Inname en plundering van Neuss, 1586 1670 - 1699

Romeyn de Hooghe created this print depicting the ‘Inname en plundering van Neuss’ – the capture and plundering of Neuss – in 1686. The image shows the Spanish army’s brutal siege of the city two hundred years earlier. De Hooghe’s image makes meaning through a codified visual language of violence and power, referencing a specific historical event, and aligning itself with a broader cultural narrative around Dutch identity. It seems to valorize military strength and Spanish power. Historical research reveals that Neuss was besieged during the Eighty Years’ War, a conflict deeply intertwined with the formation of Dutch national identity. Through archives, we can analyze the print's production in the context of the Franco-Dutch War and the Year of Disaster in 1672. De Hooghe worked for William III, so the print may have been a form of political propaganda during a time of national crisis. Ultimately, understanding art requires us to investigate its historical, social, and institutional context.