Key Facts
- Date of siege end
- 28 August 1672
- Siege duration
- Approximately one month
- Annual commemoration
- 28 August local holiday in Groningen
- Notable weapon used
- Cannon-fired bombs (most modern weaponry of the era)
Strategic Narrative Overview
The Münster forces besieged the city of Groningen beginning in late July or early August 1672, employing modern bomb-firing cannon that inflicted considerable damage inside the city walls. Despite the bombardment and the wider collapse of Dutch resistance elsewhere that year, the city's defenders held firm throughout the approximately month-long siege, denying the Bishop the breakthrough he sought.
01 / The Origins
The siege of Groningen took place within the broader context of the Franco-Dutch War of 1672, a year known in Dutch history as the Rampjaar or 'Disaster Year.' Christoph Bernhard von Galen, the Bishop of Münster — nicknamed 'Berend Bombs' for his use of cannon-fired explosive shells — allied with France and invaded the Dutch Republic, rapidly overrunning substantial territory in the northern Netherlands.
03 / The Outcome
On 28 August 1672, the Bishop of Münster ordered his troops to withdraw, ending the siege in a Dutch victory. The Münster army had been so weakened by the failed assault that the Dutch successfully reconquered much of the territory Münster had seized in preceding weeks. The city of Groningen marks the victory annually on 28 August as a local public holiday.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Christoph Bernhard von Galen (Bishop of Münster).
Side B
1 belligerent
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.