Breda Breda Breda () is a city and municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Brabant. The name derived from "brede Aa" ('wide Aa' or 'broad Aa') and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. As a fortified city, it was of strategic military and political significance. Although a direct Fiefdom of the Holy Roman Emperor, the city obtained a municipal charter; the acquisition of Breda, through marriage, by the House of Nassau ensured that Breda would be at the centre of political and social life in the Low Countries. Breda
Capture of Breda (1581) Capture of Breda (1581) The Capture of Breda of 1581, also known as the Haultepenne Fury, occurred on 26 – 27 July when Spanish troops under the command of Claude de Berlaymont, lord of Haultepenne, took Breda by surprise after a sentry was bribed by a follower of the king, Charles de Gavre, who was kept a prisoner at the castle. The corrupt sentry allowed the Spanish troops to enter the castle. Despite the resistance by Breda's citizens, the attackers succeeded in taking the most important city gates and launched an attack on the city hall, the tower and the