Beleg van Bergen op Zoom, 1622 1622

This is an anonymous print titled ‘Siege of Bergen op Zoom, 1622’, which was created in 1622. It depicts the siege of Bergen op Zoom, a pivotal event during the Eighty Years' War between the Dutch Republic and Spain. This print, with its detailed rendering of the siege, speaks to the fraught relationship between land, power, and identity during the 17th century. Who gets to claim a space, and how do they defend it? It asks us to consider the human cost of territorial disputes. In this conflict, the Protestant Dutch sought to defend their burgeoning independence from the Catholic Spanish Empire. Maps like this one often functioned as propaganda, shaping public perception and bolstering morale during times of conflict. It invites us to reflect on how images can be used to influence collective identities and geopolitical narratives. We are asked to consider the complex interplay between cartography, conflict, and cultural identity in shaping our understanding of history.