ABC Wednesday O is for Oudenaarde

ABC Wednesday O is for Oudenaarde

The War of the Spanish Succession began because Great Britain, the Netherlands and the Holy Roman Empire were aghast at the possibility of a union between Spain and France under one Bourbon monarch.

The Battle of Oudenaarde in Flanders was a major battle in the War of the Spanish Succession and was fought between the British, Dutch, Danes, Austrians, Hanoverians and Prussians on one side and the French and Bavarians in opposition. Scots, Irish, Germans and Swiss fought on both sides. It took place on 11^th July, 1708 and was the Duke of Marlborough’s third victory in the field over Louis XIV’s army.

 

The Duke of Marlborough in his garter robes

Image courtesy of Wikipedia

The British and their allies were commanded by the Duke of Marlborough, aided by his close friend, the commander of the Empire’s army, Prince Eugène of Savoy. The French and Bavarians were under the command of the Duc de Bourgogne and the Duc de Vendôme. The latter was an experienced soldier but the Duke of Burgundy was much less proficient and had gained his position by dint of being the grandson of King Louis XIV. Quarrelling and poor communication between the two denied the French the possibility of defeating the British at their one remaining fortress at Oudenaarde and cutting them off from the coast and communication with England.

Half the French army did not engage in battle at all, being kept in reserve, and there were many other ill-considered decisions. In the end, as dusk fell, the tattered French army fled the field, leaving the allies victorious.

The future King George II fought with the allies in the Hanoverian army and had his horse shot under him. He was the last British monarch to be born outside Great Britain, becoming King of England in 1727. He later rode at the head of his troops at the Battle of Dettingen in 1743 and was the last British monarch to lead his army into battle.

Thanks as ever to Denise Nesbitt and her team for hosting and organising this weekly meme. Click here to see more Os.

ABC Wednesday M is for Malplaquet and Marlborough

John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough by Sir Godfrey Kneller, Bt

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

The Battle of Malplaquet was fought on 11^th September, 1709 in Flanders. It was one of the main battles of the War of Spanish Succession which continued from 1701 -1714 and concerned the potential unification of Spain and France under a French Bourbon monarch. Unification was a resolution supported by the Spanish loyal to Philip V of Spain, heir also to the French throne, but unacceptable to those Spanish loyal to Archduke Charles.

The allied army consisted mainly of Dutch and Austrian troops supported by British, Hanoverian, Prussian and Danish military who opposed French and Bavarian forces. Scots, Irish, Swiss and Germans fought on both sides of the action. The allies were commanded by John Churchill, 1^st Duke of Marlborough, and Prince Eugene of Savoy. The opposing armies were led by Marshal Duc de Villars and Marshal Duc de Boufflers. It was said that every European nationality was represented in the combat.

The armies were of roughly equivalent size, 100,000 men taking to arms on each side.

In the spring of 1709 King Louis XIV made informal approaches to Marlborough hoping to end a conflict that had been calamitous for France. Marlborough was unable to offer terms acceptable to Louis XIV and so the war continued.

In the summer of that same year Villars had charge of a large army but Marlborough captured Tournai and advanced towards Mons. Villars took up position north of Malplaquet, where the main road to Mons passed through a gap in the thick forest.

By 29^th August the armies were within sight and strike of each other. Marlborough wanted to attack immediately but was forced to defer to senior officers who wished to await reinforcements. Villars used the time to further fortify his position. The arrival of Boufflers boosted the morale of the French military. On August 30^th the Dutch insisted that the attack be delayed again and so the French had yet more time to strengthen their defences.

18th century engraving of the Battle of Malplaquet by Claude du Bosc

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Finally the assault began at 9:00 am on September 11^th. At 1:00 pm Villars was seriously wounded by a musket ball that smashed his knee and passed command to Boufflers. After a fierce cavalry battle when the French drove back the Allies several times but were themselves driven back by infantry fire, Boufflers realised that further fighting was futile and ordered the withdrawal of his troops at 3:00 pm. They did so in good order but the allies had lost so many men that they could not pursue them.

Malplaquet was a pyrrhic victory. It was Marlborough’s fourth defeat of Louis XIV’s French army. It was also the bloodiest and most costly. Marlborough said, The French have defended themselves better in this action than in any battle I've seen.’ The allies lost 25,000 men – the French, 17,000. 

It was widely rumoured that Marlborough had been killed, giving rise to one of the most popular French folk songs, ‘Marlborough s’en va-t-en guerre’ (Marlborough has left for the war) and is sung to the tune of ‘For he’s a jolly good fellow’.

Below is the first verse, in the original French with an English version of the time. There were also Spanish and German renditions.

Original French			English
Marlbrough s'en va-t-en guerre, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, Marlbrough s'en va-t-en guerre, Ne sait quand reviendra.			Marlbrook the Prince of Commanders       Is gone to war in Flanders,       His fame is like Alexander's,       But when will he ever come home?      Mironton, mironton, mirontaine

Villars informed his King, ‘If it please God to give your majesty's enemies another such victory, they are ruined.’ Nonetheless Mons fell to the allies in October.

The news of Malplaquet, the grimmest battle of the 18^th century, shocked Europe and Queen Anne did not send Marlborough a personal letter of thanks as she had done after previous victories.

Marlborough was known informally as ‘The Great Captain’. To his soldiers he was nicknamed ‘Corporal John’ and recognised as a leader who was concerned for his men and attentive to their needs.

The Spanish War of Succession continued for a further five years. Eventually Philip V was recognised as the legitimate King of Spain but was forced to renounce his claim to the French throne. 

Many thanks to the Marvellous Denise Nesbitt and the Marvellous Members of her Magnificent team who organise and host this weekly Meme. Click here to see more Ms.