Siege of Amiens

Siege of Amiens
Part of the Franco-Spanish War (1595-1598) & Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604)
Henry IV before Amiens Anonymous, Versailles Museum
Date 13 May – 25 September 1597 Location Amiens, Picardy, Kingdom of France Result Decisive Anglo-French victory Peace of Vervins
Belligerents
Kingdom of France England	Spain
Commanders and leaders
Henry IV of France Duke of Mayenne Duke of Brion Thomas Baskerville Arthur Savage	Albert VII Hernando Portocarrero † Girolamo Caraffa Ernst von Mansfeld (Relief)
Strength
12,000 infantry 3,000 cavalry (4,200 English)	29,000 infantry 3,000 cavalry 5,500 (Amiens) 25,000 (Relief force)
Casualties and losses
600 killed or wounded	2,000 killed or wounded, 5,000 surrendered

Decisive Anglo-French victory

12,000 infantry
3,000 cavalry

29,000 infantry
3,000 cavalry

The Siege of Amiens was a siege and battle fought during the Franco-Spanish War (1595-1598) (as part of the French Wars of Religion) and the Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604) between 13 May and 25 September 1597. The Spanish, who had sent a large army in March, had captured the city of Amiens easily in a ruse.Henry IV of France, after recovering from the shock of the capture, immediately and quickly built up an army which included a large English force and besieged Amiens on 13 May.

An attempted relief force sent under the command of the Ernst von Mansfeld and the Archduke of Austria after repeated attempts failed to dislodge the besiegers and afterwards the Spanish relief force retreated. Amiens ultimately fell back into Henry's hands with the surrender of the entire Spanish force. As result of the victory, Henry was in a strong position to enact the Edict of Nantes and to negotiate the peace of Vervins which was signed with Spain the following Spring. The siege was the last major military event in the Franco-Spanish War as well as the French Wars of Religion.

Spain under King Philip II of Spain had intervened regularly in the Wars of Religion in favour of the Catholic League against the Protestant Huguenots, most notably in the Siege of Paris (1590), the Siege of Rouen (1591), and the Battle of Craon in 1592. However, only in 1595 was war officially declared between the two countries by the new King Henry IV of France, who had converted to Catholicism and been received into Paris the year before to be crowned with popular support. From then on, the civil war began to turn against the hardliners of the Spanish supported Catholic League, including two major royal French victories over the Spanish at Fonatain-Francais and Ham in 1595. The Spanish responded to the faltering of the League and their own defeats with a great campaign that year and the next, capturing Le Catelet, Doullens, Cambrai, Calais and Ardres.

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