MUTINY

The Spanish Army in the Netherlands mutinied – went on strike – an astonishing forty five times between 1573 and 1607. This was an unheard-of situation, in any army in the world. And the mutinies were incredibly well-organised. The men banded together, elected a leader and a council of representatives, then presented their grievances to the High Command.
The early mutinies were fairly short and less successful but, as the Spanish supply lines by sea got cut off and the men were less frequently paid and fed, the mutinies became longer and angrier. Not all the army mutinied. Some garrisons were better supplied than others. Some men had served in the Netherlands campaign for a long time without a break. Others had many months back pay owing to them. There were many and varied reasons for the sporadic outbreaks of rage amongst the Spanish Army.
There were four significant mutinies before the disaster of the Spanish Armada in 1588: Haarlem in 1573; Antwerp 1574, Holland 1574 – 5 and Aalst 1576-7. All the rest of the mutinies (which became longer and more savage) occurred after 1589, when the Spanish Empire was beginning to flounder with the strain of maintaining armies in so many parts of the known world.

The Massacre of the Innocents by Peter Breugel – Represents the Dutch at the hands of the Spanish Army during the first Dutch Revolt of 1566.

Frequently, much to the dismay of the Dutch population, the mutineers would capture a town, or lay siege to a town, and strip it of all its food and drink. Or they would loot the surrounding countryside in an effort to avoid starvation. That an army should be allowed to fall into such a desperate situation is a measure of the inefficiency of the Spanish government and the success of the Dutch rebels in cutting off supply lines.
The Sack of Antwerp was the worst incidence of mutiny recorded during this period and became known as the Spanish Fury. In November 1576, troops who had not been paid for some time, decided to loot Antwerp. For three days they rampaged through the city streets, killing thousands of people and destroying untold property.
The typical demands of the men during a mutiny were payment of all wage-arrears (including those for men who had died in the fighting); a rest from fighting for those who had been in the field for too long; and a full pardon for everyone involved in the mutinies. Other demands were specific to the situations of the time. For example, in one of the mutinies prior to 1588, the soldiers demanded the establishment of a military hospital; a canteen that would supply them with cheap food; and a surgeon and priest for each company.