Magdalena Moons Begging her Fiancé to Postpone the Storming of Leiden, 1574

In the spring of 1574, the inhabitants of Leiden were starving because of the long siege by the Spaniards. The Spanish general Valdez decided to invade the weakened town. His lover Magdalena Moons promised to marry him if he would wait one more night. He agreed to do so; however, that very night the land was flooded because the Beggars (resistance fighters) broke through the dykes. The Spanish troops fled and Magdalena Moons became the heroine of the Relief of Leiden.