This catalogue presents a history of violent sieges, heroic escapes, brutal mur-ders, but also of piece and joyful celebrations. In the time of the Eighty Years’ War and the periods right before and after, many well-known episodes of Dutch history took place. The brothers De Witt and Johan van Oldenbarnevelt are some of the country’s most famous political figures. The Synod of Dordrecht was a decisive moment in religious history. And then there were the many bat-tles, such as the Siege of Nieuwpoort, which is counted among the bloodiest sieges in world history. [...]