Siege of Neuss
The siege of Neuss lasted from July 29, 1474 to the end of May 1475. It was a central component of the Cologne collegiate feud and the Burgundian Wars . The origins were conflicts between Archbishop Ruprecht von der Pfalz and the estates of the Archbishopric of Cologne . Charles the Bold , allied with the bishop , who also pursued his own interests in power, besieged the city. This prompted Emperor Friedrich III. for the proclamation of an imperial war. After almost a year of siege, which was costly for both sides, Charles the Bold and his allies finally withdrew from the imperial troops.
prehistory
The Archbishop of Cologne Ruprecht von der Pfalz was in dispute with the Cologne Cathedral Chapter and the other estates.
The background was that after the death of his predecessor Dietrich II von Moers, the estates of the Archbishopric of Cologne merged to form a so-called Hereditary Land Association. From then on the new archbishops had to conjure up these in their function as sovereigns. The Hereditary Land Association provided that the sovereign had to ask the estates for approval for important financial and general political issues. Ruprecht invoked the Hereditary Lands Association, but in the following years he distanced himself more and more from its content. Instead he tried to force and illegally regain mortgaged properties. He also tried to take the city of Neuss by force. The estates saw the archbishop's actions as a breach of the union of the hereditary lands and deposed him. In his place they elected Hermann von Hessen to the monastery administrator. The stands were supported not least by the cities of Cologne and Neuss.
The painting is attributed to Rogier van der Weyden . Original in Berlin, State Museums
Ruprecht, for his part, asked the Duke of Burgundy Charles the Bold for support and appointed him hereditary bailiff of the archbishopric. Charles the Bold saw the opportunity as a favorable one to further expand his sphere of influence at the expense of the archbishopric in the looming conflict. A large part of the neighboring territories was already in Burgundian hands. In addition, the Duchy of Kleve-Mark was one of his allies. After Charles the Bold had been in the possession of the Duchy of Geldern since 1473 , the existence of the archbishopric was threatened.
Charles the Bold marched up with an army that was considered to be one of the largest and best equipped of the time. On the side of Charles the Bold were Frederick the Victorious of the Palatinate, brother of Archbishop Ruprecht, as well as the Duchies of Geldern and Kleve-Mark . The allied troops numbered around 13,000 to 20,000 men.
Shortly before the enemy army arrived in Neuss, Hermann von Hessen occupied the city of Neuss with the units of the archbishopric and around 1,500 Hessian soldiers . The Hessians consisted of 70 knights, 300 other horsemen and 1,500 soldiers on foot. The total number of defenders consisted of about 4,000 men.
siege
At that time the city of Neuss was the most important fortress of the archbishopric. The old city wall from the beginning of the 13th century formed the core. This was reinforced by newer defenses. There were two trenches and a fortified wall in front of the city wall. Overall, the fortification was about 50 m wide. There were also reinforced gates and towers. Immediately before the siege began, the fortifications were put in order and reinforced again. The besieged were well supplied with food.
Since July 29th, the Burgundian troops have enclosed the city. The trapped successfully repelled a first attack by 6,000 horsemen and foot troops. At first the siege ring in the east was not yet closed. In mid-August, after losing battles, the Burgundians completely enclosed the city. Charles the Bold attempted in vain to drain the moats that surrounded the city in order to cut off the water supply for the inhabitants.
A first major attack began on September 10, 1474. This was preceded by heavy attacks by guns for weeks. The Burgundian troops then tried to storm the main city gates. The besieged managed to repel this attack with all their strength. This advance by the Burgundians and their allies, however, was only the prelude to nearly sixty more similar attacks in the months that followed. The defenders were supported by the city's women and children. Again and again the besieged managed to break up the ring of siege by failures . As a result, they forced the allied troops to regroup.
The city was about to run out of powder. Two messengers were sent to Cologne to get supplies. They came back with 550 well-armed men, each laden with several pounds of saltpetre. The unit came into the city of Neuss through cunning and detours.
In the following period, especially in winter, it became clear that the food was gradually running out. On the other hand, contrary to the express prohibition by Emperor Friedrich III. supplied by Gerhard von Jülich-Berg . Since February 1475, supplies in the city had plummeted. If there were hundreds of cows at the beginning, there were now only three left whose milk was only given to children and the sick. The residents tried to feed themselves by gathering grass, herbs and snails. After the besieged once more held jousting games to show strength, they began to slaughter the horses as well. Years later, the Hessian knights had to wait for compensation for their lost horses.
Reaction of the empire
The news of the siege created the impression of a general threat to the Holy Roman Empire . In view of the public mood, Emperor Friedrich III decided. in support of the enclosed city. On hearing the news of the siege, he let Albrecht Achilles of Brandenburg and the Archbishop of Mainz Adolf II of Nassau begin to build up an imperial army that was to serve both to repel the Turks and to fight Charles the Bold.
Emperors and imperial estates declared the imperial war against the Duke of Burgundy. With a relief army, the Kaiser marched towards Neuss. Shortly before Christmas 1474, the troops arrived near Koblenz. In the meantime, the Burgundian artillery had succeeded in destroying the outer city wall. The emperor thereupon requested the still hesitant imperial estates to send troops.
Final phase of the siege
In Neuss itself, the defenders had to leave important bulwarks to the opponents. Despair grew in the city and there were threats of handover negotiations if the relief did not arrive soon. Under pressure from the emperor, the defenders received troops from the city of Cologne. After the city of Linz fell as the archbishop's last line of defense, the imperial army was able to move into Cologne on March 21, 1475.
Meanwhile, the situation in Neuss was very tense. Riots threatened. As a result of the constant attacks by the besiegers, 1,000 people have been wounded or killed in the past few weeks alone. In the besieged city, petition processions begged for divine support.
The Reichsheer began to march on Neuss from Cologne on May 6th. But it wasn't until May 23 that the troops approached the city. First skirmishes led to successes for the imperial.
The besiegers then withdrew. On June 28, 1475, a preliminary peace was concluded in Cologne , in which Burgundy renounced Neuss.
consequences
Different sources give different numbers for the losses. The losses of the defenders vary between 700 and 3000. In contrast, the Burgundians and their allies are said to have lost 10,000 men. Large parts of the city lay in ruins and the debt burdened the city coffers for generations.
In gratitude for the services rendered to the empire, the emperor granted the city of Neuss numerous privileges. Among them was a new coat of arms with imperial symbols, namely the golden eagle and the imperial crown, which at the time, apart from Neuss, was only allowed to wear Amsterdam on the coat of arms. The city received the right to mint and share in customs revenue. Other fairs were also approved.
The town clerk Christianus Wierstraet recorded this siege precisely in his rhyming chronicle.
swell
- Christian Wierstraat : Dye hystorij des beleegs van Nuys . Arnold ter Hoernen, Cologne 1476. Digitized edition of the University and State Library Düsseldorf
- Karl Zimmermann: Report by a Koblenzer from the days of Charles the Bold. On the day of the Duke of Burgundy's death, January 5, 1477 . In: Koblenzer Heimatblatt 4 (1927), No. 2, pp. 2-3. (Council book I with protocols, council and guild regulations and other records from (1300 -) 1463 - 1478 (- 1619). Signature: Koblenz City Archives, inventory 623 No. 1536, fol. 153 - 163).
literature
- Karl Lyncker: The siege of Neuss in the years 1474 and 1475. An episode on Hessian history . In: Journal for Hessian History and Regional Studies 6 (1854), pp. 1–56.
- Gerhard Kallen: The siege of Neuss by Charles the Bold 29 July 1474 to 5 June 1475 . Neuss 1925, reprints Neuss 1987 and Paderborn 2012.
- Ernst Wuelcker (Ed.): Documents and acts concerning the siege of the city of Neuss on the Rheine (1474-75) . Frankfurt a. M. 1877.
- Konstantin Höhlbaum: On the history of the siege of Neuss 1474-1475. Regesten . In: Communications from the city archive of Cologne 8 (1885), pp. 1–36.
- Ferdinand Schmitz: The Neuss War . Bonn 1896.
- Kuno Dollinger: The Siege of Neuss . In: Gerhard Taddey (Hrsg.): Lexicon of German history . People, events, institutions. From the turn of the times to the end of the 2nd World War. 2nd, revised edition. Kröner, Stuttgart 1983, ISBN 3-520-80002-0 , p. 876.
- Carl Pause: Weapons and equipment from the siege of Neuss in 1474/75 . In: Novaesium (2004), pp. 23–36.
- Carl Pause: Weapons and Military Equipment from the Burgundian Siege of Neuss in 1474-1475 . In: Acta Militaria Mediaevalia 6 (2010), pp. 121-144.
- Carl Pause: Weapons and equipment from the siege of Neuss in 1474/75. Three hook boxes from the Clemens Sels Museum Neuss . In: Novaesium (2016), pp. 44–52.
