Geuzen
Sign in to savethumb|Battle of Haarlemmermeer|Battle between Dutch and Spanish ships on the Haarlemmermeer, 26 May 1573. Sailing before the wind from the right are the Spanish ships, identified by the flags with a red cross. Approaching from the left are the ships of the Sea Beggars. [[Hendrick Cornelisz Vroom.]] thumb|Relief of Leiden by the 'Sea Beggars' on flat-bottomed boats, on 3 October 1574, during the Siege of Leiden. [[Otto van Veen, 1574.]]
Article
8 sectionsContents
- Origin of the name
- "Sea Beggars"
- Geuzen symbols
- In popular culture
- Gallery
- See also
- Notes
- References
thumb|Battle of Haarlemmermeer|Battle between Dutch and Spanish ships on the Haarlemmermeer, 26 May 1573. Sailing before the wind from the right are the Spanish ships, identified by the flags with a red cross. Approaching from the left are the ships of the Sea Beggars. [[Hendrick Cornelisz Vroom.]] thumb|Relief of Leiden by the 'Sea Beggars' on flat-bottomed boats, on 3 October 1574, during the Siege of Leiden. [[Otto van Veen, 1574.]]
Geuzen (; ; ) was a name assumed by the confederacy of Calvinist Dutch nobles, who from 1566 opposed Spanish rule in the Netherlands. The most successful group of them operated at sea, and so were called Watergeuzen (; ; ). In the Eighty Years' War, the Capture of Brielle by the Watergeuzen in 1572 provided the first foothold on land for the rebels, who would conquer the northern Netherlands and establish an independent Dutch Republic. They can be considered either as privateers or pirates, depending on the circumstances or motivations.