Magdalena Moons

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Magdalena Moons and her mother lived in the Hague when on October 30, 1573 the Hague was occupied by Francisco Valdez for the Spaniards. From March to May 1574, Valdez went to the south and when he came back he began the siege of Leiden. In the period of time that Valdez stayed in the Hague, Magdalena knew him and he fell in love with her. As his lover, Magdalena played an important role in the relief of Leiden (as the legend says) . At that time, the people were starving and Valdez was going to attack Leiden.

The legend is that Valdez postponed the siege because Magdalena wanted all of her friends and family to have a chance to leave Leiden. The postponement for just one day was fatal for Valdez's Spaniards. The Sea Begger's leader Louis Boisot had received a command from William of Orange's to flood the polders. The Spaniards had to flee and Boison's fleet could reach Leiden without any resistance. Leiden could be relieved

Later in time Francisco Valdez and Magdalena Moons got married in Antwerp. Some say she married him because of a promise she made when he postponed the siege of Leiden. Some say it was because of love. But whatever the reason, Magdalena was a special lady with both Dutch and Flemish ancestry on both her father's and mother's side of her family.

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English version : Magdalena Moons