Siege of Oudewater (1575)

The Siege of Oudewater was an event during the Eighty Years' War that took place in the Dutch town of Oudewater. The siege by Spanish troops started on 19 July 1575 and ended in a bloodbath on 7 August 1575, when nearly half of its population is estimated to have been killed. It is also known as The Massacre of Oudewater or The Oudewater Murder.

Background
In 1568 a garrison of the Spanish Army was stationed in Oudewater. On 19 june 1572 Adriaen van Swieten, a nobleman and deputy of William of Orange, entered the town with a small number of troops and convinced it to join the Dutch Revolt against Philip II of Spain.

Siege
The siege by Spanish troops under command of stadtholder Gillis van Berlaymont started on 19 July 1575 and ended in a bloodbath on 7 August 1575, when nearly half of its population is estimated to have been killed.