The Sea Beggars were an international group of anti-Spanish exiles and criminals, among them many Englishmen. Their brazen piracy, however, forced Queen Elizabeth to disassociate herself from them and to bar their ships from English ports. On April 1, 1572 they captured Brielle, and subsequently other seaports in Zeeland and Holland (the Spanish Netherlands). Mixing with the native population, they quickly sparked rebellions against the Duke of Alba in town after town and spread the resistance southward.
