Anonymous: The arminian fort of Leiden (1618)

(Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

An engraving by an unknown Dutch artist. This print shows an episode during the Dutch war of independence, the 80-years war (1568-1648). During the war of independence the Netherlands became Calvinistic and during the conflict with the Spanish empire any conflict between the various religious groups in the Netherlands seemed to be absent. Around 1609 a Twelve Years' Truce was signed between the Netherlands and the Spanish empire and during this conflict-free period, tensions between the religious groups started to become a problem. Conflict soon broke out between two groups: the more liberal Remonstrants or arminians, named after their leader the Dutch Reformed theologian Jacobus Arminius (1560–1609) , and the more strict contra-remonstrants or Gomarians, named after the Dutch theologian Franciscus Gomarus (1563-1641). The religious differences soon became political and social conflict: arminians had their supporters in the ruling merchant oligarchy while the Gomarians had their supporters in the national, industrial, and petite bourgeoisie and the urban lower classes. In the Dutch town of Leiden the conflict became a violent one. The Remonstrant city council of Leiden feared an attack and raised a wall around the town hall (shown here) and hired mercenaries to defend themselves. Soon fighting broke out between the mercenaries and contra-remonstrants. When the remonstrants were declared a heretical group at the synod of Dordrecht (1617/1618), the contra-remonstrant stadtholder prince Maurice of Orange intervened and send in his soldiers. The remonstrant city council was expelled and a contra-remonstant city council was installed. Engraving from around 1618.