The camp of the new Duke of Brabant was situated on the banks of the Scheldt, and the army, although well disciplined, was agitated by a spirit easy to understand.

Indeed, many Calvinists assisted the duke, not from sympathy for him, but in order to be as disagreeable as possible to Spain and to the Catholics of France and England; they fought rather from self-love than from conviction or devotion, and it was certain that, the campaign once over, they would abandon their leader or impose conditions on him.  With regard to these conditions, the duke always gave them to understand that when the time came he should be ready, and was constantly saying, “Henri of Navarre made himself a Catholic, why should not I become a Huguenot?” On the opposite side, on the contrary, there existed a perfect unity of feeling.  Antwerp had intended to give entrance to him, at her own time and on her own conditions.

All at once they saw a fleet appear at the mouth of the Scheldt, and they learned that this fleet was brought by the high admiral of France, to aid the Duc d’Anjou, whom they now began to look upon as their enemy.  The Calvinists of the duke were little better pleased than the Flemings at the sight.  They were very brave, but very jealous:  and they did not wish others to come and clip their laurels, particularly swords which had slain so many Huguenots on the day of the St. Bartholomew.  From this proceeded many quarrels, which began on the very evening of their arrival, and continued all the next day.

From their ramparts, the Antwerpians had every day the spectacle of a dozen duels between Catholics and Protestants; and they threw into the river as many dead as a combat might have cost the French.  If the siege of Antwerp, like that of Troy, had lasted nine years, the besieged need have done nothing but look at the assailants, who would certainly have destroyed themselves.  Francois acted the part of mediator, but not without great difficulty; he had made promises to the Huguenots, and could not offend them without offending at the same time all Flanders.  On the other hand, to offend the Catholics sent by the king to aid him would be most impolitic.  The arrival of this re-enforcement, on which the duke himself had not reckoned, filled the Spaniards and the Guises with rage.  However, all these different opinions interfered sadly with the discipline of the duke’s army.  Joyeuse, who we know had never liked the mission, was annoyed to find among these men such antagonistic opinions, and felt instinctively that the time for success was past, and both as an idle courtier and as a captain, grumbled at having come so far only to meet with defeat.  He declared loudly that the Duc d’Anjou had been wrong in laying siege to Antwerp, and argued that to possess a great city with its own consent was a real advantage; but that to take by assault the second capital of his future states was to expose himself to the dislike of the Flemings; and Joyeuse knew the Flemings too well not to feel sure that if the duke did take Antwerp, sooner or later they would revenge themselves with usury.  This opinion Joyeuse did not hesitate to declare in the duke’s tent.