Sack of Antwerp The sack of Antwerp or the Spanish Fury at Antwerp was an episode of the Eighty Years ' War . On 4 November 1576 , mutinying Spanish tercio s began the sack of Antwerp , leading to three days of horror among the population of the city , which was the cultural , economic and financial center of the Netherlands . The savagery of the sack led the provinces of the Low Countries to unite against the Spanish crown . The devastation also caused Antwerp ' s decline as the leading city in the region and paved the way for Amsterdam ' s rise . Causes . The principal cause of the sack was the delay in payment due the soldiers by Philip II . Spain had recently declared bankruptcy , and 400 , 000 florins intended as payment to the troops were seized by the government of Elizabeth I when ships containing the florins sought shelter from a storm in English ports . The Spanish soldiers , angry at fighting without rest or pay against the Dutch rebels , had already sacked Zierikzee and Aalst , causing the fifteen loyal provinces ( Holland and Zeeland were in the hands of the rebels ) to come together in States - General with the purpose of removing the mercenaries from the Netherlands . With no payment in sight , the Spanish soldiers decided to pay themselves by looting Antwerp . The Sack of Antwerp . The idea to sack Antwerp came from the Spanish commander of the Citadel of Antwerp , Sancho d ' Avila . He tried to convince the commander of the German troops in the city , Count Otto IV van Eberstein , son of William IV of Eberstein , to deliver the city to the Spanish . But Eberstein warned Governor Compagny ( or Champagny ) of Antwerp , and together they improvised a defense against the Spanish . On 3 November , Governor Compagny let a force of 6 , 000 Walloon troops under the Marquis of Havré into the city . This was a risk , because these troops were not very trustworthy . Some 10 , 000 civilians also helped to raise improvised defenses against the Citadel . D ' Avila had also prepared his attack and contacted other Spanish mutinous troops in Aalst , Lier , Breda and Maastricht , which converged on the city . On November 4 at 11 : 00 , the Spanish attacked . The civilian defenses were useless against the battle - hardened Spaniards , who swarmed into the city . As feared , the Walloons didn ' t fight . Depending on the source , they fled or even participated in the looting . The Germans and civilians tried to resist , but were no match for the Spanish . Eberstein drowned in the Schelde when he tried to escape . Some 7 , 000 lives and a great deal of property were lost . The cruelty and destruction of these three days of rage became known as the Spanish Fury . Consequences . This shocking event stiffened many in the Netherlands , even many Catholics , against the Spanish Habsburg monarchy ; and further tarnished Philip ' s declining reputation . The States General , influenced by the sack , signed the Pacification of Ghent only 4 days later , unifying the rebellious provinces with the loyal provinces with the goal of removing all Spanish soldiers from the Netherlands , as well as stopping the persecution of heretics . This effectively destroyed every accomplishment the Spanish had made in the past 10 years , since the start of the Dutch Revolt . Furthermore , it brought about the ruin of the Antwerp Cloth Market . English traders , not wishing to risk visiting a town that now resembled a war zone , sought out new commercial links . By 1582 , all English trade to Antwerp had ceased . The city ' s large Jewish population was especially hard hit and Antwerp subsequently lost its status as one of the richest , most influential cities in Europe ; it recovered but was never to recapture its former glory . The sack led to Antwerp ' s decline from the economic , financial and cultural center of the Netherlands and paved the way for Amsterdam ' s rise . This event also added to Spain ' s Black Legend .