban had built between the Meuse and Sambre rivers in the rocks, and further Allied successes, the French decided to surrender the city. After 4 August only the Citadel was still in French hands.{{sfn|Wijn|1950|p=100-101}} Half the French garrison had been lost.<ref>Lenihan, pp. 10–11</ref> Count Guiscard, the Governor of Namur, asked for a truce to allow the French to withdraw to the Citadel, which was accepted and the siege resumed after six days.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Bright|first1=James Pierce|title=A History of England;Volume III|date=1836|publisher=Palala Press|isbn=978-1358568602|page=294|edition=2016}}</ref> However, a siege of the Citadel could not be proceeded with immediately due to a lack of money to pay the workers.{{sfn|Wijn|1950|p=102}}

 

 

 

 

== Aftermath ==

Namur showcased Coehoorn's offensive tactics and also the defensive precepts set out in his 1685 work ''New Fortress Construction'' or ''Nieuwe Vestingbouw op een natte of lage horisont.'' These can be summarised as follows; (1) passive reliance on fortifications was not enough and (b) in trying to hold an entire town, defenders simply risked losing it very quickly. This meant dividing fortifications into inner (Citadel) and outer (City) and conducting an 'active' defence that used constant counter attacks to keep the besiegers off guard. Bouffler applied these concepts but jeopardised his defence by committing too many troops to the outer City without means of retreat.<ref>Lenihan, p. 290</ref>

 

 

Prisoners were normally exchanged as soon as possible, partly because neither side wanted the expense of having to feed them.<ref>Childs, p. 37</ref> On this occasions, the French refused William's request for the return of the 6,000 - 7,000 troops captured at Diksmuide and Deinze due to a dispute over the terms of their surrender.<ref>Childs, p.&nbsp;40</ref> By now, shortage of manpower was a problem for all combatants; many of the rank and file were forcibly enlisted into French regiments and sent to fight in Italy or Spain.<ref>Bright, p. 295</ref> Desertion from one army to another to receive a signing-on bonus was common, particularly as these were paid immediately and wages were often months in arrears. As recruiters were paid for each man they enlisted, several thousand additional soldiers represented significant profits for the French officers involved.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Manning|first1=Roger|title=An Apprenticeship in Arms; the Origins of the British Army 1585-1701|date=2006|publisher=OUP|location=A good overview of how the recruitment system worked in this period|isbn=978-0199261499|pages=326 passim}}</ref> In retaliation, despite the garrison of Namur being allowed to surrender on terms, Boufflers was taken prisoner and released only when the remaining Allied prisoners had been returned in September.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Stapleton|first1=John M|title=Prelude to Rijswijk: William III, Louis XIV, and the Strange Case of Marshal Boufflers|journal=The Western Society of French History|date=2007|volume=35|hdl=2027/spo.0642292.0035.006}}</ref>

The two sieges of Namur caused a major media spectacle. There are few examples in early modern history where the media commented so extensively, so diversely and so multi-medially on military events. In Dutch Republic, France and England an incredible amount of [[Eulogy|eulogies]], illustrations, maps and medals related to the sieges were produced, and newspapers wrote about the events in great detail. Although much of this was done on the publicists' own initiative, it was also encouraged by the state. This way, the governments hoped that the public remained engaged and convinced of the war effort and that it would make their allies more confident, while reducing the enemy's morale. Both William and Louis also saw all the publicity as an opportunity to enhance their reputation.{{sfn|Haks|2013|pp=191-193}}

 

 

The assault by 3,000 British troops on the Terra Nova earthwork on 31 August spearheaded by 700 grenadiers is alleged to have been the inspiration for the song "[[The British Grenadiers]]".

* {{cite book|last1=Hume|first1=David|title=The History of England 1609-1714|date=1848}}

* Lenihan, Padraig; ''Namur Citadel, 1695: A Case Study in Allied Siege Tactics'' (War in History, 2011)

* {{cite book|last1=Lynn|first1=John|title=The Wars of Louis XIV, 1667-1714 (Modern Wars In Perspective)|date=1999|publisher=Longman|isbn=978-0582056299|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/warsoflouisxiv1600lynn}}

* {{cite book|last1=Manning|first1=Roger|title=An Apprenticeship in Arms; the Origins of the British Army 1585-1701|date=2006|publisher=OUP|isbn=978-0199261499}}

*{{Cite book |last=Wijn |first=J.W. |title=Het Staatsche Leger: Deel VII (The Dutch States Army: Part VII) |publisher=Martinus Nijhoff |date=1950|lang=Dutch}}

*{{cite book |last=Bodart |first=Gaston |year=1908 |title=Militär-historisches Kriegs-Lexikon (1618–1905) |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_Eo4DAAAAYAAJ/page/119/mode/1up |access-date=3 February 2023}}

 

{{DEFAULTSORT:Namur 1695, Siege of}}

[[Category:Sieges involving Ireland]]

[[Category:Sieges involving the Dutch Republic]]

[[Category:1695 in the Habsburg Netherlands]]

[[Category:1695 in France]]