Geuzen Medals - Background

Background

The Holy Roman Empire was still at war with France when, in 1555, Philip II of Spain succeeded his father, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. After peace was made, Philip II appointed his half-sister Margaret of Parma as viceroy in the Low Countries and departed for Spain. The real power was invested in the three permanent members of the "Raad van State", the High Council, Cardinal Granvelle, Viglius and Berlaymont (later the three were called the Consultá; they were permanent members in the sense that for their office they stayed at court, while the non-permanent members mostly executed functions abroad). The high nobility like William of Orange (or William the Silent, “stadhouder”, which means Lord lieutenant, of Holland, Zealand and Utrecht) and Lamoral, Count of Egmont, (“stadhouder” of Flandres) were members of the “Raad van State”, the High Council, but became discontented by their loss of power, specifically to Granvelle and also because Spanish troops still remained in the Low Countries after the peace with France. Using a French example, they instituted the “Ligue”, a coalition of the high nobility. The activity of the “Ligue” resulted in the departure of Spanish troops in 1564 and shortly thereafter the retirement of Granvelle.

Seeing this success, members of the low nobility, who had been impoverished in the previous decades (like the common people in the southern parts of the Low Countries) united themselves in 1565 in the “Compromis”. Their political program sought relief from the harsh measures against the Reformation. In early April 1566 400 members of the “Compromis“ united in Brussels. On April 5, led by Henry, Count of Brederode, and Ludwig of Nassau, they presented a petition to Margaret, who was alarmed at the appearance of so many men. Berlaymont is supposed to have whispered to her, “Ce ne sont que de gueux”, (“They're just beggars”).

Three days later, April 8, during a banquet in the palace of the earl of Culemborg, hearing Brederode, the scorning word “geus” was chosen as a sign of honour for their group, constituting sort of a mocking order of knights. They decided to adopt a costume that incorporated mendicant symbols such as beggars' bowls and flagons. This was less an eccentricity of the low nobility and more a sort of popular tradition in reversing roles, as at carnival time. A dress code with symbols such as beggars' bowls and flagons at the one side and - as will be told later - a silver or gilt token on a ribbon around the neck showed them as independent and dominant. There may also have been an element of mockery of the church, as mendicant monks also used such implements.

In using words like noble and nobility one should not suppose that those folks in general all behaved according to our understanding of this term. Sometimes the lower Flemish nobility of the 16th century might be better characterized by “successful criminals”. When Charles V went for the first time went to Spain in 1517 and did not land on the preselected spot because of stormy weather, the disappointed Flemish nobles of his court behaved so badly - marauding, murdering innocent people, (all according to Alonso de Santa Cruz) - that officials went to great lengths to ensure that king Charles should not be told. In 1572 William de la Marck, Lord of Lumey, also lower Flemish nobility, took Den Briel for William the Silent. Nineteen Gorinchem captured Roman Catholic clergy were brought to him in Den Briel. After torturing and other cruelties they were hanged on his orders, where William of Orange specifically had requested to be lenient toward Roman Catholic clergy.

In the 16th century, beggars frequently were not allowed to beg without getting permission from local municipality or lordship. Already, sometimes permission was only granted if they would visibly wear a small tin or copper token, that way recognizable as sort of an official beggar. This could well be the origin for Geuzen medals as will be seen hereafter.