excellency supposed to be John de Riuas with
the forces of Flaunders: but shortly after ad-
vertisement came, that the Archduke was there
in person and had taken in Oudenborough by
competition, whereupon his excellencie be-
thought himself, howe he might best hinder his
nearer approach: and because he feared least in
the pursuite, the enemie might take in the [un-
known word] Albertus, and to cut off the pas-
sage betweene Newport and Ostend, he sent the
Regiment of the Scots on the Sundaie morning,
and the Regiment of the Almains under the com-
mand of Count Ernesius to hinder the passage by
a bridge, which was made by us in a bound land
betweene Oudenborough and the [unknown
word] Albertus, and so he should put them to
march three daies about, before they came on to
him, and then also it was in his choice, either to
fight or leave them, and returne to Ostend.
But the enemie had passed the Bridge be-
fore the Scots could come to make good the
place: and so they all fell under the execution of
the vanguard of the enemie, being all Spaniards,
and the choicest men of the Armie: and were
chased to the wals of Ostend.Maurice was highly regarded for even more than his mil-
itary prowess. An English writer later described him as
being “of great forwardness, good presence and courage,
flaxen haired, endued with a singular wit.”
Although Maurice fought the Spanish and forced
them to keep large armies in the Netherlands, his ally
Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, who controlled the nation-
state’s domestic and foreign affairs, decided to make
peace with the Spanish. In 1609, Oldenbarnevelt signed
a treaty with them that recognized the Netherlands and
called for a 12-year truce, which lasted from 1609 to
- A civil war then ensued between these two for-
mer allies; van Oldenbarnevelt was arrested in 1618, put
on trial for treason, and beheaded the following year.
In 1621, war with Spain broke out again, but old age
and internal disputes and struggles had taken a toll on
Maurice. In 1625, Breda was lost to the Spanish, led
by a vigorous new commander, Ambrosio Spinola, who
reimposed Spanish control over much of the country.
By that time, Maurice had contracted a liver ail-
ment, and on 23 April 1625 he died of the disease; he
was mourned throughout his homeland. In summing up
his legacy, the authors of The Wordsworth Dictionary of
Military Biography write: “The father of the independent
Netherlands, the moving spirit behind the weary strug-
gle for freedom, and the greatest martyr for the cause
was William the Silent, Prince of Orange and Count of
Nassau. The great military figure of the Netherlands’
turbulent childhood was, however, his son Maurice of
Nassau. William pointed the way, but it was Maurice
who achieved the victories which made success possible.
He was one of the ablest generals of his century, and
had considerable importance on a level far beyond the
Dutch struggle for independence.”References: The Triumphs of Nassau: or, A description
and representation of all the victories both by land and sea,
granted by God to the noble, high, and mightie lords, the
Estates generall of the united Netherland Provinces Under
the conduct and command of his excellencie, Prince Mau-
rice of Nassau, translated by W. Shute (London: Printed
by Adam Islip, 1613); A True Discourse of the Overthrowe
given to the common enemy at Turnhaut, the 14 of Janu-
ary last 1597 by Count Moris of Nassau and the states, as-
sisted with the Englishe forces... (London[?]: Printed by
Peter Short, 1597); The Battaile Fought Betweene Count
Maurice of Nassau, and Albertus Arch-Duke of Austria, nere
Newport in Flaunders, the xxij of June 1600... (London:
Printed for Andrew Wise, 1600); An Exact and True Rela-
tion in Relieving the Resolute Garrison of Lyme in Dorset-
shire, by the Right Honourable, Robert Earle of Warwicke,
Lord High Admirall of England... (London: Printed for
Mathew Walbanke, 1644); True Intelligence, and Joyfull
Newes from Ludlow, Declaring a Battell fought by his Excel-
lency the Earle of Essex, against Prince Robert, Prince Mau-
rice... (London: Printed for Th. Rider, 1642); Windrow,
Martin, and Francis K. Mason, “Maurice, Prince of Or-
ange and Court of Nassau,” in The Wordsworth Dictionary
of Military Biography (Herfordshire, U.K.: Wordsworth,
1997), 191–192.McClellan, George Brinton (1826–1885)
American general
The son of Dr. George McClellan and Elizabeth Brinton
McClellan, George B. McClellan was born in Philadel-
phia, Pennsylvania, on 3 December 1826. Because of
his father’s wealth and social standing, he attended the
finest prep school in the city and then the University of
Pennsylvania (1840–42), but he left when he was givenmcclellAn, geoRge bRinton