Siege of Breda (1637) when word came that the Dutch had suddenly invested the city of Breda with a besieging army of 18,000. Breda was the capital city of the baronial fief that had once been the crown jewel in the Dutch estates of the Nassau family in the Habsburg Netherlands before the war started. Frederick Henry had therefore a personal interest in recapturing the city and its surroundings. The siege was preceded by an attempt to surprise the garrison on 21 July 1637 by Dutch cavalry under Henry Casimir I of Nassau-Dietz. However, the gates were closed in time and the Dutch skirmishers
Capture of Breda (1590) The city of Breda was located in the confluence of the rivers Aa and Mark, in the province of Brabant and the main city of the zone. It was well fortified, and was surrounded by a defensive moat fed by waters of the Mark river. Breda had been under Spanish control from 1581 with the garrison of the city being formed by 500 men of infantry and a hundred of cavalry, which consisted of Italian and Spanish troops the majority being from Sicily in the service of Spanish Empire. Eduardo Lanzavecchia, the governor of Breda and Geertruidenberg was supervising the