her De
Courcy claimed several Swiss towns. As the present Austrian
Duke, Leopold II, who held nominal suzerainty over
Switzerland, refused to give them up, De Courcy invaded
Swiss territory with a large force and a fury which at first
threw the country into panic. But at last the Swiss
recovered their old spirit of bravery, and in many severe
encounters they either killed or chased out of the country
the whole ruthless host of invaders.

This war is known in Swiss chronicles as the _Guglerkrieg_,
either from the pointed spikes on the helmets of the Swiss
soldiers or from the cowls which many of them wore. It is
also called the "English War," although De Courcy's men were
nearly all from the Continent and Wales.

The Swiss soon had need of their old military prowess, which
this defence of their country against foreign invaders had
freshly put to the proof. By the victory of Sempach, July 9,
1386, their independence was practically won, and by later
acts of valor and statesmanship they made it secure for many
years.

Austria's conduct soon began once more to disturb the Swiss, and to
threaten a renewal of hostilities. Her first act of importance was the
conquest of the Tyrol, after which, under pretence of benefiting the
pilgrims to Einsiedeln,[72] but in reality to separate Glarus from
Zurich, she built a bridge across the lake at Rapperschwyl. The
possession of this bridge by Austria acted as a perpetual hinderance to
Zurich's trade with the South, and was accordingly greatly resented by
the city. Austria's position, as ruler in so many burghs that, from
their situation and the nationality of their inhabitants, were
essentially Swiss, also acted as a never-ending source of trouble. Her
rule was both harsh and unjust, and, as a result, her local governors
were extremely unpopular. In 1386 the anti-Austrian feeling in
Switzerland had grown to such a pitch that popular outbreaks against her
authority were, in many centres, of frequent occurrence, and war
appeared inevitable.

From Lucerne came the final troubles that precipitated the country again
into a conflict with Austria. Previous to the actual declaration of war,
constant collisions in the neighborhood of Lucerne had for some time
past taken place, with all the horrors and savagery of war. In 1385 a
body of men from Lucerne attacked and demolished the castle town of
Rothenburg, the residence of an Austrian bailie. Next, bo