Ermergarde had married Reginald I of Guelders, who now claimed the Duchy of Limburg.

Unable to assert his claims, he sold them in 1283 to the mighty John I, Duke of Brabant.

Siegfried II of Westerburg, the Archbishop of Cologne and ruler of the Electorate of Cologne, traditional enemy of the Duke of Brabant, forged an alliance with Reginald I, joined by Henry VI, Count of Luxembourg, and his brother Waleran I of Luxembourg, Lord of Ligny, as well as by Adolf, King of Germany.

On the other side the Counts of Mark took the chance to affirm their independence from the Archbishop of Cologne and together with the Counts of Loon, Tecklenburg, and Waldeck allied with Brabant and Berg.

The citizens of the City of Cologne, eager to emancipate themselves from the Archbishop's rule, also joined this alliance.