As a part of William of Orange's planned invasion, the Dutch rebels were trying to conquer the town of Roermond when the arrival of the Spanish force compelled them to withdraw.

[7] An army of Huguenots and Netherlander refugees would attack Artois across the French border; another, under William's brother Louis, would try to raise the province of Friesland in arms against the Spanish; and a third one, under Antoine II de Lalaing, Count of Hoogstraten, would operate in the Meuse-Rhin area.

[7] The first force to be put in arms was that of Hoogstraten, though he had to be replaced by Jean de Montigny, Lord of Villers, who crossed the frontier of the Jülich-Cleves County on April 20 accompanied by William II de La Marck, Lord of Lumey,[8] and in charge of about 3,000 men, both cavalry and infantry,[1] amongst them French Huguenots and German cavalry recently dismissed from Spanish service.

[2] As soon as he received news of the invasion, Alba organized an improvised army to secure Maastricht and prevent the junction of the Dutch rebels with his French fellows.

[9] 300 horse in all,[8] which were later reinforced with the tercio of Londoño, Lope's cavalry, and four companies of German pikemen, numbering 300 men, from Colonel's Count of Eberstein regiment, from the Maastricht garrison.

[10] Villers deployed his troops for the battle on a plain with some groves behind and a hollow way covering one of his flanks, and dispatched his baggage towards Dahlen as soon as he learned of Dávila's presence nearby.

[10] After a brief reconnaissance, Dávila, together with the Count of Eberstein and the cavalry companies under captains don Alonso de Vargas and Nicolò Basta, charged across the plain and frontally lunged over the rebel squadrons, which they broke.

[10] By early afternoon, the 300 German pikemen were detached behind the ravelin to prevent any attempt to flee,[2] while 600 Spaniards, organized in five flags and under the personal leadership of Londoño, were ready to make a frontal attack over the fort, which they did shortly thereafter.

Dávila went to Brussels with the foremost captives to execute them, the Count of Eberstein returned to Maastricht with his German pikemen, and Sancho de Londoño lodged his men at Roermond, where he ordered several prisoners – natives of the place – to be hanged.