Siege of Sluis (1604)
The siege of Sluis (1604), also known as the Sluis campaign or the Battle of the Oostburg Line, was a series of military actions that took place during the Eighty Years' War and the Anglo–Spanish War from 19 May to 19 August 1604. A States and English army under Prince Maurice of Orange and Horace Vere respectively crossed the Scheldt estuary and advanced on land taking Cadzand, Aardenburg, and IJzendijke in the Spanish Netherlands. This soon led to the culmination of the siege of the Spanish-held inland port of Sluis.
| Siege of Sluis (1604) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Eighty Years' War and the Anglo–Spanish War | |||||||||
The capture of Sluis by the Dutch and English army in 1604 from the Atlas Van Loon | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
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Dutch Republic England | Spain | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Maurice of Orange Horace Vere William Louis |
Ambrogio Spinola Luis de Velasco Mateo Serrano | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 11,000 |
15,000 4,200 (Sluis)[Note A] | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 800 casualties, sick or dead to disease |
2,000 casualties, sick or dead to disease[Note B] 5,800 captured[Note C] 10 galleys 15 assorted ships: 148 1,400 slaves released | ||||||||
Initially it was hoped that with Ostend under siege for three years by the Spanish, an attempted relief by Maurice's army could be achieved. Even though Ostend would finally fall into the hands of the Spanish, Sluis, an important stronghold itself, was eventually captured after tough fighting which included the defeat of a Spanish relief force under Ambrogio Spinola and Luis de Velasco.