Battle of Gembloux

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Gembloux
partof=the Eighty Years' War


caption=
date=January 31, 1578
place=Gembloux, present-day Belgium
result=Decisive Spanish victory
combatant1=Dutch rebels
combatant2=
commander1=De Goignie
commander2=Alexander Farnese
strength1=25,000 men
strength2=17,000 men
casualties1=10,000 dead, wounded, or captured
casualties2=20 dead or wounded

The Battle of Gembloux marked a terrible defeat for the Protestant rebels fighting against Spain in the Eighty Years' War. On January 31 1578, an advance force of 1,200 cavalrymen from the main Spanish army of 20,000 men attacked the retreating Netherlandish army of around 20,000 men. The Dutch had about 7.000 men more than the Spanish, but the quality of the Dutch troops was too low to deliver the Spanish more damage. The small force under Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza succeeded in creating a panic and destroyed the Netherlandish army at Gembloux. Local resistance was crushed and the region pacified shortly afterwards.