a town in Holland, the capital of Dutch Brabant. It is a large, populous, well built city, regularly fortified after the modern way, and is one of the strongest places on the Dutch frontiers. It is seated on the river Meck, in a marshy country, which may be overflowed and rendered inaccessible to an army. It is 4000 paces in circumference, and contains upwards of 2000 houses. The town is of a triangular figure, and the ramparts are all planted round with elms. At every angle there is a gate built with brick. The great church is a noble structure, remarkable for its fine spire, which is 362 feet high. The mausoleum of Angelbert II., count of Nassau, is a curious piece adorned with several statues and inscriptions suitable to the occasion. In 1577 the garrison delivered this city to the States-general; but it was retaken in 1581 by Claude de Barlaimont, assisted by the baron de Frein, who was prisoner therein. In 1590, prince Maurice took it again from the Spaniards.

In 1625 it was invested by Spinola; when it endured a siege too remarkable not to deserve a particular detail.

The citadel, which formed the residence of the princes of that family, was surrounded by a ditch of prodigious depth filled with water, and a strong wall defended by three great bastions; and the arsenal was celebrated for its extent, and the vast quantities of arms and military stores it contained. Spinola, perfectly acquainted with the strength of the place, thought he should expose his whole army to imminent destruction, should he attempt an assault before he had regularly carried on his approaches. He even resolved upon reducing the city by famine, as the method attended with least danger to his army; and accordingly began with drawing trenches round, for the space of four miles, erecting forts and redoubts at certain distances.

On the other hand, the garrison, consisting of seven thousand infantry, and several troops of horse, composed of English, French, and Dutch soldiers, took the most vigorous measures for their own defence. The English were under the command of Colonel Morgan, who had frequently distinguished his valour in the service of the states: the French were directed by Colonel de Haueterive; and the Dutch troops were subject to the immediate orders of Colonel Lohre, though the whole received their instructions from Justin de Nassau, the governor. The first advantage was gained by Bagioni, who seized a large convoy of provisions and stores coming up the river, converting the boats into a bridge. This loss dispirited the besieged, and reduced them to a stated allowance of bread; and what added to their misfortunes, though they were ignorant of it, was the death of Prince Maurice, from whom they were in hopes of receiving relief.

Meanwhile Spinola prosecuted the siege with the utmost diligence and vigour. On his pushing his trenches near the battlements, the beleaguered began a terrible fire to retard his approaches, and kept it up with such vehemence and obstinacy, that Spinola was in hopes they must soon surrender for want of ammunition. But here he formed a false judgment of the prudence of Justin de Nassau, who finding he could not accomplish his purpose by his firing, resolved to try the effect of water. With this view, he stepped up the course of the river Mark; and having formed a large basin of water, opened the sluices, swept away men, horses, and houles, in an inundation, and overflowed the whole country. The chief force of the torrent fell upon Spinola's quarters, and he exerted his utmost ability to remove the consequences. He dug large pits, and cut out ditches and canals to receive the water; but these being filled, and the whole ground covered over, so as to appear one uniform mass of water, served only to entrap his cavalry. The inundation was augmented by the rains which happened to fall; a mortality among the soldiers and horses ensued; and of his whole army, Spinola had scarce twelve thousand men fit for service by the month of December. With these inconsiderable remains, lines of vast extent were to be defended, the works were to be advanced, the fallies from the garrison repulsed, and provisions to be conveyed into the camp, while Spinola, the soul of action, was confined to a sick-bed.

In the garrison, an epidemical disease and scarcity likewise prevailed; but the excellent regulations made, and strictly observed, enabled the town to hold out three or four months beyond the time expected. The magistrates bought the corn for the bakers; obliging them to sell the bread to the inhabitants and garrison at a price affixed, and returning the surplus of their pay to the soldiers. A variety of other prudent regulations were established by the magistrates and governor, such as we do not find equalled by any instances recorded in history upon a similar occasion, and all evincing the steadiness, sagacity, courage, and ability, of Justin de Nassau. A kind of rivalry appeared between him and Spinola, which should best fulfil their several duties. The Spanish general caused himself to be carried about the works in a litter; he inspected and directed everything; and displayed the activity of full health at the time his life was in imminent danger from an acute malady. He ordered several breaches in the lines to be repaired. These the Hollander had made by sap, with a view of introducing succours to the beleaguered. He drove piles into all the ditches and canals through which their boats could pass. He made drains, to clear off the waters of the river Marec; and succeeded in a great measure by dint of perseverance, vigilance, and conduct. He was now reinforced with a body of eight thousand foot, and one thousand five hundred horse; many of the sick were perfectly recovered by his extreme care; and his army was again become formidable, amounting to twenty-five thousand infantry and eight thousand cavalry. Nor was prince Henry idle, who now succeeded to the titles titles and dominions of his brother Maurice, and was elected governor of Holland, Zealand, Guelderland, Utrecht, and Overysfel. He pressed France for assistance, and was joined by a body of cavalry under the conduct of the count de Rouffl and the marquis de Rambures. With this reinforcement, and a body of German infantry, he attacked the enemy's lines, and after an obstinate conflict was repulsed. He advanced a second time; but Spinola, who entertained a high opinion of his valour and conduct, did not choose to wait for him in his lines; he marched out with the greater part of his army, seized upon a convenient post, and obliged the prince a second time to retire towards Boisfleduc. Henry, finding no prospect of being able to relieve the garrison, sent a permission to the governor to surrender on the best conditions he could obtain. This plan, which was signed with no name, fell into the hands of the besiegers, and Spinola sent it open, by a trumpet, to Justin de Nassau, offering him an honourable capitulation; but that intrepid governor, suspecting the letter was forged, because it was anonymous, replied civilly, that a permission was not an order to surrender; and that he should better follow the prince of Orange's intention, and show his respect for Spinola, by continuing to defend the city to the last extremity.

By this time the garrison was diminished by disease, fatigue, want, and hardship, to half the original number; but Justin put on such a countenance, as concealed his situation from Spinola. He frequently faltered out upon Baglion's quarters, where the Italians were perishing with cold and hunger, the whole subsistence of the besiegers depending on the contributions raised in the neighbouring territories. This inconvenience produced a mutiny in the camp, that could not be appeased without applying violent remedies, and executing within sight of the whole army the chief ring-leaders. One of the mutineers blew up Spinola's chief magazine, valued at two hundred thousand livres. Urged more by necessity than compassion for the besieged, Spinola sent a message to the governor, exhorting him not to force him to extremities, which might be attended with fatal consequences to a brave garrison; but Justin, with equal art and dissimulation, answered, that Spinola was certainly ill served by his spies, as he appeared wholly unacquainted with the state of affairs in Breda, which was fully provided for a siege of several months, and defended by soldiers who preferred death to the necessity of surrendering. At that time the besieged were not informed of the death of the prince of Orange. They flattered themselves with the hopes of speedy succour, and were entirely ignorant of prince Henry's late disappointment. When they wrote to the army an account of their miserable condition, Henry returned an answer, written with his own hand, and signed with his name, apprising them of the death of Maurice, the unsuccessful attempts made to raise the siege and throw in succours, the great inferiority of his troops in point of numbers, and the death of king James, whereby he was disappointed of a strong reinforcement; concluding, that he left the city entirely to the discretion of the governor and other principal officers. Justin was thunderstruck with the contents of this letter. He had hitherto concealed the total want of provision and ammunition from the enemy, and his own garrison, except a few officers and other persons in whom he repose confidence. The colonels Hauterive and Morgan would listen to no propositions, laying, that the honour of their several countries were concerned, and that they were responsible for the conduct of the English and French forces. They therefore required an express order from the prince of Orange to surrender, notwithstanding they pined under the united pressure of fatigue, scarcity, and disease. Justin acquainted the prince with their resolution, and he sent back an order to surrender, threatening with capital punishment whoever should disobey; but he requested that the garrison would first acquaint him by a certain number of fires, lighted up in different parts of the city, how many days they should be able to hold out. Upon receipt of this order, eleven fires were kindled; but as the prince had sent a duplicate of the order by another messenger, and this fell into the hands of the enemy, Spinola was now acquainted with the desperate circumstances of the besieged. By this acquisition he likewise discovered the mystery of the eleven fires: a council of war was assembled to deliberate whether they should stay the eleven days, and then oblige the garrison to surrender at discretion, or immediately offer conditions worthy of so brave a garrison. The Spanish officers were of the former opinion; the count de Berg and Spinola supported the latter. At last the marquis, determined to pursue the dictates of his noble generosity, sent such terms as could not be refused. The count de Berg conducted the negociation. Two separate capitulations were drawn up, one for the garrison and the other for the city, and both the most honourable and advantageous that could be devised. They were accepted, and the garrison marched out on the 6th of June, after having sustained a siege for ten months, whereby they were diminished two-thirds; nor was the loss inferior on the part of the inhabitants. Spinola drew up his army to salute them, and surrounded by his field officers, paid particular compliments to the governor, the colonels Morgan, Hauterive, and Lohre. He distributed money among the soldiers, ordered the sick and wounded to be treated with the utmost tenderness, conveyed the rest in the manner most commodious for them to Gertruydenburgh, and displayed all the sentiments of a hero in the regard paid to the valour and merit of his enemies.

Breda was retaken by the prince of Orange, for the United Provinces, in 1637. There was a congress held there, and peace concluded, in 1667, between the Dutch and the English. E. Long. 4° 45'. N. Lat. 51° 35'.

(John Van), painter of history, landscape, and conversations, was born at Antwerp in 1683, the son of Alexander Van Breda, an artist who was much esteemed for landscapes, views of particular scenes in Italy, fairs, and markets, with a variety of animals and figures. He was instructed by his father; and having the advantage of a good example and a good director, added to his own great application, he continued his studies with his father till he was 18 years of age. Among the variety of capital paintings which were at that time in the possession of John de Wit at Antwerp, Breda fixed upon those of Velvet Brueghel, which he copied with extraordinary success; and he was also employed for nine- nine years in copying the pictures of several other great masters; which he performed with such incredible exactness as scarcely to leave it in the power of any judicious person to distinguish the originals from the copies. Having at length established his reputation in Holland, he went to London with Ryckbrack the sculptor, and there gradually rose into such esteem that he was visited by persons of the highest rank, and particularly patronized by the unfortunate Earl of Derwentwater, who was beheaded for rebellion in 1715. He found so much encouragement in London, that he was employed by the court and the nobility, and could scarce execute the large demands for his performances. After a residence of some years in England, he returned to Antwerp loaded with riches, the honourable testimonies of English liberality, as well as of his own merit; and in the year 1746, when Louis XIV. arrived in that city, he so far honoured this master as to purchase four of his pictures. One represented Christ at the sea of Tiberias; another, Christ performing miracles; and the other two were landscapes, with a number of figures, so exquisitely drawn and finished that it would be difficult to distinguish them from those of Velvet Brueghel. He certainly approached nearer to those great masters whose manner he imitated, namely, Brueghel and Wouvermans, than any other artist of his time. His landscapes are in the style and taste of the former, and his conversations, historical figures, fairs, skirmishes, or battles, are in the manner of the latter. His colouring is good; his touch neat; his skies and distances natural and beautiful; and his taste of design agreeable. He had as much fire in his composition, and perhaps more genius, than Brueghel, in those subjects which he painted in the style of that master; his figures are generally well placed, his grounds skilfully broken; every small figure hath its particular character, and occupies its proper place; and, in short, he is a painter of such a rank, that the value and estimation of his works must always increase. He died in 1750.