Six hundred Franchimontois
| 600 Franchimontois | |||||||
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| Part of the Third Liège War | |||||||
 The Bueren-stairs in Liège |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Duchy of Burgundy
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
,_Comte_de_Charolais.svg){kind=small} Charles the Bold.svg){kind=small} Louis XI of France
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Vincent de Bueren † Gosuin de Streel † |
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| Strength | |||||||
| unknown | 600 men | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| unknown | 600 killed | ||||||
On the night of 29 October 1468 during the Siege of Liège, some six hundred Franchimontois, men from Franchimont, unsuccessfully attacked the besieging Burgundian army, with the aim of killing or capturing its leaders, Duke Charles the Bold and King Louis XI.
In 1468, the citizens of Liège rose up against Burgundian domination for the third time in four years. As a reaction, Charles the Bold had led an army towards Liège to deal once and for all with the rebellious city. He was accompanied by King Louis XI of France. When the siege became desperate for the Liègois, they decided to make a night attack with 600 men, led by Vincent de Bueren and Gosuin de Streel, over the Saint Walburga stairs against the sleeping Burgundians. Their aim was to kill the Duke and the King, so that the army would be left leaderless and retreat.
The plan failed, and all 600, including Vincent de Bueren and Gosuin de Streel, were killed. The Saint Walburga stairs were later renamed the "Bueren stairs". The next day Liège surrendered, and at the command of Charles the Bold, hundreds of Liègois were tied together and thrown into the Meuse river. The city was set alight and is said to have burned for seven weeks.
The story of the 600 Franchimontois has come to us through the chronicler Philippe de Commines, who was present in the Burgundian camp at the Siege of Liège.
It is difficult to know the true history behind the story of the 600 Franchimontois, because it has been used since 1831 by the newly independent Kingdom of Belgium as an example of self-sacrifice for the fatherland and of resistance against any invader, no matter how powerful he might be.
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