Assault on Nijmegen

The Assault on Nijmegen occurred on the night of August 10, 1589, involving troops of the mercenary Maarten Schenck van Nydeggen against the small garrison and some citizens at the city of Nijmegen. Located at the confluence of the Waal and Rhine rivers, Nijmegen was strategically important to the defense of the Dutch provinces and the Electorate of Cologne. Planning to take the city by surprise, Schenck and his troops would then reinforce the city, provision it and prepare it for siege by troops of Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma. In the attack, Schenck and his soldiers tried to enter the city from barges on the Waal river. Some of the barges floated past the rendezvous point, and landed further down river. In the abortive battle, Schenck and many of his men drowned in the river. It was the second to last action of the Cologne War.