Breda was one of the most strongly fortified towns in the borderlands between the territory of the States of Holland and royal Brabant. The city was strategically located on a navigable river, the
Mark, and near several roads.
Henry III of Nassau, Lord of Breda from 1509 to 1538 had travelled widely on behalf of
Charles V. In Italy, he came into contact with the modern defences of the
bastion fort. In 1531 he commissioned the construction of the walls of Breda in the latest style. These were later modernised and expanded further. In 1587 and 1622, the defences were further extended and updated. The Breda fortress consisted of a very high earthen bulwark with 15 bastions. Its moat was five feet deep and was provided with water from
Mark. Access to the town was made possible by four brick gates.
Crescent ravelins were applied in the ditches. Hornwork was placed beyond the gates and at the
monastery. Rows of stakes impeded assault by horsemen and foot soldiers and simultaneously prevented desertion. The fortifications were in excellent condition and served as a state of the art example of fortification. In 1590, Breda was captured from the Spanish using the
stratagem with the peat boat. The conquest of a well-defended city like Breda would erase this disgrace. More importantly, Spinola personally felt that the failure of the
siege of Bergen-op-Zoom (1622) was a blot on his reputation. Furthermore, Spain wanted to have a strong position in potential peace negotiations. The conquest of Breda would enable Spain to put forward stronger demands concerning religious freedom for Catholics in the Republic and lifting the blockade of the
Scheldt. Around Breda, woods and marshes formed an obstacle for the cavalry and artillery of any besieging army and the high water table around the town posed challenges to attacking infantry. The rivers Mark and
Aa and other streams also hampered besiegers. By opening an
inundation sluice near the Ginnekense gate, the area south of Breda could be put underwater. The north side had a functioning lock near
Terheijden. Because the
States of Holland and West Friesland knew that the Spanish army might attempt to conquer Breda, they provided the city with enough food, supplies, and weapons for an eight-month siege. The city council refused to store more food than was necessary for a nine-month siege. Nobody knew what tactics the Spanish army would apply. Therefore, the possibility of a
direct assault was also considered. To prevent this, a Dutch army was stationed near Breda with the aim of disrupting any direct assault on the city.
Breda garrison The garrison in Breda consisted of 17 companies in peacetime, each of which consisted of 65 men and 5 cavalry squadrons of 70 riders each. When it was probable that the city would become besieged, the squadrons were supplemented by another 30 riders each; the infantry was supplemented with 28 companies of 135 men. To save food, three squadrons were sent to
Geertruidenberg shortly before a siege. The castle held approximately 100 civilians out of the 5,200 soldiers. The male inhabitants of Breda between 20 and 70 years, about 1,800 men, were armed to support the soldiers. The governor of the city was
Justin of Nassau, an illegitimate son of
William I, Prince of Orange. His deputy was Dyrcx Cornelis van Oosterhout, but his role was insignificant during the siege. In addition to the soldiers, others stayed in the city.
Ordinary citizens,
farmers, spouses and children of soldiers, came to the town to seek protection against the
Spanish army. The soldiers' wives were responsible for cooking and washing for the soldiers and caring for the sick and wounded. The total number of inhabitants in the city is estimated at 13,111. They are believed to have been housed in about 1,200 homes.
Spanish Army Conflicting and incomplete data does not allow for an accurate calculation of the size of the Spanish army. On 30 September the number was probably around 40,000 soldiers and on about 2 May 1625, approximately 80,000 soldiers. 25,000 were encamped along the supply corridor, another 25,000 men were used for the containment of the city, and 30,000 served as general reserves. According to the text on the map by Blaeu, "[This was] so large an army, as had not been seen in the Netherlands in living memory." The composition of the Spanish army was diverse, as shown in the table above. The army consisted primarily of infantry, with a small number of riders. Members of the infantry were equipped with either a
rapier and a
pike, or a rapier with a
musket; members of the
cavalry were equipped with either a
lances and two
pistols, or a
musket and two
pistols. The infantry was mainly used for the lines to guard against a relief army and against sorties from the city. In the supply corridor, the foot soldiers deployed to protect the convoys. The cavalry was more mobile than the infantry and was therefore mainly used to inspect the area and to protect convoys.
Sappers engaged in building bridges, maintaining roads, and other activities. The commander of the Spanish army was
Ambrogio Spinola, 1st Marquis of the Balbases, a renowned military strategist from Italy. His deputies were the regimental commanders
Hendrik, count van den Bergh, who was also commander of the supply corridor, and
John VIII, Count of Nassau-Siegen. Spinola was the commander of the reserve forces until 31 October when he transferred them to the command of
Carlos Coloma. Because of the vastness of Breda, Spinola had his troops divided into four compartments. The four subjects with commanders were: • Ginneken in the south under the command of the Spaniard Francisco Medina • Teteringen in the east under the command of the
Burgundian Claude de Rye, Baron of Balançon • Hage in the west under the command of the German
Ernest, Count of Isenburg-Grenzau • Terheijden in the north, divided into two sectors: Hartel Bergen under the command of Paolo Baglione and Terheijden village under the command of Carlo Roma, both Italians. ==Siege==