Painting of the flight of Dutch cavalry during street fighting with the Belgian Revolutionaries, 1830.

For more history content about the Low Countries check out r/nationalhistory (we need some more Belgians)

This is how a Dutch nationalist historian described the event in 1869.

On 23 September, Prince Frederick planned a general assault on Brussels with an army of more than 10,000 men. The main force, led by the prince himself, was to enter through the Schaerbeek Gate. To the left, General Post would advance on the Leuven Gate, and to the right, General Favauge on the Willem Gate. Further to the right, Colonel Van Balveren was ordered to enter the city through the Flemish Gate, or Porte de Flandre. Given the mixed nationality of Brussels’ population, even the name of the gate could be given in either Dutch or French.

Here we focus on the column of Van Balveren. The other three columns, as is known, entered Brussels on 23 September and became embroiled in brutal house-to-house and street fighting that continued on the 24th, 25th, and 26th. Despite their determination, the Dutch were ultimately forced to abandon the attempt and retreat from the city.

Van Balveren’s column reached the Porte de Flandre around eight in the morning. At first, it seemed no battle would take place, but rather a ceremonial entry:

“Parliamentarians approached the colonel and assured him that the revolt had been suppressed and that the people of Brussels would welcome us that day. Everywhere one saw orange ribbons and flags. This, combined with the possibility that the attack on the other side of the city had already begun, though we heard nothing of it, led Colonel Van Balveren to believe these shameless lies. His trust in these reports caused his detachment to fall victim to the most disgraceful treachery.”

The Dutch troops entered the city. Here and there, suspicious signs could be seen: houses remained closed, barricades had not been cleared, and deep pits lay across the streets, covered only with loose planks. But little attention was paid to these warning signs. A platoon of hussars led the column as it advanced toward the Varkensmarkt.

There, the situation suddenly changed.

The troops encountered barricades, and armed insurgents shouted at them to halt their advance and even demanded they surrender their weapons. For a brief moment, words were exchanged between the two sides. Then one of the insurgents raised his hat on the tip of a bayonet. This was the signal.

Suddenly, a deadly fire erupted from behind the barricades and from the windows of surrounding houses. Heavy furniture, boiling water, ash, and vitriol were thrown down from above. The hussars at the head of the column were quickly thrown into disorder and fled in panic through the ranks behind them.

This caused chaos throughout the column.

Infantrymen, seized by fear, threw away their weapons and equipment to escape more quickly. Two senior officers, Colonel Schenoffsky of the infantry and Major Van Borselen of the hussars, were captured by the insurgents. Many soldiers and horses were killed or wounded.

The confusion was so complete that only an hour outside the city were the fleeing troops able to regroup. Van Balveren’s column took no further part in the fighting in Brussels and withdrew on 25 September to the village of Asse, roughly halfway between Brussels and Aalst.

The full artikel