The siege of Middelburg (1572–1574) lasted over a year during the Eighty Years' War. A Dutch rebel army with the support of the English laid siege to Middelburg, which was being held by Spanish forces under Cristóbal de Mondragón, on 4 November 1572. The Spanish held out and only capitulated on 18 February 1574, when news arrived that a relief effort to save Middelburg was defeated at Rimmerswiel.
Background
Philip II of Spain had inherited the Seventeen Provinces of the Netherlands upon his accession, but his policies soon led to local discontent. By 1568, William I of Orange, stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, and Utrecht, and other noblemen were dissatisfied with Spanish rule in the Netherlands. A series of revolts emerged against the Spanish authorities, mainly caused by religious and economic impositions on the Dutch population who also sought to end the harsh rule of the Spanish Duke of Alba, governor-general of the Netherlands. The Dutch rebels hoped to expel Alba and his Spanish troops from the country and as a result hostilities increased, leading to the Eighty Years' War. In April 1572, the Sea Beggars, Dutch rebels captured Brielle which caused a sensation, and a chain reaction of events took place especially on Walcheren island. After Brielle had been captured, this soon led to the seizure of the town of Flushing. Other cities in the province of Zeeland soon joined the rebels, and by mid-1572 only Arnemuiden and Middelburg, on the island of Walcheren, and Goes, on the island of Zuid-Beveland, remained under Spanish control. All of these would be besieged by the Dutch forces under William of Orange, with the support of English troops sent by Elizabeth I.
The rebels wreaked havoc by looting properties and torching churches with many of the villages on the island falling into their hands, and also towns like Arnemuiden and Veere were handed over by the inhabitants sympathetic to the rebel cause.
During the uprising Middelburg still had a strong Spanish garrison and at the end of April 1572 an attempted assault was made consisting of around 1100 Dutch rebels led by Jerome Tseraerts. Due to a lack of resources and support they pulled back after a day of suffering losses where they then resorted to looting the outside of the city. In June another attempt was made again, this time by only a hundred Dutch rebels. Led by Bernard Nicholas the storming attempt was successful as the outer defenses were seized but soon after a sortie by the garrison managed to drive the Dutch out. Middelburg was not yet besieged and the Spanish were able to supply the city without any hindrance. On 4 November nearly 1500 Dutch and English under Jerome Tseraerts and , who just returned from the failed siege of Goes, arrived on the island of Walcheren and then made plans to besiege Middelburg.
Siege
The waterways around the city were soon blocked, which soon caused supplies to run low for the Middelburg inhabitants. The rebels included an English regiment under Thomas Morgan, a few Scots ensigns, and a number of untrained recruits from England.
Tseraerts was commissioned to be Lieutenant-Governor of the whole of the island of Walcheren if he succeeded in his task of taking the city. The rebels soon appeared at the castle of Westhoven, located on the east of the city, Tseraerts led an assault which it captured, then plundered an abbey and then set it on fire. The governor of Walcheren, Antoine of Burgundy, wrote repeatedly to the Duke of Alba, Governor of the Netherlands, on behalf of Philip II of Spain to report on the situation in the city which was becoming increasingly difficult with the siege. Alba ordered Cristóbal de Mondragón to go to Middelburg and destroy the Anglo-Dutch siege positions and restore the supply lines. Mondragón meanwhile was to take over the administration of the city itself and as a result Antoine of Burgundy stepped down to become the mayor of Middelburg.
In early December Sancho d'Avila arrived from Antwerp, the Duke of Alba, ordered him to send reinforcements by sea. He assembled a fleet at Breskens and hoped to capture Flushing from the Beggars and seize the waterways in Walcheren from the rebels. D'Avila also sent some companies via land to Middelburg and managed to supply the city. He was on his way to Flushing but was intercepted and defeated there by Lieven Keersmaker losing five ships.