POTTER United Families

very seriously sanctioned by the Court of Justice of Brabant. These
changes were applied suddenly everywhere by the Duke of Alba.
Any unhappy person was told that these changes were imposed by
Rome. All these were published, just one day before, while it took at
least seven days for people to prepare Christmas celebration (e.g.
brewing Christmas beer, cleaning the premises, etc.).
On June 23, the city of Harlem fell into the hands of the troops of
Don Frederico, son of the Duke of Alva, after an 8-month siege. His
men killed all foreign soldiers, as they did with many prominent
“bourgeois”, plus French and English soldiers who came to fight in
Brussels and Malines.
Some bourgeois, faithful to the Prince of Orange got their head cut
off, or, were thrown alive into the water with tied hands and feet,
despite having surrendered for lack of food.
The city of Haarlem having fallen, the Spanish troops of the Duke of
Alba forced inhabitants to pay ransoms and reveal the names faithful
of the Prince of Orange, who gave shelter to rebels.
The duke therefore decided to celebrate his victory noisily.
Incidentally, even by triumph, he removed his Italian and Spanish
officers from the procession that accompanied him through the city,
to be followed only by the conciliatory nobility, the Chimay's, the
Egmond's, the Aremberg's, the Mansfeld's, etc.!
The maritime city of Flessinghes-Vlissingen, which became
Calvinistic, close to the Scheldt, was soon decorated with triumphal
arches, colored columns, banners and emblems!
How can we understand and accept such cruel a behavior of the Duke
of Alva, and his son, imposing his revenge on everyone with such a
heavy reign of lies and terror, aimed at completely annihilating the
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